2023-04-04 Regular Meeting
Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes
April 4, 2023
Page 1
EDMONDS CITY COUNCIL MEETING
APPROVED MINUTES
April 4, 2023
ELECTED OFFICIALS PRESENT
Vivian Olson, Council President Pro Tem
Will Chen, Councilmember
Diane Buckshnis, Councilmember
Susan Paine, Councilmember
Dave Teitzel, Councilmember
Jenna Nand, Councilmember
ELECTED OFFICIALS ABSENT
Mike Nelson, Mayor
Neil Tibbott, Council President
STAFF PRESENT
Whitney Rivera, Municipal Court Judge
Uneek Mayor, Court Administrator
Todd Tatum, Comm. Serv. & Econ. Dev. Dir.
Jeff Taraday, City Attorney
Nicholas Falk, Deputy City Clerk
Jerrie Bevington, Camera Operator
1. CALL TO ORDER/FLAG SALUTE
The Edmonds City Council meeting was called to order at 7 p.m. by Council President Pro Tem Olson in
the Council Chambers, 250 5th Avenue North, Edmonds, and virtually. The meeting was opened with the
flag salute.
2. LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Councilmember Buckshnis read the City Council Land Acknowledge Statement: “We acknowledge the
original inhabitants of this place, the Sdohobsh (Snohomish) people and their successors the Tulalip
Tribes, who since time immemorial have hunted, fished, gathered, and taken care of these lands. We
respect their sovereignty, their right to self-determination, and we honor their sacred spiritual connection
with the land and water.”
3. ROLL CALL
Deputy City Clerk Nicholas Falk called the roll. All elected officials were present with the exception of
Council President Tibbott and Mayor Nelson.
4. PRESENTATIONS
1. MUNICIPAL COURT ANNUAL REPORT
Judge Whitney Rivera reviewed the 2023 Municipal Court Report:
• 2022 Summary
o 3,238 cases filed in Edmonds Municipal Court
o The case types break down as follows:
1,357 traffic infractions
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15 non-traffic infractions
1,278 parking infractions
67 DUI cases
56 criminal traffic cases
465 criminal non-traffic cases
• Process for criminal cases:
• 2022 Hearings by Type
o 532 arraignments
o 63 bench warrant quash hearings
o 115 competency reviews
o 582 ex parte hearings
o 97 guilty plea/sentencing hearings
o 92 motions without testimony
o 27 motions with testimony (CrRLJ 3.5/3.6)
o 1,370 pretrial hearings
o 219 sentence compliance review hearings (i.e., probation violations)
o 4 jury trials
• Interpreters in court
o American Sign Language o Marshallese
o Amharic o Mongolian, Halh
o Arabic Moroccan Spoken o Panjabi, Eastern
o Arabic, Standard o Portuguese
o Cham, Western (Cambodian) o Romanian
o Chines, Mandarin o Russian
o Chinese, Yue (Cantonese) o Samoan
o Chuukese o Somali
o Farsi, Western o Spanish
o French o Swahili
o Haitian Creole French o Tagalog
o Indonesian o Thai
o Japanese o Tigrigna
o Korean o Vietnamese
• Community Court Update
o $160,984 grants from AOC for therapeutic court use (SB 5476)
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o Identifying individuals with substance use disorders and other behavioral health needs
o Engaging those individuals with community based therapeutic interventions
o Covers some personnel expenses, staff training, equipment, and participant services
o Continue trying to find ways to expand and improve community outreach
• Probation Services
o Edmonds Municipal Court has two probation officers
o Offering three weekly Moral Reconation Therapy (MRT) classes
o Two of these classes are specifically focused on domestic violence (DV/MRT)
o Meeting clients, teaching classes, and offering services at the Community Court location
when more convenient for the individual
• Kudos Hearing
o Unique to Edmonds
o Individuals involved with court share stories about progress made
o Probation officers offer care, compassion and services
• Passports
o Resumed passport processing November 1, 2021 using an appointment system
Processed 128 passport in 2022
Became clear that appointment system was not meeting needs of community
o On January 23, 2023 changed to walk-in passport processing Monday through Friday from
8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Based on change, have already processed 436 passports in 2023
Collected $9,000/month in 2023, the highest since began processing passports in 2002
• Looking forward
o Bringing electronic home monitoring with victim notification technology to Edmonds
Municipal Court
o Updating jury summons system
o If passed, SB 5536 will make knowing possession of a controlled substance a gross
misdemeanor with pretrial diversion and mandatory jail sentences/sanctions upon non-
compliance with treatment
Has potential to increase jail costs. Anyone that is convicted who does not follow through
with treatment receives mandatory 21 days in jail (as it came out of the Senate) and 45
days for the next offense
o Washington State Crime Laboratory delays and impacts on Edmonds Municipal Court
Councilmember Chen expressed appreciation for the update on the court, noting it is an amazing court
that does more than judge right or wrong; it is a place where people can access services such as
interpretative services, food bank, partnerships, probation classes, etc. Going through the court system can
be nerve racking, especially for those with language barriers. He observed the total number of cases have
decreased between 2020 and 2022; the total number of cases in 2020 was 4,524, 4,191 in 2021, and 3,238
in 2022. From those numbers, the trend looks like society is doing well and headed in the right direction,
but as a councilmember he receives many phone calls and emails about speeding, car thefts and other
crimes. He asked Judge Rivera to elaborate on the answers she emailed to him.
Judge Rivera answered the court tries to try to infer those trends; the court is a receptacle, taking in cases.
Reasons for fewer filing can include fewer law enforcement officers to respond to calls, doing proactive
policing or issuing infractions. For example, there was a big reduction in parking infractions; it makes
sense if the City is short on officers, parking infractions would be deprioritized. It is hard for the court to
judge impacts; for example, as she explained regarding possession of controlled substances, that could go
into effect in July 2023 and result in 15 more cases because the court already sees those individuals on
other types of crimes or it could result in 500 more cases. That was true with fireworks, court staff
thought they would inundated with fireworks cases, but that did not happen. She summarized the decrease
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was likely due to fewer police staff not referring as many cases. The data she provided illustrated the de-
prioritization of infractions while criminal numbers were more constant.
Judge Rivera continued, with regard to case filings as a measure, she usually sees written hearings for
about 15-20 parking infractions/month and 4-5 people who come to court to discuss their parking
infraction. That increases the amount of work for court staff who spend a lot of time processing
infractions, but it does not always translate to what happens in the court. She anticipated the numbers
would fluctuate in the coming years, recalling they initially thought the decrease was COVID-related but
are realizing it is actually due to staff shortages.
Councilmember Buckshnis asked if the court was fully staffed. Judge Rivera answered other than the
community navigator which was funded by the OAC grant, the court is fully staffed. Councilmember
Buckshnis remarked the court had a great team and she was happy that issues with processing passports
had been resolved. She referred to a statement in the packet that the Senate budget includes $23.7 million
for land acquisition and design of two consolidated crime laboratory facilities along the I-5 corridor and
asked where those would be located and whether law enforcement was also involved. Judge Rivera
answered those are funds the legislature is trying to allocate for the Washington State Patrol Crime Lab to
address backups in processing evidence that requires analysis such as drug tests, blood tests, DNA, rape
kits, etc. She offered to provide additional information. She did not know where those facilities would be
built; she included that information so council was aware there was an effort to fix the problems caused
by the delay in processing evidence that needed to be presented in court. Councilmember Buckshnis
asked Judge Rivera to advise if the council could help by writing letters, etc., noting she had heard about
the backlog, but had not heard about the legislature budgeting funds for additional facilities.
Councilmember Nand thanked the court for the incredible work they do in the community, recognizing
that Judge Rivera and her staff are at the frontline of a lot of emotionally fraught issues that impact
people’s lives, especially as people experience incredible pressures from the third year of the pandemic
and socioeconomic pressures. She relayed a series of questions, some related to policy which she
recognized due to constraints on her speech, Judge Rivera may not be able to comment on. Under the
constitution, there is a guaranteed right to a speedy trial and although pretrial detention is likely not as
much of an issue with low level offenses, prolonged contact with the criminal justice system can be very
stressful and harmful even before someone is convicted of a crime. She asked whether public defenders
seem over-leveraged in their workload and whether it would be beneficial for Snohomish County to hire
more public defenders so defendants could have a speeder trial process.
Judge Rivera answered as a former public defender herself, public defenders are always over leveraged.
The work the attorneys who appear in the municipal court are doing is extremely comprehensive,
including dealing with people with mental health disorders, substance use disorders, getting social
workers involved, etc. which result in cases pending for a long time which she assumed was because
important work was being done by the attorneys. She agreed the longer a case is pending, the more time it
gives someone to fail to appear and if they fail to appear and she makes a good cause finding that an
appearance is necessary, a warrant will be issued and the person will be booked into custody which
definitely impacts people dealing with mental health, poverty, and substance use disorders.
Judge Rivera continued, having more attorneys doing the work would always be better; when anyone has
too much work to do, they tend to do their work less well or what she sees with many young attorneys,
they work very late and are incoherent when they come to court the next day. Public defenders have
caseload standards; caseloads in EMC are different and the attorneys who appear before her are clearly
working long hours all the time and the relationships they have built with their clients are evident. She
summarized cases could move more quickly, and where they are delayed, she assumed it was because
important work was being done. A lot of delays are due to investigation and referral to services and less
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often due to the attorney. For example, with a referral for mental health evaluation, the evaluation is often
not conducted for months while the case languishes. A system feels more fair when both sides are
robustly represented.
Councilmember Nand commented on the national conversation regarding cashless bail and the
acknowledgement that cash bail is unfairly punitive to people of modest means. She asked for Judge
Rivera’s opinion on that. Judge Rivera referred to Washington’s CrR 3.2 which identifies a series of
factors. The only time she can set bail on someone is if she finds they are at risk of committing a violent
offense, interfering with the administration of justice, or if at risk of failure to appear. There are several
factors she has to consider in CrR 3.2 including someone’s financial circumstances which is something
she weighs heavily every day. For example, if someone appears for stealing food and has missed court
hearings in another jurisdiction because they are unhoused and dealing with mental health, that will weigh
into how she applies those factors. Due to the Code of Judicial Conduct, she is typically not supposed to
comment on policy. She applies the laws in front of her and CrR 3.2, when compared nationally, there is a
presumption of release in all cases. The court does their best in applying those factors.
Judge Rivera continued, due to the types of case that come through EMC, there are not a lot of people in
pre-trial detention, and the court tries to use things such as alcohol monitoring for someone who cannot
drink while their case is pending which she authorizes the use of public funds for someone who is
indigent. There is GPS monitoring and probation check-ins to ensure people are staying on track. She is
somewhat limited in what she can order people to do; for example, she cannot order people into alcohol
treatment when they have not yet been convicted. It is an important conversation, especially due to
disproportionate impacts and people pleading guilty to get out of jail and not exercising their rights.
Councilmember Nand referred to the victim notification technology and how that could impact victims of
domestic violence who have protection orders. She asked Judge Rivera to comment on MRT,
commenting councilmembers often hear the system is sympathetic to offenders and disregards victims,
but it sounds like there is a strong posture of restorative justice in the court. She asked if victim
involvement and reconciliation was part of that. Judge Rivera answered not directly through EMC’s
probation department. The victim notification technology is more focused on providing a service to
people; a no contact order is a legal document that prohibits someone from doing things, it does not
necessarily stop them for doing those things if they want to so the goal is to provide more tools to keep
victims safe. With regard to restorative justice, while that does not formally happen in EMC, everyone
discussing the harm that was caused and developing a solution often happens informally between the two
attorneys and the parties. EMC’s in-custody calendar, which is still hybrid via Zoom, often includes
family members, alleged victims, and affected parties, and allows everyone to be heard regardless of their
affiliation to the case.
Councilmember Nand referred to the AOC grants which previously covered things like ORCA cards and
food and asked how that is impacting the lives of indigent defendants when they come to the court. Ms.
Maylor answered she gives out a lot of ORCA cards; a lot of individuals cannot get to court because they
weren’t able to reach EMC. Judge Rivera recently asked for another grant for Uber and an Uber account
has been established for people to reach community court, the regular courthouse or a probation
appointment. She also gives out a lot of sack lunches. In the DV MRT class at the Highway 99
community court, a lot of individuals are provided snacks purchased via the grant which often results in
robust conversations. It is amazing how much more information a person will share when their stomach is
full and they can comprehend questions and engage. Councilmember Nand suggested the court inform the
council if there was a need for the council to support that work via a budget request.
Councilmember Teitzel commented good things are happening in the court. He enjoyed the Kudos
Hearing and found it very uplifting to see good outcomes. He asked about the reduction in caseload since
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the City is no longer processing DWLS 3 infractions. Judge Rivera answered it has reduced filings; there
may still be a handful of DWLS cases or related to other traffic offenses, for example there was a trial last
year for a hit and run while driving with license suspended. She still frequently sees individuals on no
valid operator license infractions; they appear on the pro se infraction calendar with no attorney, just the
person with infraction, the court clerk and herself. If they come in with their license, the Edmonds Police
Department and prosecutor’s office have agreed on a policy that it will be dismissed subject to payment
of a $25 administration fee. She recalled 5-6 years ago DWLS 3 was more than 50% of the filings. She
still interacts with those cases in terms of legal written requests for relief from legal financial obligations.
Until the 2015 case that Judge Coburn presented about extensively, a lot of legal financial obligations
were imposed in courts that should not have been. The court receives written applications and she
determines if any of the costs, fees and assessments should be waived which allows people to get
relicensed more quickly. She summarized the court is still interacting with people, but they are not
charged with a criminal offense, the City is not paying for a public defender to represent them, but the
court does everything it can to get them licensed so they can drive legally.
Councilmember Teitzel relayed some cities such as Lynnwood passed legislation to criminalize public
use of illegal drugs such as fentanyl. He asked if SB 5536 passes, how would that square those laws,
whether it had a compounding affect. Judge Rivera answered as SB 5536 moved through the Senate and
House, some versions have preemption language related to drug paraphernalia. As a result some cities’
laws will be preempted depending on what version comes out of the legislature. There is a lot of
concurrent jurisdiction over certain types of offenses such as possession of drug paraphernalia that can be
charged under RCW 16.50 and under Edmonds City Code and sometimes those aren’t the same. Unless
there is preemption language, the cities’ laws will likely continue to exist and it will be a prosecuting
attorney’s discretion whether to file under RCW, the city code or both.
Councilmember Paine congratulated Judge Rivera on getting grants, noting she has gotten grants for all
the right reasons, to help the people using to access bus services, food and snacks. She agreed once
someone has food in their stomach, they are better able to think and talk. She relayed her understanding
that the new school zone speed cameras could impact the number of infractions. She asked Judge Rivera
to repeat what she emailed to her about the three month delay. Ms. Maylor answered it will impact staff,
but that impact is unknown because a lot of other cities with school zone cameras also have red light
cameras which Edmonds does not. She has visited Lake Forest Park, Lynnwood, and the Administrative
Office of the Courts and it looks like everything works well as long as there is training on the programs
and a policy in place for processing cases. The lag time in issuing citations is completely up to law
enforcement and is based on what they need to do. Law enforcement and the court are in the process of
ensuring all the technology works; it is difficult to have a system that is not web-based talk to another
technology.
Councilmember Paine assured she has not heard even a whisper of Edmonds installing red light cameras.
Judge Rivera said jurisdictions that have a lot of red light cameras have full days of hearings with
hundreds of people in the courtroom. She anticipated the school zone speed cameras could have a
deterrent effect at the beginning and filings may not increase. She offered to keep the council informed.
Councilmember Paine requested the court provide the council an update when that system is operational
and when/if SB 5536 is approved, especially due to mandatory sentences under SB 5536. She was
stunned by the increase in jail costs; the daily rate has increased approximately 70% since she joined the
council. She encouraged the court to continue to look for grants. Judge Rivera was hopeful one of the
results of the current legislative session was there would be ongoing funding sources that would not
require applying for grants.
Council President Pro Tem Olson related the Public Safety, Planning, Human Services and Personnel
Committee has done some preliminary legwork regarding SB 5536. She thanked Judge Rivera and Ms.
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Maylor for their time and effort related to victim protection technology, anticipating it will be very
worthwhile.
2. CITY ATTORNEY ANNUAL REPORT
Council President Pro Tem Olson commented the 2021 City Attorney Annual Report was delayed due to
scheduling issues and was done late last year so some of the information provided in that report will not
be recapped again.
City Attorney Jeff Taraday reviewed:
• City Attorney Team
o Jeff Taraday
o Sharon Cates
o Patricia Taraday
o Beth Ford
o Tom Brubaker
o Angela Tinker
o Mike Bradley (not an owner of Lighthouse, provides specialty services related to cable TV
franchising and federal communication law)
• City Attorney Team Stats January 1, 2022 – December 31, 2022
o Lighthouse worked 3,508 hours for Edmonds in 2022
o 2022 Top 10 Matters
10. Park & Recreation (102 hours)
9. City Clerk (119 hours)
8. Police (158 hours)
7. Tupper OPMA (213 hours)
6. Human Resources (242 hours)
5. Development Services (270 hours)
4. Public Works (318 hours)
3. Engineering (536 hours
2. City Council (558 hours)
1. Ebb Tide (587 hours)
• Lighthouse worked 3,508 hours for Edmonds in 2022
o Earned flat monthly fee of $53,953 ($647,436 for all of 2022) for all civil work including
litigation
= $185 average effective hourly rate
• Comparing $185 to the rates paid by the city’s comparable cities in 2022
o Issaquah (Madrona): $250-310
o Mukilteo (Ogden Murphy Wallace: $238-281 (with most hours $238-260)
o Lynnwood (Kenyon Disend): $195-370
o Lake Stevens (Ogden Murphy Wallace): Need to obtain rates
o Issaquah and Lynnwood rates the result of a post covid onset RFP process so representative
of current rates
• Stability of Lighthouse Team
Attorney Team Member Since
Jeff Taraday 2011
Sharon Cates 2011
Patricia Taraday 2011
Mike Bradley 2011
Beth Ford 2012
Tom Brubaker 2018
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Angela Tinker 2019
o This level of stability unique in today’s working environment
o Illustrates Lighthouse likes the work they are doing and their clients and that the Lighthouse
works well with each other
o Remarkable when compared to turnover at the City
• 2023 Changes – billing method
o Hourly billing invoices over the first quarter of 2023
January = $54,636.40
February = $51,887.10
March = $65,492.20
1st quarter subtotal $172,015.70
o Compared to proposed flat fee of $58,000
$58,000 x 3 = $174,000
- Reflects successful ratcheting back of city attorney usage in first quarter
- Council subcommittee reviewing monthly invoices
- 2023 invoices include subcategories to provide more specificity regarding how hours
spent
- Looking for opportunities to pass on costs to third party when appropriate
• Pending litigation with Lighthouse
o Edmonds v. Ebb Tide
• Declaratory judgement. On appeal after successful trial
• Have not received opening brief from appellate
o PSNGP Appeal
Administrative appeal with multiple other cities related to sewage treatment plant.
• WCIA Coverage
o Claims arising from alleged:
Employment related action, e.g. retaliation and harassment
Police excess force
Land use damage
Auto liability
Defective street or sidewalk
Sewer obstruction
Premises liability
Other negligence
o WCIA appoints a law firm to defend City which WCIA pays for, may affect WCIA
premiums
• Big picture
• Who is the client?
o RCP 1.13(a): A lawyer employed or retained by an organization represents the organization
acting through its duly authorized constituents.
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• The Attorney – Client Relationship
• Duly Authorized Constituents?
• What about your constituents, the citizens?
• Why no direct interaction with citizens?
o RPC 1.6(a): A lawyer shall not reveal information relating to the representation of a client
unless the client gives informed consent, the disclosure is impliedly authorized in order to
carry out the representation or the disclosure is permitted by paragraph (b).
For example, a department head (a duly authorized constituent) asking the city attorney to
write a letter to a third party is an example of contact that would be within the scope of
representation
• So you aren’t the client…are your communications still confidential?
o RPC 1.13, comment 2: When one of the constituents of an organizational client
communicates with the organization’s lawyer in that person’s organizational capacity, the
communication is protected by Rule 1.6.
• Confidentiality within the City…
…This does not mean, however, that constituents of an organizational client are the clients of the
lawyer. The lawyer may not disclose to such constituents information relating to the
representation except for disclosures explicitly or impliedly authorized by the organizational
client in order to carry out the representation or as otherwise permitted by Rule 1.6.
Councilmember Paine was excited to hear there may be opportunities for third party billing to recoup
some funds and hoped Lighthouse was tracking that. Mr. Taraday said it is being tracked, but it has not
been set up on the City’s end. Lighthouse’s invoices will reflect when something is third party chargeable,
but the finance department still needs to set up a mechanism to pass those costs along.
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Councilmember Teitzel referred to RPC 1.6 (a), “A lawyer shall not reveal information relating to the
representation of a client unless the client gives informed consent, the disclosure is impliedly authorized
in order to carry out the representation or the disclosure is permitted by paragraph (b).” He asked how
“impliedly” works in the real world and when Lighthouse would feel they had implied consent to disclose
something. Mr. Taraday provided an example, most of the time when a councilmember asks a question
during a council meeting, he is impliedly authorized to answer that question during the meeting.
Obviously if a councilmember asks a question during a council meeting and he answers it, everyone will
hear so he is revealing information relating to the representation. Another example would be if a director
or other staff member asked him to write a letter to a third party, he could not do it without including
information related to representation. So by asking him to the write letter, there is implied authority for
him to reveal information. He understood the phrase “impliedly authorized” may be problematic in some
people’s eyes, but the process of getting informed consent is often too cumbersome to be workable for
everything an attorney may need to do related to a third party. If the rules did not have that phrase, the
attorney’s job would be extremely difficult because everything they need to do would require confirmed
consent even if it was very clear from the client request which was probably why the rule was written that
way, to make representation workable in the real world.
Councilmember Chen thanked Mr. Taraday for the update on 2022 city attorney services. He commended
him for holding the team together which also benefits the City. He referred to the amount the City spent in
spent for Lighthouse’s services in the first three months of 2023 ($172,015) and likely four times that
amount for 2022, commenting the report did not detail how many lawsuits Lighthouse has helped defend
or prosecute, agreements they developed other than one purchase and sale agreement, HR litigations or
letters written on director/staff’s behalf, etc. He asked Mr. Taraday to provide details regarding the
services Lighthouse has provided.
Mr. Taraday answered he was not prepared to do that now, but offered to send a follow-up email
highlighting the top 10 matters in the first quarter of 2023. Councilmember Chen agreed that was what he
was interested in. The presentation talks about billings and the wonderful Lighthouse team but not the
services the City receives. Mr. Taraday referred to the council subcommittee that is reviewing their
invoices each month; the intent of creating that subcommittee was to look at patterns or raise questions
and provide a mechanism for follow up with Lighthouse. He reiterated his offer to create a report showing
the top 10 matters for 2023, pointing out due to the change in billing in 2023, when comparing it to
previous years, the totals in the top 10 may not be the same as 2022 because the work is being sliced in a
much more refined way than was done in the past.
Councilmember Buckshnis commented she hoped Lighthouse staff stays together, noting Mr. Taraday
was married to one of them. Mr. Taraday answered that was not a guarantee she would continue to work
with Lighthouse and joked that he liked to think it guaranteed she would stay with him. Councilmember
Buckshnis commented she enjoyed working with Patricia Taraday and Sharon Cates. As a follow-up to
Councilmember Chen’s comment, she said it was important for the council to understand what the city
attorney is working on related to code, attorney client privilege, negotiations on behalf of the City that
does not include council, etc. She referred to concern about how the Hurst property was brought forward.
She has also had concern about executive sessions in the past such as why he did not pull the council into
executive session during the Pruitt matter when she and then-Councilmember K. Johnson specifically
asked to go into executive session. She was confused with how the council has moved away from the
executive session aspect, relaying while she has been on council, everything has gone through executive
session prior to any announcement about a potential purchase, etc. other than in 2010 when the council
wanted to purchase the property at Salish Crossing. She was concerned with the new trend of no
executive sessions occurring and the council being notified via the media She asked why that changed.
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Mr. Taraday said he wouldn’t necessarily characterize it as a trend. The city attorney does not have the
authority to demand that the council meet in executive session; he cannot force the council to meet in
executive session. For example, Councilmember Buckshnis referenced something that occurred in 2020
where certain councilmembers wanted to meet in executive session and others did not. When there is a
split like that, the council majority ultimately decides whether there is an executive session. There are
only two ways executive sessions happen, 1) put on the agenda by the council president as part of agenda
setting process, or 2) during any regular meeting, the council can vote to go in an executive session. If
only three councilmembers want go into an executive session, even if it is three councilmembers plus the
city attorney, the city attorney cannot force an executive session.
Mr. Taraday continued, a lot of people unfortunately like to assume that if something is happening it is
because the city attorney wants it to happen which is not always true. He is here to serve the elected
officials primarily; the preferences of elected officials change over time as new elected officials come and
go and different mayors, councils and council presidents run things differently. If things seem to be
happening differently over time, it is not necessarily because his advice has changed, it may be because
the person making decisions wants to do it in a different way. As long as he does not see a legal violation,
that is that person’s prerogative. For example, if Council President X does not want to hold an executive
session, unless it is something that requires an executive session, that is their prerogative. If Mayor Y
doesn’t want to first hold an executive session and nothing requires them to take a matter to executive
session, the city attorney is not in a position to dictate to elected officials how they should execute the
duties of their office. Elected officials run for office and the people who win the election get to decide
how to execute the powers and duties of their office and it is not the city attorney’s role to get in the way
of that. The city attorney should be facilitating the proper exercise of powers and duties of those who win
elections.
Councilmember Buckshnis did not disagree, commenting she takes her job very seriously. She recalled
Mr. Taraday injecting himself in some meetings and making a point, commenting he was supposed to
protect the City from lawsuits. She referenced the Ms. Humann lawsuit, commenting Mr. Taraday had
been through one major lawsuit and one was coming up. It is important for citizens to realize the city
attorney cannot just raise his hand and say he is trying to save the City from a lawsuit and the council
needs to go into executive session; the buck stops with the council. She commented Mr. Taraday should
make himself more clear at times that something might cause a lawsuit. Mr. Taraday said the public needs
to understand that while the city attorney’s role is to do their best to protect the municipal corporation and
give advice that in their opinion best protects the municipal corporation, it is not the city attorney’s role to
go beyond that and say therefore the council must do something. There have been instances over the years
where the city attorney’s advice was not followed; that is okay, he is not a dictator or even a benevolent
dictator, he is just here to provide legal advice. The people that win elections get to decide whether to take
his advice or not. Councilmember Buckshnis commented new mayors always pick their directors so the
fact that directors have come and gone is a function of that.
Councilmember Buckshnis commented Ebb Tide was moved to 2025 in the CFP. She hoped he planned
to talk with council whether to spend more money on that, recalling some councilmembers did not want
to spend money on it. She estimated the Ebb Tide condo association likely spent over $1 million and
anticipated Lighthouse spent a similar amount of time. Now that Lighthouse is paid on an hourly basis, it
is important to consider what the city attorney works on. She thanked Mr. Taraday for his explanation,
commenting many people suggested he should be a benevolent dictator.
Councilmember Nand commented she is also an attorney and found his explanation regarding how he
deals with RPC 1.13 and 1.16 fascinating because unlike her, who serves private clients, almost
everything the City does is producible under the Public Records Act (PRA). When the council chooses to
exclude the public with interactions they are having with the city attorney, it must be justifiable under the
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Open Public Meeting Act (OPMA) rules and the public cannot access that information. Under RCP
1.13(b), “ If a lawyer for an organization knows that an officer, employee or other person associated with
the organization is engaged in action, intends to act or refuses to act in a matter related to the
representation that is a violation of a legal obligation to the organization, or a violation of law that
reasonably might be imputed to the organization, and that is likely to result in substantial injury to the
organization, then the lawyer shall proceed as is reasonably necessary in the best interest of the
organization. if lawyer for organization.”
Councilmember Nand asked Mr. Taraday to explain from his unique position as a city attorney if he
senses substantial injury to the organization is about to result from an agent, employee or affiliate or the
organization, what process he engages in to signal his concern to the organization and how he avoids
interfering in the political process while doing that. Mr. Taraday answered in the form of a hypothetical; a
mayor wants to enter into a contract with a consultant in the amount of $150,000 and doesn’t want the
city council to know about it. The mayor’s contracting authority limit is $100,000. If city attorney’s office
found out such a contract was being executed and there was no intent to bring it to the city council before
those funds were committed, under that rule of professional conduct, the city attorney would need to
engage in a reporting up requirement which means if someone lower in the organization is violating a
law, the city attorney can report up to a higher level in the organization to ensure the organization is not
harmed. However, before doing that, the city attorney should try to first gain compliance because
reporting up is only necessary if compliance cannot be obtained at the level where the confidentiality
currently exists.
Mr. Taraday continued, the steps the city attorney would take in that situation would be to contact the
mayor and inform them they only have $100,000 in contracting authority and that the contract was for
$150,000 so he could enter into it and had to take it to the council; if the mayor did not take it to the
council, the city attorney would because it would be a clear violation of the mayor’s powers. Ideally he
would try to get compliance at the lower level so it was not necessary to breach any confidentiality. But if
he is unable to get compliance at the level where the problem is, RPC 1.13(b) allows him to report up, in
this case to the city council, to inform that the mayor does not plan to bring a contract to the council. The
council can then either ratify the contract after the fact because the council wants to spend the money in
that way, or the council can pass a resolution or motion saying the contract is not valid and no money will
be paid pursuant to it. That is an example of reporting up, bringing the power to where it should be in the
organization and allowing that power level to make the call.
Councilmember Nand commented since nearly everything the council does is public producible and
reportable, if the city attorney feels an elected official is doing something that could be substantially
injurious to the City, what reporting mechanism do they have at a council meeting other than saying
something could harm the City from a litigation perspective. Mr. Taraday answered individual
councilmembers have zero authority, they only have authority when sitting on the dais voting, with the
exception of the council president who has certain other powers. Most of the time individual
councilmembers are not in a position to harm the City because they have no power to do anything. There
are limited exceptions, for example if a councilmember was making public statements about a topic that
could harm the City via a defamation claim and if he felt those statements were blatantly untruthful, he
might contact the councilmember and remind them that truth is a defense to defamation and if they are not
speaking truthful about a situation, there are risks to the City. He would definitely do that if he thought
non-truthful statements were being made in a way that could hurt the City.
Mr. Taraday continued, as to whether he would go beyond that to take it to the full city council, there is a
factual difference between the two hypotheticals because the full council does not control an individual
councilmember so the full council cannot do anything to silence or undo a statement made by an
individual councilmember. Going back to RCP 1.13(b), the reporting up authorization is only valid to the
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extent it will result in protecting the municipal corporation. Unless he can articulate a way that it would
protect the municipal corporation, he must keep the matter confidential and not bring it to the full council.
That is a way in which those two hypotheticals are different; in one case the council can step in and take
action and in the other it is less clear that the full council could step in and can take action.
Councilmember Nand pointed out if the council votes to do something that would be substantially
injurious to the organization, the city attorney could offer their advice and have it be ignored; he doesn’t
have much authority beyond that. Mr. Taraday answered the council is the highest authority in the City.
The council gets to make its own cost-benefit analysis when comes to litigation risk or other types of risk.
When it comes to those types of risks, he would hope to have an opportunity in executive session to
advise the council about those risks, but ultimately the council does not have to take his advice, and may
deem a priority or objective so important that they are willing to undertake certain risks and may
disregard his advice to pursue that objective. That is a legitimate cost-benefit analysis that elected
officials are entitled to make. Councilmember Nand thanked Mr. Taraday for the clarification,
commenting it was important for the council and the public to understand his role.
5. APPROVAL OF AGENDA
COUNCILMEMBER TEITZEL MOVED, SECONDED BY PAINE TO APPROVE THE AGENDA
IN CONTENT AND ORDER. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
6. AUDIENCE COMMENTS
Council President Pro Tem Olson described procedures audience comments.
Ruby Creatin, a 12-year old resident of unincorporated Snohomish County representing Pacific Little
League, explained she plays majors baseball and softball in Pacific Little League. Her grandfather worked
in building maintenance for Edmonds for 34 years. She has played in Pacific Little League since she was
5 years old. Pacific Little League has begun its 59th season of serving families in Edmonds and
Lynnwood. This season over 1,100 players are playing in softball and baseball programs from ages 5 to
15. What she loves about playing in Pacific Little League is it fun playing with her friends and it has
taught her team leadership and perseverance. She was thankful for the City of Edmonds’ support; teams
use several fields like City Park, Sierra Park, Seaview Park and Pine Street Playfield. On Saturday, April
29, Pacific Little League will celebrate with their annual Little League Day at Lynndale Park from 9 a.m.
to 2 p.m. She invited the city council to attend and enjoy the celebration and provided invitations for each
councilmember. She will be reciting the Little League Pledge during the ceremony which should not be
missed because it will be great. There will be games, food, parade of players and Mayor Nelson will
throw out the first pitch. She hoped to see the council at Lynndale Park on April 29th for Pacific Little
League Day.
Marlin Phelps, Marysville, commented in June 2014, having suffered police brutality and Judge Fair
violating every code of conduct in the judicial code, he went on a tirade, going through the court offices
and city hall, saying the corruption is over, he’s coming after it. At that time he began to order court CDs
in earnest. On his way home that day, to his surprise and fear he saw Police Officer Mills and was
astonished and relieved when he waved. Later, when Judge Fair came out of chambers, he had over 100
hearings, his body language had changed, his shoulders were slumped forward which he attributed to his
compassion to human beings and he did not have the gumption anymore to treat him the way he had been.
Judge Fair then won election unopposed to South District Court in Lynnwood, a court of limited
jurisdiction, not nearly as nice a courtroom and it doesn’t have the prestige or have the police department
at his disposal. He later saw Officer Mills driving near his home and flashed his lights until he pulled
over. After pulling over, Officer Mills angrily said to him that he chased a judge out of town but he was
still a nobody. After that he went to Judge Fair South District courtroom where he was having a motions
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hearing with the lawyers and a clerk and as soon as he saw Mr. Phelps, he blurted out, let’s order the court
tapes, to the utter befuddlement of the attorneys and the court clerk who had no idea what he was talking
about. Mr. Phelps concluded the 2014 court tapes tell a lot.
Mackey Guenther, expressed support for the agenda item regarding zone representation for
councilmembers. Hearing from citizens and particularly the different needs of citizens in the City is an
important part of democracy to get right. There has been a lot of attention on the current method of
representation, at large representation, particularly that it lacks fidelity and resolution of more localized
methods like districts. Congress has banned at large voting in all federal elections; it received extreme
scrutiny as a means of denying people’s civil rights in the past. There are a lot of problems with it and
although Edmonds may not experience all those problems, he appreciated the interest in exploring other
options. He was excited about experimenting with new ideas, which is an important attitude, but was
cautious about endorsing this as a full on district plan although the council narrative is pretty clear this is
not a step toward changing the way councilmembers are elected. He would like to have a clear delineation
from district voting as it would help clarify how it is metabolized by the public. He would also like to see
an accountability mechanism so there is a record of how the members of a district feel about their
assigned representative for any given term. He loved the experimental nature of the proposal and would
like to see the council trying other new things that could result in improvement in all the functions and
layers of City government.
Darrol Haug, Edmonds, a 49-year Edmonds taxpayer, voter and citizen volunteer who has lived in two
of the zones that will be considered in the zone representation agenda item, thanked the council for the
work being done to clean up the commission appointment process. He has served on seven commissions,
committees and advisory groups and was glad the council was taking action to make that process more
useful to all citizens. The City has 42,000 citizens in the 7 zones who deeply care about Edmonds. About
6,000 people live in each zone in about 3,000 separate households and 2,000 registered voters. Zone
representation will give the council and citizens an opportunity to become more engaged with each other
to learn about council activities and the special needs of each individual zone. The assignment of a
councilmember to each zone is a new and creative way to reach out to citizens and help them engage in
the City through town halls and surveys, and via reports to council, everyone will learn about the districts
and their needs. The value of this concept will grow over time with creative approaches councilmembers
may bring and the value that zone members brings. He thanked council for developing a way to manage
commissions and especially for considering a way to reach out to more citizens and engage them in a
more creative way.
Council President Pro Tem Olson declared 5 minute recess at 8:48 p.m.
7. RECEIVED FOR FILING
1. WRITTEN PUBLIC COMMENTS
8. APPROVAL OF CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS
COUNCILMEMBER PAINE MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER CHEN, TO
APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA.
Councilmember Teitzel requested Item 8.3, Adoption of Minor Code Amendment Package, be removed
from the consent agenda.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. The agenda items approved are as follows:
1. APPROVAL OF REGULAR MEETING MINUTES OF MARCH 28, 2023
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2. APPROVAL OF CLAIM CHECKS AND WIRE PAYMENTS
4. CONFIRM APPOINTMENT OF BOARD/COMMISSION CANDIDATE - LTAC
ITEMS REMOVED FROM CONSENT
3. ADOPTION OF MINOR CODE AMENDMENT PACKAGE 1
Councilmember Teitzel commented this was brought to council tonight as a new item and is the first time
the council has had an opportunity to review a group of minor code amendments for approval on the
consent agenda. He saw this for the first time today at 2 p.m. today and did not have an opportunity to
review it in detail. Some of the minor code amendments are straight forward and others are more complex
and he would appreciate having more time to consider the 18-19 items on the list to ensure they qualified
as minor code amendments.
COUNCILMEMBER TEITZEL MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER NAND, TO
TABLE THIS ITEM UNTIL THE APRIL 18 MEETING’S CONSENT AGENDA.
Councilmember Nand commented the packet is fairly comprehensive and she would appreciate at least
four days advance notice before approving the amendment package. She hoped that procedure for
approving minor code amendments would be followed in future. Council President Pro Tem Olson
acknowledged this was a late addition to the agenda.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
City Attorney Jeff Taraday said technically there is no motion to table something to a certain date. Taking
Councilmember Teitzel’s remarks in context, he assumed the motion was to postpone until the April 18
consent agenda. Councilmember Teitzel agreed. Mr. Taraday clarified there would not need to be a
subsequent motion on April 18 to remove this from the table, it could just be on the April 18 consent
agenda. Councilmember Teitzel agreed that was his intent, to delay consideration until April 18.
Council President Pro Tem Olson asked if the council was okay with this modification with the vote they
had already cast. Council consensus they were okay with the modification.
9. COUNCIL BUSINESS
1. DRAFT ORDINANCE AMENDING ECC 10.01 BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS AND
ECC 1.05.030
Council President Pro Tem Olson advised the staff recommendation was to review and deliberate and
possibly take action but staff is aware that will not happen tonight. Community Services/Economic
Development Director Todd Tatum has asked to provide input on the proposed code.
Mr. Tatum appreciated the direction the council was heading, but wanted to point out challenges related
to implementation. His department has four boards, commissions or committees covered under Chapter
10. Staff has been working toward improving the processes and procedures for notifying the public about
board and commission openings and in the proposed 10.01.010 notification for vacant positions would be
relatively quick. Turnaround for translation takes about a week, which leaves one week for media
releases, etc. Under 10.01.010, public notice for positions whose terms will be expiring shall be provided
no later than 90 days prior to the expiration of the term, which means between 120-150 days or 1-2
meetings in advance for volunteers to make a decision. The Economic Development Commission is a
good example; members are appointed by councilmembers, councilmembers work with their appointee to
see if they want to reappointed and that needs to occur before 90 days.
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With regard to 10.01.050.B, time to fill a vacancy, 90 days before the expiration of the term is when
notice needs to happen; 30 days are required for applications to be submitted and the person needs to be
appointed 30 days prior to the beginning of the term, leaving 30 days to conduct interviews, sometimes
second interviews are required or applicants drop out, raising the question if there are still qualified
applicants and it is 20 days into the process, does the clock restart or does it need to be completed in 10
days.
Regarding 10.01.055, Mr. Tatum commented breaking that timeline will lead to a transfer of appointing
authority, but that timeline could be broken due to a number of extenuating circumstances so in the
transfer of appointing authority, there would be no change in underlying conditions. With regard to
10.01.080, maintenance of a roster on the City’s website including the term of expiration, he pointed out
that is a large body of work for some unnamed staff to track and is not something staff is currently doing
at that level and it would impact one or more departments.
Mr. Tatum also raised the issue if any of these steps are missed and a commissioner is appointed, did that
invalidate their appointment and/or any decisions they voted on. There are a lot of different steps and
specific timing in the ordinance that could be missed. Much of the ordinance could be covered by policy
which would give staff clarity about what needs to be done and the expectations without the challenges of
maintaining an ordinance, particularly given the fact volunteers often come and go throughout the
application process. He was happy to identify parts of the ordinance that would be worthy of including in
policy if the council decides that is of interest.
Council President Pro Tem Olson commented the original intent has gotten derailed and it is probably
appropriate for the group working on this (City Attorney Jeff Taraday, Council Executive Assistant
Beckie Peterson and her) to coordinate with Mr. Tatum. She apologized for wasting time by putting this
on the agenda; she reached out to Mayor Nelson for input and that was provided tonight. Mr. Tatum
apologized his comments were provided so late. Council President Pro Tem Olson recommended
conclude this item for tonight.
Councilmember Nand referred to 10.01.050 and asked if a caveat such as staff shall make a good faith
effort to comply with this timeline to the greatest extent practicable would be helpful or were there other
adjustments Mr. Tatum would suggest to the timeline. Mr. Tatum answered the lack of flexibility in the
timeline is the challenge so including language that allows staff to make in their best effort to meet the
timeline but allow some flexibility would be helpful.
Councilmember Nand referred to 10.01.080, roster of positions, and asked if placing the responsibility to
maintain the roster on the chair of each board/commission would alleviate the burden on staff. Mr. Tatum
answered the challenge is the board chair is a volunteer; so the accuracy of information still falls on staff.
There is a clear chain of responsibility for staff so it would have to be maintained by staff.
Councilmember Nand asked if stating 10.01.050 as a best practice guideline rather than a firm
requirement would be more workable for staff. Mr. Tatum answered language that provides flexibility
within the timeline would be appreciated by staff.
Councilmember Buckshnis agreed with the suggestion to move this into a policy and an ordinance that
references the policy. She recalled she and Councilmember Teitzel were interviewing for tree board
members and then learned they were doing it wrong. She suggested each board/commission participate in
developing the policy. She questioned who would manage the policy especially when each board and
commission is so different and there are non-codified committees such as the Creative District. Mr.
Tatum answered that would be for the administration to solve. There are a few options including his
department or the city clerk. Councilmember Buckshnis agreed having a policy would make it easier to
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make changes. She appreciated the efforts to create consistency between boards, commissions and
committees because things have gone haywire for a while.
Councilmember Paine loved the idea of a policy where the oversight role for council would be a mid-year
check-in to ensure all the boards and commissions are running smoothly. She shared the concern that each
board and mission have their own rules and some boards are governed by other regulations such as the
LEOFF 1 board which is governed by RCW and the DEIA Board is governed by City code. She agreed a
policy is better because it offers more flexibility and agreed the proposed timelines were crushing.
Council President Pro Tem Olson explained this exercise was prompted by the fact that there was a
problem to solve, not filling vacancies in a timely manner, and the group convene to discuss how to
address that. She invited staff to help the council understand how to offer flexibility and still fill vacancies
as they happen.
Council President Pro Tem Olson asked for council input on 10.01.040 re-appointment of incumbents.
Her suggestion was to have incumbents reapply and describe why they want to continue serving on the
board/commission although that is not what has been done in the past; she served on the tree board for 2-3
terms and never had to reapply. The value of having incumbents reapply and describe why they want to
continue serving is the person making the appointment has the person’s credentials at the same time they
are considering other applicants. She acknowledged it would require more advertising and review of
applications, but it was a balancing act between the cost and benefit.
Councilmember Paine suggested replacing “reapply” with “indicate to staff or the appointing
councilmember.” The proposal would require volunteers who are busy serving on the board/commission
to provide a lot of additional paperwork and go through the process. If the board or commission member
has been performing well, the way it has been handled in the past has worked well without adding
additional burden on staff and adds continuity to the board/commission. From what Mr. Tatum described,
there is a tremendous paperwork burden with transitions.
Councilmember Buckshnis agreed with Councilmember Paine. She noted Councilmember Teitzel and she
appointed Council President Pro Tem Olson to the tree board and later learned they did not have the
authority. If a councilmember is comfortable with the person they appointed such as the person she
reappointed to the EDC, it is good to keep someone with that longevity that understands what’s going on.
She agreed if a board or commission member wanted to reappointed, it was not necessary to redo all the
paperwork.
Councilmember Nand said she heard from a disgruntled volunteer who felt he was unfairly not
reappointed for political reasons. The City needs uniformity and transparency in how incumbents are
appointed, who is reappointed, and who is asked to no longer serve on a board which unfortunately
happens because elected officials are politicians and these are political appointments. She wanted to
ensure volunteers were treated fairly and that they feel they are being given a fair shake. She was unsure
about advertising and creating a pool of applicants for every incumbent’s position. When some board or
commission members are told they will not be reappointed and others do not have that same experience,
the ones who told they will not be reappointed feel they are unfairly targeted and excluded. There needs
to be uniformity in the process to ensure volunteers are respected regardless of whether elected officials
agree with them politically or not.
Council President Pro Tem Olson reminded this item was to gather input and not take a vote.
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Councilmember Chen agreed submitting a new application was cumbersome and time consuming for staff
and volunteers. However, if the same volunteers are reappointed over and over, that may preclude the
opportunity for new volunteers to participate. He suggested the council consider a term limit.
Council President Pro Tem Olson commented the narrative did address term limits and some
boards/commissions do have term limits and others are silent. As the group discusses a policy, they will
keep that in mind as a possibility.
Councilmember Buckshnis agreed with Councilmember Nand and clarified it has only been under this
administration where members have been removed from the planning board which is entirely mayor
appointed. If the council make boards and commissions consistent, planning board and ADB members
should also be council appointed; the members are currently appointed by the mayor. She could think of
only one other instance during the previous administration where the council did not want a planning
board member to continue but other than that, there have never been any problems like there have been
under this administration. If the intent is to eliminate political targeting, the planning board and ADB
should be changed to a council appointment authority.
Council President Pro Tem Olson advised a policy or code that takes the council’s input into
consideration will be presented to council in the future for their review. She observed there was consensus
not to have incumbents reapply or to advertise for their position.
2. COUNCILMEMBER ZONE REPRESENTATION ANNUAL ASSIGNMENTS
As the author of this agenda memo, Council President Pro Tem Olson said she wished she had used
“liaison” instead of “representation” because it would have added clarity. This concept was originally
suggested by Darrol Haug. Each year the council president assigns many liaison roles for boards and
commissions, outside agencies, etc. In 2019 subareas or districts were created to ensure fair and
geographically proportionate citizen representation for the Edmonds Housing Commission; the district
map is available in the agenda memo for this item. Seven geographic districts were established for the
housing commission and each of the seven councilmembers appointed a member of the commission.
Council President Pro Tem Olson assured the proposal was not intended to change the current at-large
system for councilmembers. However, it could in the short term deliver benefits that some people have
sought related to districting, having someone paying attention to a particular area. In this proposal, the
councilmember assigned to the zone would not necessarily live in that zone, but for that one year, the
councilmember would have certain responsibilities related to being the liaison to that zone. Everyone in
the City of Edmonds is represented by every councilmember and people are free to contact any
councilmember for any reason, but the assigned liaison would have responsibility for a certain amount of
outreach. Due to the amount of time that has already passed this year, the council may decide not to do as
much this year as will be done in subsequent years. The assignment of councilmembers to zones will
evolve over time including establishing rules and procedures to better describe the role.
Council President Pro Tem Olson continued, for example, during the pandemic, she held five open air
budget talks which she organized and hosted with the help of the council’s administrative assistant. She
attended each of those talks and invited other councilmembers to join her. She acknowledged holding
those talks required a lot of time and effort; it would have been much easier if she had only been required
to hold one talk. She assured this isn’t about creating turfs for councilmembers or preventing
councilmember from being involved with all areas of the City because councilmembers are at-large
members. The intent is to give each councilmember a specific assignment and the responsibility for
engaging with residents in that zone and to bring information back to the council legislative process via
the budget, CIP/CFP, etc. She hoped this explanation clarified some of the issues.
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Councilmember Nand commented on the commitment of council resources, noting it would require some
of the executive assistant’s time to schedule town halls, etc. She asked if there was a budget for holding
town halls or doing mailers to communicate with constituents in councilmembers’ assigned zones.
Council President Pro Tem Olson answered no budget has been established; there are some funds for
miscellaneous and engaging with the community would be a good use of those funds. Councilmembers
can use City facilities for official city business at no cost, such as the Meadowdale Clubhouse. She did
not anticipate there would be an excess of expenses.
Councilmember Paine commented philosophically she loved the idea, but “assignment” sounded very top
down. She liked the idea of having better representation across all districts as it would be better for
sharing information in the communities. However, several councilmembers live near each other and do
not provide a good geographic representation of the entire City. Obligations are voluntary and if
notifications were provided, she wanted them to be in numerous languages which will require some
funding. Councilmembers would not be limited to holding town halls/meetings in City facilities and could
meet in coffee shops or other places. She recalled when she was on the school board, there were
geographic assignments.
Council President Pro Tem Olson raised a point of order, requesting the discussion not address districting
as that was not the topic of this agenda item.
Councilmember Paine commented councilmembers represents everyone and if they are not out in the
community, this seems very prescriptive. She loved the idea, but felt councilmembers should be doing it
all the time in any case.
Councilmember Teitzel commented he liked this idea and it was elegantly simple. He and
Councilmember Buckshnis were on the council in 2019 when the 7 zones created which are roughly
geographically the same size and have roughly the same number of household in each zone. He liked
using “liaison to a zone,” finding that an effective term and a way for the people who live in the zones to
feel like they have a champion if they want to bring an issue to council. Anyone has complete freedom to
contact any councilmember, but he envisioned residents would find comfort in having someone who
would dig deeper and air their issues. He expressed his full support for this proposal.
Councilmember Buckshnis said she liked the idea, but did not see it happening as beautifully as Council
President Pro Tem Olson envisioned. She anticipated a lot of turf wars, recalling in 2020 then-
Councilmember K. Johnson was told not to come to a committee because she knew too much. This is a
slippery slope as all councilmembers should represent everyone. She liked the idea of a smaller group, but
she and other councilmembers would do what they needed to do. Her issue was attempting to put
everyone into a box; she did three townhalls throughout the City and planned to do more this year because
the budget and audit caused a lot of concern and she wanted to ensure citizens have a voice. She feared
someone would get mad if she went into their district when in reality she knows a lot about municipal
finance and people like to discuss it. She feared having liaisons or districts would cause internal conflicts
although that may not happen with this council. She will continue to represent everyone as
councilmembers can talk to anyone anywhere and she hoped there would not be any turf wars.
Councilmember Chen said he liked the concept of districting so councilmembers could spend more time
getting to know an area, the businesses, residents, roads, and bring concerns/problems to staff and the
council. This may be a good start and lead to districting long term. If a councilmember is truly responsible
for a zone, there needs to be some meat on it, there need to be some consequences. If a councilmember
does not represent a district, that zone will ultimately not vote for them. It is not the topic of tonight’s
discussion, but in the long run it will likely require the involvement of the city attorney to look into
districting. Council President Pro Tem Olson cautioned councilmembers to stay on topic.
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Councilmember Nand said she presently has office hours every Thursday at 4 pm in city hall which
requires residents to come to city hall which is not very accessible. She was pleased by this concept and
did not envision any problems arising if a councilmember joined another councilmember’s town hall. She
was interested in expanding outside the municipal bubble downtown into the neighborhoods so instead of
citizens coming to council, councilmembers would go to them. To Councilmember Buckshnis’ point,
some councilmembers are very proactive and already doing outreach, but this would institutionalize that
and create a framework for all councilmembers conducting outreach activities. .
Councilmember Teitzel said nothing about this proposal precludes looking into alternative forms of
government longer term. He supported forming a task force to look into things like districting as well as a
changing to a weak mayor-strong council form of government, code city versus charter city, etc.
With regard to assignments being top down or having mandatory activities associated with liaisons,
Council President Pro Tem Olson commented when councilmembers are assigned as liaisons to boards,
commissions, committees, etc., they are expected to attend monthly meetings. If this was adopted as a
policy, there should be some regular expectation such as holding a town hall meeting in the zone prior to
the budget. That can be decided or finetuned at a future budget retreat, but it would be great to at least
hold one town hall in each zone to get things started this year. She will bring this back as an agenda item.
Many assignments are top down such as the council president making liaison assignments; this would
simply be another liaison assignment with some expectations.
Councilmember Buckshnis said some councilmembers may be introverted and not want to hold a town
hall meeting. She is an extrovert and loves town hall meetings and has learned a lot from them. She did
support adopting a policy that requires every councilmember to hold a town hall meetings if that was not
something they wanted to do.
Councilmember Paine agreed with Councilmember Buckshnis’ comment. Having councilmembers serve
as the liaison to a particular zone is not the same as liaisons to boards and commissions. As the city
attorney said, councilmembers do not have any authority over other elected officials, each elected official
is separately elected and they are peers, something that is not being considered in this discussion and the
reason she phrased it as being top down. It is a good idea and councilmembers should already be doing
this as they represent everyone.
10. COUNCIL COMMENTS
Councilmember Buckshnis reported the Edmonds Waterfront annual breakfast was great; it was fun to see
everyone and a lot of money raised. She wished a Happy Birthday to former Councilmember Jack Bevin
who turned 100 on Sunday and is sharp as a whip. She reported councilmembers will receive a book from
Port Commissioner Dave Preston written by Todd Meyers, “Time to Think Small: How Nimble
Environmental Technologies Can Solve the Planet’s Biggest Problems.” She knew Todd’s dad Hank who
used to be a councilmember in Redmond when they were on WRIA 8 together. Everyone needs to think
about the environment. The City’s Climate Action Plan was focused on GHG, but attention needs to be
given to other things.
Councilmember Nand referred to her article in My Edmonds News a few days ago about when to rescue
baby cottontails. Every year people find nests with baby rabbits and thinking they are in distress, try to
rescue them, not realizing they are probably condemning them to death because the mama is away from
the nest for a reason and does not want to lead predators back to the nest. If the babies are removed from
the nest and taken to a wildlife rescue, cottontails are considered an invasive species and are likely to be
euthanized as hand-rearing them is extremely difficult. If people enjoy having cottontails in their yard,
she suggested creating a predator-proof fence around the nest to keep pets and larger animals away until
Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes
April 4, 2023
Page 21
the babies can safely leave the nest. She extended this warning to other wildlife such as fawns, baby seals,
etc. Springtime is here and there are a lot of baby animals; they are cute and fun to observe, but they
should not be disturbed. She suggested contacting her or other local animal rescuer to assess whether an
animal is in distress or should just be left alone.
Councilmember Paine noted the passing of Dr. Nick Brossoit, former Edmonds School District
superintendent. She was on the school board for six years during the bulk of his term. Dr. Brossoit had a
really clear vision about what needed to happen with the ESD. One of his biggest moves was to back the
McCleary lawsuit that challenged the state to fully fund all schools and led to legislation after the State
Supreme Court found it was necessary and that schools had been underfunded. He had a giant heart for
students and getting kids across the stage was his north star, something she always appreciated. His
family will miss him terribly. She thanked Pacific Little League for their comments, relaying she had a
terrific time at Pacific Little League Day last year and planned to attend again this year.
Councilmember Chen reported he enjoyed the community outpouring at the Waterfront Center breakfast.
One word that stuck with him was community; former Governor Gary Locke told a very moving story
about his grandfather who immigrated to the United States and worked at the governor’s mansion and
how the community supported his family and a result benefitted him. He expressed his sincere
appreciation to the engaged citizens, volunteers, boards and commissions, and councilmembers who
volunteer their time, it takes everyone working together to build a strong community.
Councilmember Teitzel reported the city attorney assessment subcommittee, consisting of
Councilmember Paine and Nand and himself, have been working hard to collect information from nine
comparator cities to present to council. They had hoped to have the information ready for tonight’s
meeting but a bit more time is necessary and the subcommittee plans to present it on April 18.
Council President Pro Tem Olson commented passports have very long expiration dates although the
previous 10 years was changed to 15 years. She suggested doublechecking the expiration date and if
necessary get a new passport at the Edmonds Municipal Court.
Council President Pro Tem Olson reported on the Edmonds Waterfront Center breakfast, relaying she
loved Donnie Griffin’s comment that the Edmonds Waterfront Center is Edmonds’ living room. She
reminded the community if they have been to their house lately, they should join the rest of the family at
the Edmonds Waterfront Center.
12 ADJOURN
With no further business, the council meeting was adjourned at 9:52 p.m.
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SCOTT PASSEY, CITY CLERK