2023-01-17 Special Meeting
Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes
January 17, 2023
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EDMONDS CITY COUNCIL
SPECIAL MEETING MINUTES
APPROVED MINUTES
January 17, 2023
ELECTED OFFICIALS PRESENT
Mike Nelson, Mayor
Neil Tibbott, Council President
Vivian Olson, Councilmember
Will Chen, Councilmember (arrived 6:27 p.m.)
Diane Buckshnis, Councilmember
Susan Paine, Councilmember
Dave Teitzel, Councilmember
Jenna Nand, Councilmember
STAFF PRESENT
Jeff Taraday, City Attorney
Scott Passey, City Clerk
Jerrie Bevington, Camera Operator
1. CALL TO ORDER
The special Edmonds City Council meeting was called to order at 6:20 p.m. by Mayor Nelson in the
Council Chambers, 250 5th Avenue North, Edmonds, and virtually.
2. EXECUTIVE SESSION TO DISCUSS PENDING OR POTENTIAL LITIGATION, RCW
42.30.110(1)(I)
At 6:20 p.m., the Council convened in executive session to discuss pending or potential litigation per
RCW 42.30.110(1)(i).
The executive session concluded at 6:30 p.m.
3. RECONVENE IN OPEN SESSION
The meeting was reconvened at 6:30 p.m.
4. INTERVIEW FOR APPOINTMENT TO CITY BOARD OR COMMISSION
1. INTERVIEW CANDIDATE FOR APPOINTMENT TO BOARD/COMMISSION
Council President Tibbott described the interview process.
The Council interviewed Paul Cogley for appointment to Art Commission position #7 (responses in
italics):
Most of my life I’ve led a double life as a musician and an engineer. I’ve played in bands all my life. In
2016 I was working at Boeing as an engineer and took early retirement. I’m now a professional
musician; I recorded an album with friends, I built a studio. In 2020, I released an album with music that
I played, wrote and recorded. That album did surprisingly well and I released another album in August
Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes
January 17, 2023
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2022 that has done remarkably well. I decided if I am going to be a local superstar, I want to develop a
platform that is inclusive and celebrates diversity, My Instagram account reflects that and features
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Juneteenth, etc. I realized I wanted to dedicate the rest of my life to creating
music that unifies people. I saw the opportunity to apply for the Arts Commission as a great chance to
push that further.
Councilmember Buckshnis asked his thoughts about the Creative District. I’ve read the Creative Plan for
Edmonds and I think I fall right into it because there is discussion about bringing different culture music
into Edmonds. Different culture music is a great opportunity to expose people. Different culture music
includes different time signatures, weird musical scales, it changes minds and rewires brains. My main
agenda is to encourage that.
Councilmember Olson commented there is nothing in his resume for her to ask questions about; he seems
like a perfect fit and she is excited he came forward. She congratulated him on his albums. She is always
blown away by the multifaceted aspect of every engineer she ever meets.
Councilmember Chen recognized his unique qualification and mixture of skills as an engineer and
musician and releasing three albums. He looked forward to him serving on the Arts Commission.
Councilmember Nand commented volunteers are what make the City run so well. There is a lot of public
art investment in the Creative District which is centered around Edmonds bowl. She asked his ideas for
distributing the reach of public art to all neighborhoods in the City. Marketing is everything. Of all the
places I’ve lived in the world and in the States, Edmonds is the greatest place for arts. People recognize
Edmonds as a creative center, anything that builds on that and spreads that word would be a good thing.
I’m not sure if there has been an effort in Edmonds to bring in difficult culture music, that is on my
agenda. Councilmember Nand commented there has been great engagement with sculpture and public art
installations such as with the Indigenous community for example, but she was unsure there was much of a
music aspect so it would be interesting to pursue that.
Councilmember Teitzel appreciated his interest in music, commenting music is a key part of the arts
community as reflected by the ECA, concerts in the park, music at markets, etc. He asked what kind of
music he played and what instrument he played. I’m primarily a guitar player but I’ve been into
keyboards for about 20 years. I’ve always played in typical Seattle rock bands and have only marketed
my music through Spotify and Instagram. With Spotify, it is possible to look at the metrics of who is
listening to your music and where they live. I’m astonished to see that my music has a global appeal. As
my accent reveals, I’m not American born, but having lived and worked all over the world, I’ve been
exposed to different things which has made me somewhat of a global musician. I’m excited about different
culture music, recognizing what it has done for me.
Councilmember Paine commented she listened to his music and found it really awesome. She
congratulated him on doing a beautiful job of failing retirement. She loved the direction of his thinking
because there are many wonderful opportunities in Edmonds to bring in different cultural aspects and to
have a broader array of musical opportunities. She was happy he would be working with the Arts
Commission. She pointed out the Lunar New Year celebration in Edmonds on Saturday which will
include a lion dance and should be a lot of fun. My wife and I plan to attend.
Council President Tibbott advised approval of his appointment to the Arts Commission is on tonight’s
Consent Agenda.
Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes
January 17, 2023
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5. ADJOURN
With no further business, the Council meeting was adjourned at 6:44 p.m.
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SCOTT PASSEY, CITY CLERK