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Volume 25, No. 3, December 2014

President’s Message

Hello WCMA members and fans! Here’s hoping that this letter finds you healthy, happy and

prosperous. Your WCMA Board has been hard at work. We held our annual board retreat in

November and I wanted to share some of the topics we discussed.

2015 will be big year for WCMA. As hosts of the 2015 ICMA Conference in Seattle, we will need

an “all hands on” effort from our member cities. The Host Committee, led by Doug Schulze,

City Manager of Bainbridge Island, has been busy helping ICMA plan the conference

agenda, social events and logistics. We met with the Conference Planning Committee in

November and the committee members were very enthusiastic about coming to Seattle and

believe that we will have one of the highest attendance levels ever. This is where you come

in. It will take a village (in this case a whole state) to support the conference. We will be

recruiting about 250 volunteers to help at the conference. We will ask every City to provide

volunteers to do everything from stuffing bags to directing conference attendees to staffing

information booths. Volunteers will be able to attend conference sessions the day they

volunteer. Be looking for a call for volunteers in early 2015.

An important topic for ICMA and WCMA is the “Next Generation” initiative as one way to

prepare for what is affectionately known as the “Silver Tsunami.” Gwen Voelpel, Assistant City

Manager of Seatac, is this year’s Next Gen Committee Chair. We have a newly-formed ICMA

Student Chapter at the Evans School (University of Washington) and a group of very

motivated and energetic students looking to becoming involved in local government. So

what can you do?

___________________________________________________________________________________________ Washington City/County Management Association • 2601 Fourth Ave., Suite 800 • Seattle, WA 98121-1280

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Here’s some ideas:

Be a mentor

Provide an internship opportunity (it doesn’t have to be paid)

Sponsor an ICMA Management Fellow

Match a student’s capstone project to your City’s need for research

Volunteer to help Gwen on the Next Gen Committee! That’s

gvoelpel@ci.seatac.wa.us.

Finally, the Board has been discussing a new format for the WCMA Newsletter. Ron Bartels is

retiring from the newsletter business and we thought this was a good time to ask our members

what they want out of the newsletter. Sometime in 2015, we should be able to launch a new

and improved newsletter that is issue-focused, briefer and still provides important news about

members’ comings and goings. MRSC is developing an electronic format with a new look and

easy-to-follow links. While we get ready to launch the new format, Ron will be holding the

newsletter fort. We want to thank Ron for his many years of service to WCMA and for his

gentle but insistent reminders to “send in your news!”

Let’s make 2015 a year of successes and strength by staying connected with each other,

supporting the profession and building great communities for the future. Have a happy new

year.

Marilynne Beard

Deputy City Manager, Kirkland

WCMA President

From ICMA December 19, 2014

Reflections on Our Past, Present, and Future

by ICMA President Jim Bennett

Anniversaries allow us to celebrate and reflect upon the journey through which we reached a particular milestone.

For the past year, we as ICMA members have collectively done just that. The founders who

established our profession (and organization) envisioned that local government would be responsive

to all members of the community and deliver services through the most professional and ethical

individuals possible. The celebration of our first 100 years is a testament to the success of our

journey to date.

As the last piece of the confetti is being swept up, our attention turns to the future. How will our

profession change? And how will our professional organization help us best navigate the ever-

changing sea of resident expectations? I have been asked to offer my thoughts in my capacity as the first president selected to

serve in the second century of ICMA.

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Our roots are deeply vested in the underlying principle that all members of our communities should have equal access to the

services that their local government provides. At the time of ICMA’s formation, corruption and the “good-ole-boy” system of

nepotism and favoritism that was prevalent among many U.S. municipalities determined who benefited from local government

services. Thanks to the development of professional management, much of that corruption and favoritism has virtually

disappeared. Yet, despite the reforms that have taken place within our local governments, we still grapple with the challenge of

ensuring that all community residents have equal access to the services our local governments provide, that is, social equity.

Admittedly biased by my U.S.-centric worldview, I feel that we’ve seen dramatic changes during the last decade in the way our

federal and state leadership have sought to resolve the issues that concern citizens most, i.e., the environment, jobs, safety,

education, healthcare, and infrastructure. Even the most optimistic among us must agree that our federal and state leaders

have abdicated many of these primary responsibilities. As a result, these issues now land on the door steps of our city/town

halls and county offices. But these are complex issues that cannot be solved by a single community or county, and when they

go unresolved, our neighbors look to their local leadership for help.

At the same time, the economic divide between the extremely well-to-do and those struggling every day to survive has grown

at an unprecedented rate. Among some demographic groups, those differences are even more extreme in comparison to

society as a whole. One catalyst behind the civil unrest and protests recently taking place within many of our communities is

that not everyone believes s/he has the same access to local services. And globally, we are all aware of the human cruelties

that are inflicted daily upon individuals because of their race, ethnicity, or religious beliefs.

For some of us, these observations may provide a palette of dark and gloomy paints with which to create the next masterpiece

at the local level. Others of us see these challenges as an opportunity help address the issues that mean the most to the

members of our community. Doing so will be no easier than the challenges faced by the reformers who took on the corrupt city

political machines 100 years ago.

To be successful, we must build on the great principles that have guided our profession for the last 100 years. Ethical,

professional, and exceptionally competent administrators will remain a key component to successful local communities. Yet we

must develop the core leadership skills (facilitation, negotiation, engaging different groups, emotional intelligence, etc.)

required to meet the challenges of the next century. Leadership based on position, power, and authority will be much less

relevant in a world where no one person or group of people will be in control of all the moving parts.

Community building, which creates a universal sense of hometown pride, requires social equity. It will require dealing at the

local level with issues that cannot be solved by one municipality on its own. To be successful, we must translate complex

issues for our elected officials. Limited experience or interest, fear, or polarization may paralyze our elected bodies. Our

leadership skill set must complement those of the people whom we serve, and we must be politically astute without becoming

politically aligned. The members of the ICMA Task Force on Leadership expressed it well when they said; “We [municipal

managers] must be able to connect with a wide range of people, including diverse cultures, to effectively frame and facilitate

public discussions for productive dialogue.”

From this seat in this very small city of Presque Isle, Maine, I see a profession that will require a very different set of leadership

skills than those required by the individuals who came before us. I would also suggest that in the future, our profession and the

staffs that we lead will be asked to become more involved in community building. Our elected leaders will be asked to address

issues that seldom (if ever) appeared on their agendas in the past. For them to be successful, we will need not only the

technical and functional knowledge of those that have walked city halls for the last 100 years, but we will need the new and

very different leadership skills discussed above, all while maintaining the ethical behaviors that have become the cornerstone

of our profession.

Thank you for allowing me to share my thoughts with you. I look forward to working with you and the ICMA Executive Board in

the coming months.

Happy holidays!

Jim Bennett

ICMA President

2014-2015

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Space

December 18, 2014

REMINDER

Calling all ICMA Members!

We need your creativity to create the best sessions for our 101st Annual Conference!

Details & Guidelines Submit Your Ideas

Submission Deadline

Monday, January 5, 2015.

Dear ICMA Members:

ICMA has opened its call for ideas for the 2015 Annual Conference in Seattle/King County, September 27-30. Ideas from members are invited that address the six (6) Theme tracks and the four (4) Career tracks of the conference. The tracks include:

THEME TRACKS

Equity and Empowerment in Public Policy Management

Making Local Government Relevant

Safely Steering through the Elements: Personally Surviving the Profession

Skills and Tools for the 21st Century Manager

The Next Generation of Infrastructure

CAREER TRACKS

Assistant Managers

County Managers

Senior/ICMA Credentialed Managers

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Small Community Managers

For more details visit the website. You may submit ideas for consideration at icma.granicusideas.com by January 5, 2015.

Thank you very much for your help.

Best regards,

Ross

Ross Hoff Conference Director

ICMA 777 North Capitol St NE, Suite 500

Washington, DC 20002 http://icma.org

© International City/County Management Association

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Editor’s Note: Is your WCMA membership entry on the roster up-to-date and correct? Have you taken a look

at the WCMA website lately? For your benefit and that of everybody else It needs to be

correct! If it needs fixing, please do it ASAP! Dial into WCMA and see what it says about you.

Please! Your information can be found by going to the WCMA website (http://WCCMA.org),

then clicking on “Membership”, and then on “Directory”. If you haven’t created a login,

please do it now.

If your entry needs fixing or correcting or updating, please contact Donita Knutson at MRSC.

She’s the keeper of the records. Her e-mail address is dknutson@mrsc.org.

If you’re a member of WCMA, and haven’t signed up for the WCMA listserve, you should do

that now, too! When you communicate with Donita, ask her to make sure that you’re

connected through the listserve.

Do you get the current WCMA News as well as current information or questions from other

WCMA members around the state? Do you have a question you’d like to transmit in order to

get information and help from folks you know, and those who’ve maybe already dealt with

that particular problem you’re having right now? Or don’t know? Maybe somebody else has

already fixed it and can provide you with advice, or at least how they handled it. Or maybe

what they tried didn’t work for them. In any event, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. But

you have to ask. Again, the keeper of the access is Donita Knutson at MRSC

(dkutson@mrsc.org). If you’re not already connected, please let her know and she can make

sure you are connected to wcma@yahoogroups.com. That’s the WCMA listserve.

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Ron Bartels, editor

WCMA News

Need advice or help, or just want to discuss an idea

with somebody who’s been there?

WCMA/ICMA SENIOR ADVISORS ARE

READY, WILLING AND ABLE!

Senior Advisors are retired city/county managers and administrators, willing to provide

confidential assistance and advice to currently active professional colleagues (mostly

members of WCMA and/or ICMA).

The state organization, Washington City/County Management Association (WCMA) and the

international organization, International City/County Management Associations (ICMA) fund

this volunteer program. Washington has five (5) Senior Advisors.

Senior Advisors perform their role under the ICMA Code of Ethics.

WCMA/ICMA Senior Advisors are always willing and able to offer a listening ear. Being at the

top of the administrative pyramid sometimes makes it difficult to confide in those other

manager or administrator types he/she works with.

When appointed city/county managers or administrators sometimes need a "third party view"

of anything which could affect their professional career. Senior Advisors will spend all the time

necessary to be helpful. Even if they don't have all the answers, they usually know someone

who does!

Resource assistance is a big part of their role, too, and that includes city councils and local

elected officials (If or when asked).

Of course confidentiality is a vital part of any privileged communication and WCMA/ICMA

Senior Advisors protect it for you.

For best results, use any help or assistance before you are in crisis!

They are:

Ron Bartels Bob Jean

2201 Chambers Lake Lane SE 9716 Island View Ln W

Lacey, WA 98503-6935 University Place, WA 98466

Phone: (360) 438-5216 Phone: (253) 566-2654

Cell phone: (206) 948-4924 Cell phone: (253) 205-7847

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rangeriderwest@comcast.net bjeaninup@gmail.com

Lloyd Halverson Stan McNutt

2141 N. W. Benton St. 271 Ryan Loop

Camas, WA 98607 St. Maries, ID 83861-7111

Phone: (360) 834-0153 Phone (208) 245-5043

lnhalverson@aol.com rangerider@cpcinternet.com

Anne Pflug

813 East 3rd Avenue

Ellensburg, WA 98926

Phone: (509) 925-2608

Cell phone: (425) 785-8557

AnnePflug@gmail.com

More From ICMA

Post-Ferguson/New York Discussion Update

As the world has reacted to the events in Ferguson/St. Louis County and New York City, we

have tried to understand the implications for cities, towns, and counties and the profession.

First, we have reached out to support our colleagues in Ferguson by offering whatever is

needed to John Shaw and his staff as they work through a complex range of issues and

emotions.

Second, for some time now, we have been working on a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ)

project on the police departments of the future. If you are interested, the Bureau of Justice

Assistance (BJA) website has some really good material that looks at many of the issues raised

by the events of the past few months. We have also talked with the BJA project team and

representatives from the Major Cities Chiefs Association about how to develop a set of

recommendations for communities going forward.

Third, we met with our colleagues from the Big 7 and White House representatives to

encourage significant involvement on the part of the state/local government communities in

any White House/DOJ initiatives. We also stressed that the issues raised were broader and

more complex than just police strategy, tactics, and equipment.

We will continue to be engaged on this issue and will keep you informed as we progress.

Take care and happy holidays.

Bob O’Neill

ICMA Executive Director

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From The Alliance for Innovation

Innovation Edge

Getting Great Results for Your Community: Start with Caring About the People Who Implement Your Mission by Stacey Peterson, Chief People Officer, Rancho Cordova, CA

An emphasis on talent management and employee engagement is critical to better organizational performance. In all industries there is considerable pressure to improve performance levels, especially in government where citizens are expecting more be done with fewer resources. To expand talent capacity, the City of Rancho Cordova, an eleven-year old City near Sacramento, California, looked to the Great Place to Work® Institute. There we learned to benchmark best practices and gain insights from years of research and experience on building employee trust, which is proven to yield significant returns on productivity, innovation and revenues.

Best companies research confirms that teams in supportive environments can perform at significantly higher levels - as much as 30 to 40 percent. So, how can more public agencies change the work environment? If our desire is to raise the bar of performance, we have to seek management practices that are proven to contribute to better performance. Where do you begin? For starters, when was the last time you surveyed your employees? Do you know what employees value or would like to change? Are you clear on what you can improve to build trust in the organization?

Research also tells us that people want to feel like what they do matters and, as a result, they matter. As leaders, to attain positive results from our people, we must truly care about the thinking and feedback of the employees implementing the mission.

The City of Rancho Cordova has 70 employees and approximately 90 contract staff. The City decided to get staff involved in creating a different government that would better serve its citizens. To produce exceptional results, City leaders challenged employees to create the kind of systems and practices that would promote accountability, collaboration, innovation and efficiency. This was not “top down” thinking, but open and inclusive program evolution by trial and error and extensive customer input.

Key to this strategy is having a clear mission and focusing everyone around a clear sense of purpose to create non-bureaucratic systems that produce more responsive and effective customer service. The City mission is to serve as brokers, catalysts, facilitators, and educators in responding to issues. City employees know that they cannot solve all problems for all citizens, so we seek to leverage resources through key partners in the community.

When the economic downturn hit, the City leadership engaged employees in budget discussions, solicited input on benefit changes, and refocused efforts around developing employee capacity to be

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more creative in responding to citizen issues. A conscientious decision was made to keep training and recognition dollars to ensure that employees could continue to grow in their professional capacity and would be rewarded for extra efforts. It was made clear to staff that everyone was in it together – leadership, City employees and contractors. We surveyed employees to get broad input and ideas to improve the overall HR program and experience of working at the City. This gave us great insights and more employees weighed in as they saw that input was valued.

In 2012, I decided to go a step further and submit the City for Great Place to Work® Institute review, thinking that improvement comes from benchmarking against the best! Employees change lives every day by serving the Rancho Cordova community and we want every team member who works here to have that same life-changing experience. We always want the focus to be about building effective relationships with our elected officials, community partners, and staff, which will put us in the best position to unite around shared community goals and work collaboratively and innovatively toward those outcomes.

Competing against hundreds of companies across the country, Rancho Cordova participated in a rigorous selection process with Great Place to Work® which included an employee Trust Index survey and an in-depth questionnaire about benefits programs and company practices across nine areas of focus. The employee survey forms two-thirds of the score across five dimensions that can be measured in any workplace. “It really has to authentically be great because that employee experience is such an extensive part of our methodology,” said Leslie Caccamese, associate vice president of U.S. marketing with Great Place to Work Institute.

It was with great pride that the City of Rancho Cordova accepted the honor of being named on the top 25 small business list published in Fortune Magazine for the past 3 years, the first-ever and only government agency to make the list. This September, Rancho Cordova learned of its “3-peat” honor at the Great Place to Work Small and Medium Workplace Business conference in Washington, D.C. where Assistant City Manager Joe Chinn and I presented on “A Culture That Pays Doesn’t Have to Break the Bank” to share positive people practices that empower employees to innovate and work as a team toward better outcomes. We emphasized the need to continuously develop the team, reward employees for great work, and make time for celebration and fun.

Great Place to Work has found that employees believe they work for great organizations when they consistently trust the people they work for, have pride in what they do, and enjoy the people they work with. The best companies have learned that these programs cannot just be owned and delivered by human resources. While human resources teams can champion programs that ensure broad communication, feedback and accountability, development, recognition of good work and celebration of collective accomplishments, they cannot alone foster the commitment, focus and energy needed by the entire team to build a supportive work environment.

From the beginning, Rancho Cordova’s strategy was always to create flexible practices that support the “can-do” spirit of our talent. We focus on programs that most employees want and continuously evolve them to create a supportive environment, rather than managing to complainers. We encourage ongoing dialogue between managers and their teams and spontaneous on-the-spot recognition that shows employees their extra effort was noticed. It doesn’t have to be big. It is often the little ways in

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which we share appreciation and build camaraderie that go a long way in making individuals feel valued for their contributions.

Great workplaces seek ways to free up staff from bureaucracy and trust them to use good judgment in addressing concerns with customers. Rancho Cordova City leaders empower staff to solve problems at the lowest levels. Mistakes will happen. Hopefully, they become ways we learn and end up with better outcomes. We remind our City staff that-- outside of ethical, legal, or safety concerns-- reasonable risk-taking is okay and supported by City Council. In the end, our focus is arriving at the best solutions to community issues.

The Rancho Cordova City Council and employees are proud that prudent management and efficient government have achieved a year-end budget surplus for the 11th year in a row. “We are delighted to be on this prestigious Great Place to Work® list for the third time,” said Rancho Cordova Mayor Dan Skoglund. “It reinforces that we are creating a great organization to better serve our citizens. We see the City team regularly go above and beyond in their work.”

Research from the Gallup Organization reports that engagement, when properly measured, extends beyond an assessment of how happy your employees are on the job; it also reveals whether that happiness produces superior performance. In his book, The Happiness Advantage, Shawn Achor describes how doctors, sales people, and students all outperform their neutral or pessimistic counterparts, showing more intelligence and creativity. Brains are literally hardwired to perform better when they are positive.

Management theorist Simon Sinek suggests that great leaders make their employees feel secure and draw them into a circle of trust in his recent book, Leaders Eat Last. Creating a strategy around getting to know your staff better and improving two way communication is very important. Employees need to understand what's expected of them, be given the resources and tools to succeed, and feel valued for the contributions they make to an organization.

How can you use this information to get great results for your community? Look closely at your core expectations for the workforce. Have you clearly set the expectation that all employees need to be respectful, open to different ideas and opinions, and step up as leaders across all levels to help each other? Do you address conflicts as they arise or do you have a “fend for yourself” environment?

Getting everyone in the organization to care about the overall experience is critical to a positive culture. Think less about managing the work, and more about managing the experience felt by your employees. Show them you care about them as smart, committed and trustworthy people. Tap into their passions to further engage them. Your job is to create a rewarding and positive experience, which ultimately will inspire employees to produce better results. While not without challenge and continuous learning, we’ve proven it is achievable and desirable in government.

To learn more, visit Great Place to Work®, see our City survey results summarized on the GreatRated! website, or contact me at 916-851-8741 or speterson@cityofranchocordova.org.

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About The Alliance for Innovation is inspiring innovation to advance communities. As the premier resource for emerging practices in local government, the Alliance is building cultures of innovation and connecting thought leaders in the profession with the help of our partners ICMA and ASU. We are accessible and valuable to all levels of local government. The Alliance is a network of local governments driving innovation throughout their organizations. You can learn more about the Alliance for Innovation and the Knowledge Network at www.transformgov.org or contact our Regional Director, Pamela Muse ppmuse@transformgov.org or 888-468-6450

Transitions

Paul Ellis has been named city administrator of Arlington. He was formerly Arlington’s airport,

community and economic development director, and has served as assistant city

administrator for special projects, capital projects manager, and a police officer there.

Jared Eyer, who has been serving as an intern with city manager Doug Schulze in Bainbridge

Island, has now finished his internship, and is in the job market. Please read Doug’s comments

below. Here’s a real opportunity for both Jared and one of our Washington cities.

Bob Gregory, city manager of Longview, is retiring at the end of 2014. Bob indicates that he

feels that 35 years in local government has been a great career.

Allen Johnson will be retiring as city administrator of Arlington. He’s been in local government

management for 40 years. He had earlier served as city manager of Kearney, Nebraska, and

Great Falls, Montana.

Merlin MacReynold, city manager of Chehalis, had originally planned to retire at the end of

2014. But after a failed recruitment process, the city council there has asked him to agree to

two more years as city manager, to which he has agreed.

Michael Rizzitiello has been named the city administrator of Colfax. He was formerly

economic development coordinator for Beaverton, Oregon.

And now, the news: Region 1, Clallam, Jefferson, Kitsap & Mason Counties

Lynn Nordby, Public Policy and Management Consultant, MRSC

lnordby@mrsc.org

206-625-1300 or 1-800-933-6772

Bainbridge Island city manager Doug Schulze reports:

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During the past six months, I have been fortunate to have a management intern working for

Bainbridge Island. Jared Eyer was hired after completing his graduate degree at UW Evans

School this past June. When I first proposed a management intern program, my management

team expressed concerns that it would add to their workload. Without exception, every

member of the management team is interested in continuing the program because Jared

was such an asset to the organization and, having a young intern who wanted to learn and

soak everything in was inspiring. As Jared completes his final week with Bainbridge Island, he is

even more excited about a career in local government management. Eventually, Jared

would like to become a city manager (I can’t believe it either, but I didn’t scare him away).

If you are looking for a team member with very strong budgeting, financial and analytical skills

I can’t speak highly enough about Jared. His email address is jleyer@gmail.com.

Port Townsend city manager David Timmons reports:

I am still here. Still feel like the Maytag Repairman out here. Just finished year 15! Also by the

end of 2015 we will have transitioned 100% of senior and middle management of the city. We

are not getting any younger and succession is upon us! Next year we will also begin to move

ahead on the largest capital program in the Port Townsend’s history. We will be building our

new water treatment plant, a new water reservoir, extending a new street opening a new

commercial area, plus several new sidewalk connections and reinvestment in a former

elementary school building to house the police and several community services. (And the

majority of this investment is all being done using state and federal resources!) Port Townsend

is also going to see a new hospital building and college facility constructed next year.

Region 2, Grays Harbor, Lewis, Pacific & Thurston Counties

Merlin MacReynold, City Manager, City of Chehalis

mmacreynold@ci.chehalis.wa.us

360-345-1042, Ext. 4

Chehalis city manager Merlin MacReynold reports:

If you would have asked me a few weeks ago, I would have said this was my last newsletter as

city manager of Chehalis. As some of you know, I planned to retire at the end of this year;

however, after an extensive search and interview process, the city council asked if I would

consider staying on. I agreed and will be in Chehalis another two years! 2014 was a great

year for Chehalis:

A beautification and street improvement project was completed on Chehalis Avenue

located in the central business district.

Ownership of Stan Hedwall Park was transferred from the state to the city. This is the

city’s largest park and is very busy with youth sports activities. With ownership the city

can now explore improvement opportunities.

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The city’s financial viability was maintained during the great recession and even

improved. Our bond rating went from an “A” to an “A+.”

The Shaw Aquatics Center was constructed. This beautiful new facility replaced a very

aged swimming pool. This project was completely funded by The Chehalis Foundation.

The city took sole ownership of the Chehalis-Centralia Airport and managed a

successful transition to a city department.

Alternative funding sources were developed to make improvements to our local streets

by dedicating four percent of city sales and use taxes and the creation of a

transportation benefit district.

In the coming year, I look forward to the projects and opportunities here in Chehalis, and I am

very excited to continue as city manager.

Tumwater city administrator John Doan reports:

We are working on two annexations. One is about a half a square mile and represents a

future industrial and commercial development area off I-5 at 93rd Street. There is no residential

population and we anticipate it to be complete about the middle of 2015. It was the result of

a petition submitted by a major property owner and support from greater than 65% of the

valuation. The second is a large annexation east of Tumwater, bringing in a commercial area

and about 3,000 residents, increasing our population by 16 percent. That annexation is

expected to be complete the end of 2015. We have been able to develop transition

agreements with the applicable fire district.

The improvements promised with the levy lid lift of 2011 were completed in November with the

hiring of the third police officer. The lid lift increased property taxes by approx. $0.63/$1,000

and funded an expanded and renovated police facility, three additional firefighters, three

additional police officers, and a 25-year funding strategy for fire engine replacement.

The budget finished with a status quo plan for the coming biennium. We will be looking hard at

some efficiency steps (regionalization), benefit savings, and revenue generating opportunities

in order to better position the end of 2016.

Region 3, Clark, Cowlitz, Skamania & Wahkiakum Counties

Steve Taylor, City Manager, City of Kelso

staylor@kelso.gov

360-423-1371

Kelso city manager Steve Taylor reports:

Season’s Greetings from Southwest Washington!

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It’s Christmastime in Kelso…where most people spend the yuletide trimming the tree, buying

presents for friends and loved ones, and settling down for long winter naps to close out the

year. In city government, it means budgets are due for adoption, final changes to employee

health benefits during open enrollment are being processed, and there’s frenzied equipment

purchasing with year-end budget savings prior to December 31st (yes…you can admit that

your city practices that, too…). There may be just a couple of days for a breather between

Christmas and New Year’s before the agenda packet for the first meeting in January is due in

council in-boxes. But hey, we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Kelso adopted its biennial budget for 2015-16 in early December, and gladly, for the first time

in four years, force reduction and service retrenchment were not topics of discussion. The

economy here is picking up steam and new retail investment at our regional mall brings the

promise of additional sales and business taxes. The council approved an additional 2% tax on

city-owned utilities for general fund service enhancements and tackling the new Supreme

Court unfunded mandate pertaining to indigent defense.

The complete overhaul of Kelso’s comprehensive plan (originally authored in 1980 prior to Mt.

St. Helens’ eruption) is set for council review and consideration in the first quarter of 2015, and

the new shoreline management plan is in its second review by the Department of Ecology

(only three more reviews to go!). The city has the design of its West Main Street Revitalization

streetscape project out for bid, and looks to begin construction of the first phase by this

summer. We are using a mixture of CDBG program income, transportation benefit district

dollars, and a rural public facilities grant from Cowlitz County to fund this pedestrian-oriented

retail enhancement which complements the West Main Street realignment project completed

in 2014.

All in all, 2014 was a phenomenal year for Kelso. There’s always more work to be done, but

the efforts of our dedicated staff combined with the support of an engaged council makes

the labor for our fine city a most enjoyable endeavor.

I would be remiss in not adding a word about my esteemed colleague in Longview, Bob

Gregory, who is saying farewell to city management at the end of next week. I’ve only

worked with Bob for a couple of years, but I can point to no finer community leader who sets

the standard for professionalism, sincerity, and competence in an executive. Bob is

committed 110% to every project he lays his hands to, and humbly administers the public

responsibilities he’s dedicated his career to for over thirty years. It has truly been an honor to

work with this friendly and caring city manager, and I hope that by the end of my career, I

could be fortunate to achieve half of his accomplishments.

Here’s a parting quote from J.R.R. Tolkein:

The Road goes ever on and on

Down from the door where it began.

Now far ahead the Road has gone,

And I must follow, if I can,

Pursuing it with eager feet,

Until it joins some larger way

Where many paths and errands meet.

And whither then? I cannot say.”

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Farewell, Bob.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Longview city manager Bob Gregory reports:

We are wrapping up our 2015/16 biennial budget. This was the first budget in a couple of

biennium’s that we did not have to face a reduction in services. Due to some conservative

revenue assumptions and watchful expenditures by city staff in the last biennium, and a

modest improvement in the Southwest Washington economy, we have a budget that will

allow us to restore some services that were cut in previous bienniums. Our main focus in

restoring services was our commitment to reducing crime and thus we have added staffing to

police patrol, a specialty street crimes unit, and support for IT in the public safety departments

to improve technology services. This will be accomplished with the use of some reserves we

were fortunate to build up over the last biennium while also maintaining a solid fund balance

in our general fund. Our budget also included a robust capital program in our utility

infrastructure programs.

One of our significant infrastructure projects this year is coming to a close. We are underway

with a $2.4 million streetscape project in our downtown. The project includes low impact

development features including rain gardens and pervious pavement, new street lighting,

electrical systems for seasonal decorations and for supporting downtown events, irrigation for

landscaping and seasonal plantings, downtown furniture, and a complete replacement of

sidewalks and ADA accessibility. We have also learned that we will receive additional funding

that will hopefully allow us to complete the last 2 blocks of the downtown streetscape in 2015.

The project has taken significant coordination between the city, downtown businesses,

downtown association, and the contractor and the initial reviews have been outstanding.

The economy also continues to be an improving bright spot. The ports in Cowlitz County have

announced over $2 billion in projects. If successful with financing and permitting, these

projects would be under construction in the next 12 -- 18 months. In Longview, we are seeing

renewed interest in commercial and industrial development and 2015 should see a modest

improvement in building permit activity.

As I near my last few days at Longview, I want to thank all of my WCMA colleagues and

friends. 35 years in local government has been a great career and I truly believe this

profession is unparalleled with a group of dedicated professionals who truly are committed to

public service and to better their respective communities. I will miss much of this work (ok, but

can’t wait to miss council meetings) and wish you all the best of the holiday season and a

joyous 2015!

Region 4, Kittitas, Klickitat & Yakima Counties

Larry Bellamy, City Administrator, City of Goldendale

lbellamy@ci.goldendale.wa.us

509-773-3771

No report.

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Region 5, Benton, Franklin & Walla Walla Counties

Dave Zabell, City Manager, Pasco

zunkert@pasco-wa.gov

509-545-3404

Connell reports:

Connell began the year with a new mayor Bruce Blackwell, and lacked two key management

positions. We highly value the expertise of seasoned management and staff; their

commitment added stability and carried the load for a smooth transition. Management

positions were filled in April by police chief Chris Turner and city administrator Jed Crowther.

Highlights:

$1 Million Saved in Interest Payments – Connell clerk treasurer Maria Peña created a plan to

retire USDA bonds, with payment via an inter-fund loan at lower interest rate, to achieve a

savings of over $1 million!

Railroad Quiet Zone status is nearly complete, with cost-effective solutions. Review had

projected to cost $600,000 for double-crossing arms, but a safe alternative by center median is

$12,000 by comparison!

Grants -- CERB in collaboration with Port of Pasco, Targeted Industry Analysis, food processing.

CHS Foundation Grant for fire department SCBA gear.

Budget:

For budget, we tried to create realistic revenue projections, scrutinize expenditures, and

prioritize needs. We did our best to inform of future shortfalls, proper use of reserves, and

impact of ending fund balance. Our 2015 Budget did generate increased expenditures;

attributed mainly to inflationary costs for utilities and services, together with a new police

contract, up 3%; and non-union COLA of 2% plus insurance. City council followed

recommendations to implement vital water (7%) and sewer (5%) rate increases.

Next year, we plan to emphasize goals/priorities early on, in order to better connect with

budget impact.

Action:

Connell acquired the community center parking lot property, which settled ownership

concerns. Public works completed three waterline replacement and street improvement

projects. Fire department cleared 75 lots of woody debris fire hazards. Parks and recreation

expanded seasonal programs to 44 activities. Police department developed teamwork and

handled a homicide in a professional manner. Finance department maintained invoicing

systems well and synchronized budget info admirably. Planning resolved garage height

requirements, and amended parks and recreation comprehensive plan.

17

All in all, we look forward to a successful new year in 2015.

Richland communications and marketing manager Trish Heron reports:

Richland’s city council recently passed the 2015 budget without any additional property tax

increases. Each year the city closely monitors a line graph forecasting revenue and expenses,

with the intent of always keeping the expense line from crossing the revenue line. As most

municipalities know, the lines seem to get closer each year and 2015 is no exception. To keep

the lines from crossing Richland is focusing on its strategic leadership plan to prepare for short

and long term goals of the city. In 2015, Richland will be looking at long term growth with the

master planning of the waterfront district, which will help establish a sense of place and further

expand our efforts in making Richland sustainable.

Region 6, Asotin, Columbia, Garfield & Whitman Counties

Michol Ann Jensen, Executive Assistant, City of Pullman

Micholann.jensen@pullman-wa.gov

509-338-3208

Colfax city administrator Michael Rizzitello, reports:

Greetings from Colfax, Washington. I am the new city administrator. I moved back in July to

the Colfax from Beaverton, Oregon. where I previously handled economic development. A

lot of projects have been going on since the start of my tenure. We are starting a Colfax 2035

comprehensive plan update. The plan was last completed in 2006. The new plan will be done

in accordance with GMA goals. Prior plans were not done this way since Whitman County is a

partially planning jurisdiction. Colfax is partnering with Eastern Washington University to

conduct a parks master plan and Schmuck Park feasibility study. Plan commission and city

council just passed zoning regulations and medicinal and recreational marijuana uses.

Essentially a small section along Lower A Street and some commercial land along State Route

26 are the only areas marijuana businesses are permissible. Zoning for chickens will be

forthcoming. This will be done in summer 2015. Colfax is also partnering with Washington State

University to conduct a traffic redesign of State Highway 26 and United States Highway 195

intersection.

The intersection is currently triangular in shape with two approaches consisting of structurally

obsolete bridges. The sidewalk on the State Highway 26 spur bridge is currently closed due to

the structural condition of the sidewalk supports. Colfax began a public information

campaign to call the public's attention to the condition of the bridge. Avista Utilities and

WSDOT graciously agreed to fund a temporary fix to strengthen and reopen the Highway 26

spur bridge sidewalk. The city and WSDOT will work in partnership to locate funding to

redesign the intersection. We are determined to have the intersection redesigned with

bridges rebuilt within five years.

Development is picking back up. Scott Ackerman is constructing a housing development off

of Main Street by the Best Western called River Pointe. Bob Hauser is also constructing a

couple of houses up at Hauser Addition. Colfax is wrapping up some property acquisitions

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from Watco Company including Railroad Avenue and Lake Street. The Lake Street property

between Island and Last will be used for downtown parking in the future. The city is working

with the owner of the former St. Ignatius Hospital to market it for redevelopment. The railroad

spur line across US 195 from the main line to Spokane Seed will be reinstalled in April 2015.

WSDOT is repaving US 195 with a grant from TIB covering sidewalks from Clay Street to the SR 26

intersection. Colfax is also partnering with the Port of Whitman County to explore the

establishment of a light industrial area around the port airport facility located just to the west

of the city limits. The city council passed a special hotel and motel tax to fund marketing and

economic development activities around the city. The Colfax Downtown Association and

Historic Preservation Commission also recently just got reconstituted as well.

Colfax just held Winter Festival 2014 on December 13. It included pop-up shops, tree lighting

ceremony, parade, and ukulele club concert. Colfax is partnering with SEWEDA and other

nearby localities on submitting an EPA Brownfield Assessment Grant to establish funding for

phase I and II brownfield work including site characterization (establishment of regional GIS).

Hopefully we will win the grant.

Colfax is experiencing significant staff turnover (due to retirements and attrition). We just hired

Candace Fisher as finance director and promoted Matt Hammer to public works director. We

just hired two public works utility workers and are completing two hires in the police

department. One of the police positions is partially funded by a three year contract with

Whitman Hospital for late night security services. Thanks to the support of the hospital we now

have police coverage 24/7. The city is also establishing a code enforcement program with

one police officer to serve with an emphasis on code enforcement. City council just passed

the 2012 International Property Maintenance Code to assist with such efforts. City council also

passed fair housing legislation. The city also just hired a new city attorney as well.

Colfax is finishing up a six year information technology plan and just got Wi-Fi in city hall. Lots

of changes here at Colfax. City council just passed a $3.2 million dollar budget for FY 2015.

Revenues continue to increase, albeit slowly.

Colfax is trying to become a regional center for municipal training since we are a county seat.

The short course on planning will be held here on February 18.

I have had a great five months here in Colfax, and look forward to continuing the work to

make Colfax the Heart of the Palouse. I look forward to working with you all.

And here’s the news from Pullman:

To enhance school spirit and perhaps kick start WSU football, city council approved a portion

of Colorado Street near the campus to be renamed Cougar Way. In spite of the hometown

boost, the team had a lackluster season.

Downtown Pullman drivers daily battle the 15-minute rush-hour congestion. Council

authorized a traffic circulation study and in late August discussed the study results and

suggestions. The compact development of Pullman on four hills, combined with two state

highways meeting in the downtown area (the east-west SR 270 and north-south SR 27) limits

19

solutions. Rather than hampering business by eliminating parking on Grand Avenue, the city’s

north-south thoroughfare, the council instructed the public works department to implement

the easiest solution of optimizing the downtown traffic signals.

Marking the 25th anniversary of the Pullman-Kasai City, Japan Friendship City Agreement,

Pullman Mayor Glenn A. Johnson and Kasai City Mayor Kazuhira Nishimura renewed the

friendship affiliation during a face-to-face meeting in Pullman city hall on Feb. 6. At that time,

Mayor Nishimura requested that youth exchanges resume between Kasai and Pullman. The

last trip to Japan of Pullman youth ambassadors was during spring break 2007. The last

Japanese youth delegation visited Pullman in 2008. Preparations are now in the works for a

spring 2015 visit to Pullman by eight 14-15 year olds, (two representatives from each of Kasai’s

junior high schools) and their chaperones. Mayor Johnson has also finalized his plans for a visit

to Kasai in May 2015 for that city’s celebration of the 1300th commemorative year of

Harimanokuni Fudoki.

As per Initiative 502 passed by Washington voters, Pullman’s first retail store for recreational

marijuana, Mary Jane’s Pot Shop, opened October 4 after meeting all city zoning and state

licensing regulations. All things considered, this event has been uneventful.

The city notes the shattered record for year-to-date building permit valuation figures. With the

issuance of a building permit to Pullman School District for the planned reconstruction of the

high school, the value of all permits issued in 2014 is nearly $98 million through November. The

previous record was $75 million.

Since the 2007 phase 1 master plan, the Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport Runway

Realignment Project has been in the works. The draft environmental assessment was published

in September of this year and public comments accepted through Oct. 6. Contingent upon

an FAA issuance of a finding of no significance, the project kicked into high gear by

broadcasting an RFQ for engineering firms to design and build the preferred alternative. The

design phase is scheduled for 2015 and the engineering phase 2016 -- to completion in 2018.

In July, engineering consultants Mead & Hunt estimated the cost for the project at $89 million

in 2018 dollars, with at least 90 percent of that cost being paid for by the federal government.

That figure is up from the 2007 estimate of $66 million. The local match went from around $6

million to around $9 million. There also remains a high probability that the local match will be

reduced from 10 percent to 8.125 percent when an appropriation bill is passed by the federal

government.

Pullman Mayor Glenn Johnson was one of seven mayors nationwide (and one of five from the

Pacific Northwest) invited, through the U.S. Conference of Mayors, to participate -- at no cost

to the city -- in the Mayors’ Institute on city design hosted by the Southern California Institute

of Architecture. To prepare for the Institute, representatives met well in advance of the

November meetings with city planner Pete Dickinson to select a city design challenge about

which the experts could offer practical advice. The case study project selected for Pullman

was Grand Avenue and its attendant issues (street parking; pedestrian, bicycle and motorized

traffic; attractiveness to visitors and residents, etc.). Reflecting upon the people who offered

solution suggestions during the Institute, Mayor Johnson said that “we couldn’t begin to afford

to buy that kind of experience and expertise.”

20

Council enjoyed a slower pace at the end of the calendar year by hosting three joint council

meetings. The first on Nov. 5 was the second of two meetings each year with the elected

representatives of the Associated Students of Washington State University (ASWSU). The

students appreciate the long-held tradition in Pullman. Apparently among other PAC 12

schools, joint meetings of city councils and student body representatives are less common.

Later in November, the council met with Whitman County commissioners to discuss issues of

common concern. Exemplifying a good working relationship, the council met with the 9th

District State Legislators in a December meeting.

City finance director Bill Mulholland breathed a sigh of satisfaction when the final budget was

adopted by city council on November 18. Mulholland, who plans to retire in May 2015, is

regularly noting the last time he will need to do this or that. A search will begin to fill his

position after the first of the year.

Coming out of the great recession, both city hall and employee morale are experiencing

long-needed lifts during 2014. For decades, the engineering and building inspections divisions

were packed into a warren of cubicles and small offices, including a converted janitor’s

closet. An underutilized open space on the top floor was appropriated to give them some

breathing space. The new east end remodel added eight offices, some common work space

and storage, as well as a small meeting room. The west end also enjoyed a reconfiguration of

offices, paint and carpet. The brick and stucco exterior of the circa 1970 government building

had been showing its age with peeling paint and stains. New paint and stucco makes a

better first impression. Restrooms on the main floor benefitted from new wallboard, fixtures,

and lighting. And, after more than 16 years of use, the administration and finance

department’s shared open space is losing its ‘90s look with new paint and carpet.

Region 7, Adams, Grant, & Lincoln Counties

Wes Crago, City Administrator, City of Ephrata

wcrago@ephrat.org

509-754-4601, Ext. 110

Christmas Cheer!!

Region 8, Ferry, Pend Oreille, Spokane, & Stevens Counties

Albert Tripp, City Manager, City of Airway Heights

atripp@cawh.org

509-244-5578

Airway Heights city manager Albert Tripp reports:

Airway Heights and other Spokane County cities recently completed a multiyear effort

regarding how solid waste disposal would be handle in Spokane County. During the last 25

years cites have sent by interlocal agreement solid waste to the Spokane regional plant for

disposal by incineration. With a November 2014 deadline on the horizon, regional cities

embarked on a variety of processes to determine the best disposal option for their

community. As the process started regional cities evaluated remaining with the regional

21

system or shipping solid waste out of the county via truck and rail. For cities contemplating

leaving the regional solid waste disposal system the added task of planning for disposal and

administering disposal contracts was also a consideration. In the end the regional cities took a

variety of approaches. Some cities including Airway Heights evaluated leaving the regional

system, but found pricing and services more competitive to remain. Other cities decided to

leave the system and ship solid waste to landfills.

This year was a good economic development year for Airway Heights and the Spokane

region. On March 20, 2014, the city took another step to bring jobs to Airway Heights and the

greater Spokane region with the announcement of the successful recruitment of a new

aerospace employer to Airway Heights. Doug Gines, Vice President and COO of Exotic

Metals announced plans to expand its 48-year old aerospace supplier company to a second

location at a new development site in Airway Heights.

Exotic and the city worked together for 18 months to consider a number of sites to locate the

company’s new 150,000 square foot aerospace manufacturing plant. The final site location

was selected by Exotic following an extensive, international and multi-state evaluation. The

56.6-acre site, purchased from the Spokane International Airport, is located near McFarlane

and Lawson streets in Airway Heights and presents ample room for future growth and

expansion.

Exotic anticipates the Airway Heights facility will be an employment site for up to 150 workers.

Typically there are between 2 ½-3 ½ indirect jobs created for every direct job in aerospace,

further enhancing the economic impact to Airway Heights and the greater Spokane local

economy.

Exotic Metals, a six time Boeing Supplier of the Year, currently employs 900 employees in Kent.

Exotic engineers manufactures and provides after-market support on vital systems and

components for the most advanced commercial aircraft in active service today. State-of-the-

art, high-temperature, high-strength sheet metal designs and fabrications are produced for

Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) such as Boeing and United Technologies.

“Working with Airway Heights has been very productive,” says Doug Gines, VP and COO of

Exotic Metals. “The city provided a welcoming, pro-business approach that helped make this

important decision for Exotic an easy one and will continue to pave the way for a seamless

development process.” The city pledged funds to extend sewer service to the site, add traffic

capacity at the McFarlane and Hayford Road intersection, and to fast-track the permitting

process, which includes a 48-hour guarantee for plan review submittals.

Construction of the manufacturing facility started late spring and is schedule to be completed

by spring of 2015.

Region 9, Chelan, Douglas, & Okanogan Counties

Paul Schmidt, City Administrator, City of Chelan

pschmidt@cityofchelan.us

509-682-4037

22

and

Joel Walinski, City Administrator, City of Leavenworth

jwalinski@cityofleavenworth.com

509-548-5275

Chelan city administrator Paul Schmidt reports:

As we put the finishing touches on our annual budget preparations for 2015, I am pleased with

the accomplishments and fiscal condition of Chelan.

The current state of the economy is allowing Chelan to project increases in 2015 for property

taxes (3.4%), sales taxes (9%) and lodging taxes (9.4%). It needs to be stated even though we

are realizing modest increases in these revenues sources, we are still recovering from the deep

recession and, of course, have considerably more demands for municipal services far beyond

available resources.

On the investment front, the city council approved the purchase of the PUD (Chelan County

Public Utility District) parking lot and current chamber of commerce building in the amount of

$800,000 from the Chelan County PUD. This purchase culminates four years of discussion and

prior attempts to secure this critical piece of property in the very heart of Chelan’s downtown

district, in order to provide the Chelan community the opportunity to plan for an optimal future

use of the property. Furthering the investment in our great community, the city council

approved the acceptance of a $702,000 energy grant from the Washington State

Department of Commerce to make energy savings investments in street lighting, parks

irrigation, building heat pumps and solar panels for electrical generation. This significant

investment will require a $291,000 city match but is expected to provide a short turnaround

and payback for a long term return on the investment. And finally, the city council once

again elected to invest in the Historic Downtown Chelan Association by pledging $80,000 in

State B&O taxes to the HDCA to continue their good work in 2015.

On the planning front, efforts for 2015 will include the final steps to complete parks and

recreation comprehensive plan update. Also expected to be completed is the shoreline

master plan (SMP) which will be reviewed by the city council early in 2015 for any final

modifications. The SMP process has been very thorough and has involved many hours of

meetings and discussions to address all the changes that have been included in this critical

piece of work. In spite of the complexity of the regulation of our shorelines and with all the

government jurisdictions involved, we feel this regulatory document speaks for the Chelan

community and commendations are in order for the city planning department.

On the political front, Chelan was served on July 30, 2014, with citizen petitions promoted by

the “Freedom Foundation” from Olympia, calling for passage of local ordinances to limit

collective bargaining sessions to open public meetings and to restrict security clause contract

language in our collective bargaining agreements. It is noted the cities of Sequim, Shelton

and Blaine were also served with identical petitions around the same time period.

These petitions were prepared as legal initiatives and required a statutory minimum number of

registered voters to qualify for a ballot measure by a vote of the people or an outright

23

ordinance passage by the city council. After two subsequent rejections by the Chelan county

auditor for lack of signatures, the petitions were finally perfected in late September, which was

too late to have the initiatives on the November general election.

The petitions were then sent to the Chelan city council for action; to either place the petitions

on the next upcoming ballot as initiative measures, pass the petitions outright as ordinances or

take no action. The Chelan city council decided not to take any action as absolutely no

Chelan citizen who signed the petitions came forward in support of the petitions.

On November 20, 2014, the Freedom Foundation served Chelan with a lawsuit (Writ of

Mandamus) demanding the petitions be placed on the February, 2015, ballot in the city. This

very same lawsuit had already been filed against Sequim and Shelton a month or so earlier.

On December3, 2014, a superior court judge from Clallam County ruled in favor of Sequim

denying the Freedom Foundation’s demand for an election on matters pertaining collective

bargaining. The reason stated for the ruling is the state legislature granted specific authority to

respective city councils to perform collective bargaining, and not to the general city.

Therefore the petitions by the citizens to undertake collective bargaining duties were not valid.

Interesting stuff. The moral of this story is the respective city managers and city attorneys from

the four cities conversed regularly to share information and recommendations, which formed

a much stronger base of common defense. While we still await a judgment for Shelton and

Chelan prepares a defense of the same, we hope we continue to prevail in turning back

these special interest efforts that belong in Olympia at the s state legislature rather than at

the doorsteps of individual cities.

In summary, 2014 was a good year for Chelan and we expect the same, if not more, good

things to occur in 2015 as we to continue to move the Chelan community in the direction our

city leaders intend.

Region 10, Island, San Juan, Skagit & Whatcom Counties

Eron Berg, City Supervisor/City Attorney, City of Sedro-Woolley

eberg@ci.sedro-woolley.wa.us

360-855-1661

Sedro-Woolley finished 2014 with a number of critical successes. On the transportation front, a

major revision of SR 20 and the other primary route into and through the city, were channeled

into two new roundabouts in a two year project that has successfully improved traffic flow. As

part of this project a new arterial street, Edward R. Murrow Street, was developed and named

to honor a son of Skagit County. Also, Third Street which serves the State Champion Sedro-

Woolley Cubs football team was repaved and new sidewalks were built leading to the high

school. Crosswalks in the vicinity are adorned with blue and white cub prints. Businesswise, a

new 1920’s themed, natural foods grocery store and deli opened on Metcalf. The Woolley

Market aims to provision tourists heading east and good food from around here to Sedro-

Woolley residents. Windermere also opened a Sedro-Woolley office just in time to pick up the

sales effort on new home construction which finally started again after the great recession. A

new marijuana mercantile opened on SR 20; too early to know if it will have any appreciable

impact on sales tax and also on the green front, predevelopment efforts continue on some

24

fairly significant marijuana growing and processing facilities. Looking forward to 2015, we will

be focused on hiring new police officers (four as of today), more transportation projects

including a bike/pedestrian path along SR 20 and a new roundabout on SR 9 leading to the

high school, the possible expansion of our fire department to include basic life support

transporting, and more business growth throughout the city. It’s not too late to see one of the

tallest Christmas trees in the state -- just visit downtown Sedro-Woolley or our webcam online

at www.ci.sedro-woolley.wa.us.

Region 11, Snohomish County

Larry Bauman, City Manager, City of Snohomish

bauman@ci.snohomish.wa.us

360-568-3115

Arlington reports:

We end 2014 on a bittersweet note. After more than 40 years in public service, and 10 years at

the Arlington, we say goodbye to Allen Johnson. Allen has done so much for Arlington with a

list of accomplishments a mile long, which he would say were all because of the team we

have here. The last go around, retirement lasted just 4 months for Allen. We’re hoping that he

doesn’t flunk this time and enjoys his much deserved retirement. Allen will be truly missed by

everyone here in Arlington!

We start the new year with a familiar face at the helm. Paul Ellis will assume the role of city

administrator effective January 1st. Paul has most recently served as Arlington’s airport,

community and economic development director with past stints as assistant city administrator

for special projects, capital projects manager, and even police officer. With Paul’s

appointment to the top spot, we have also done some reorganization and promoting from

within.

We’re looking forward to a very busy and productive 2015.

Snohomish city manager Larry Bauman reports:

It’s been another busy year for Snohomish, and 2015 already is setting up as posing some key

challenges and opportunities. During the past year we’ve focused on some key parks and

transportation issues as well as beginning our comprehensive plan update that will be

completed in the first half of 2015.

The key project planned for 2015 is expected to be a city council decision to place a

metropolitan park district on the primary election ballot. If approved by the voters, the MPD

would provide property tax capacity for revenues of up to $750,000 annually.

Late in 2013 Snohomish purchased a 10-acre parcel of land designed to provide a new park

for the residential growth area west of State Route 9. This parcel is ideally situated to serve the

area and already includes a cedar grove, a small pond with an island reached by a

pedestrian bridge, open meadows and some farming out-buildings that may be useable in a

25

park setting. So far, the city council has authorized preservation of the house on the property

in order to keep options open as future uses and a master plan are developed.

Snohomish also received a former indoor pool that had been given to the Snohomish School

District and was deemed to be too costly to rehabilitate as a recreational/competitive pool.

The city’s vision for the property is to preserve the roof structure and begin a public input

process to identify potential covered recreational uses. Master planning will begin in 2015.

Although not fully completed, a $2 million roundabout was constructed in 2014, and through

the use of transportation benefit district revenues matching funds from federal and state

grants assisted the city with 85 percent of the project costs. The roundabout, the city’s first, has

been well received and has eliminated traffic delays at a former three-way intersection that

had been performing at an F-rated LOS.

Grant funds also assisted Snohomish in completing overlays on heavily used sections of

Second Street, which accepts high traffic levels from SR 9 and US 2 highway off-ramps. Once

again, the TBD revenues were key in achieving grant success. Snohomish voters approved a

two-tenths of one percent sales tax increase in 2011. Signage is placed at each TBD-funded

project identifying this funding source and thanking voters for the support that made these

revenues possible.

A 1,000 SF addition to the 1937 city hall (originally built as a U.S. Post Office) is approximately 75

percent complete and is expected to be finished in mid-January next year. It is the first

addition completed to the building since initial remodeling was completed in the 1990s for city

hall. Once the addition is completed, the bulk of the building will receive new paint and

flooring to update this civic service center.

Stanwood city administrator Deborah Knight reports:

Stanwood has had a couple of successes this year. The city council finalized several long

awaited projects in the city dating back to the city’s “Design Stanwood” effort in 2003

including -- designing and installing wayfinding signs to direct residents and visitors to the

city’s commercial districts and city facilities; using conservation futures to purchase 17 acres of

property along the Stillaguamish River giving residents access to a boat launch and open

space; and renovating city hall and the police station to better serve customers.

Looking forward to 2015 -- the city adopted its first two-year budget; passed a ballot measure

to annex into the Sno-Isle Library District (the last city in Snohomish County to approve

annexation); approved a feasibility study to build a new city hall/public safety facility; and

received grant funding to design a grid road system to open 20 acres of land for

redevelopment in downtown.

On another note, residents and business owners have raised over half the money needed to

build the community’s first YMCA. After five years of process, the YMCA has secured a

property and will break ground next year.

Challenges facing Stanwood include increasingly restrictive floodplain development standards

and insurance premium increases; climate change and sea-level rise; pressure to convert

26

farmland around Stanwood to other uses; and low residential development activity --

although commercial development is up.

Region 12, North King County

Mitch Wasserman, City Administrator/Clerk/Treasurer, City of Clyde Hill

mitch@clydehill.org

425-453-7800

Rich Conrad, retired city manager of Mercer Island, reports:

Having just reached the one year mark of retirement, I can reassure everyone, PERS 2 is alive

and well and can be your best friend. In the last twelve months, the retirement system made it

possible to join Dave Ramsay and Rich Yukubousky in a hike across the Swiss Alps and, two

months later, the three of us were joined by Lynn Stokesbary and Marcie Klobucher in a hike to

Phantom Ranch at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Everyone lived to tell the tale(s). Great

fun! Future adventures are already in the talking stage.

Last winter/spring, I did some policy and budget consulting for the eCityGov Alliance. Winter is

back. Like last year, I'd be happy to help anybody with short term policy/analytic projects.

Hope everyone has a great holiday season and 2015!

Snoqualmie reports:

Snoqualmie Named Top City for Young Families in Washington

Snoqualmie ranked #1 in the top 10 cities for “Best Cities for Young Families in Washington,”

according to NerdWallet, a consumer advocacy website.

To find the best communities for future parents and young families, NerdWallet evaluated 82

cities, towns, and census-designated places and examined the following variables: public

school ratings, median home value, monthly homeowner costs, median income, and long-

term income growth. Data was collected from the U.S. Census Bureau and GreatSchools.org.

Snoqualmie’s rate of growth is very high with many attributes lending themselves to this

progress, such as cost of living, economic growth, and education. The award-winning

Snoqualmie Valley School District continues to grow, with an increased enrollment of more

than 2% each year in the past two decades.

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Other Washington cities in the top ten include, in order of ranking, West Richland, Maple

Valley, Covington, Anacortes, Sammamish, Redmond, Kenmore, Issaquah, and Woodinville.

Article and data: http://bit.ly/SnoqualmieNo1

Human Services Agencies Awarded Annual Funding

Each year Snoqualmie assigns 1% of its general fund to community and human service

organizations that provide services that benefit children, seniors, individuals and families in

need in the Snoqualmie Valley. These services are often provided by municipalities, but

because Snoqualmie does not maintain staff with expertise in these areas, it contracts the

services through funding to local organizations that provide aid for food, shelter, clothing,

counseling, and safety throughout the community. This year, twelve local agencies were

awarded funds of between $500 and $30,000. More information:

http://bit.ly/SnoqHumanServices

Woodinville city manager Rich Leahy reports:

Woodinville adopted it first property tax increase in 9 years. The 1% increase will cost the

typical Woodinville family, with a $500,000 home, about $5 per year. It was passed by a 4-3

vote and will put Woodinville’s levy rate at $1.06 per $1,000 AV.

Woodinville has settled a lawsuit that should get the $200 million Woodinville Village mixed-use

project in the heart of its tourist district back on track. The 500,000 sf - 750,000 sf “wine-

themed” project has been stalled for the past 10 years due to defaults by the developer,

including a $1,000,000 debt owed to the city; the recession; and seizure of the original lending

bank by the FDIC. The new project lender/developer has agreed to settle the outstanding

debt to the city.

Construction has begun on Woodinville’s first major mixed use project in its downtown. The first

phase of this $200 million project includes 237 multi-family units with structured parking. Phase

2 is scheduled to begin in summer 2015 and will include up to 50,000 square feet of retail

space and another 200+ multi-family units. This is the first large project built under the city’s

new mixed-use development regulations.

Woodinville also has a new finance director and police chief. Blaine Fritts is Woodinville’s new

finance director. Fritts came to Woodinville from the State Auditor’s Office a few years ago.

Woodinville’s new police chief is Katie Larson. Larson is a sergeant with the King County

Sheriff’s Office (Woodinville contracts for police services with the King County Sheriff) who has

30 years of law enforcement experience, including working in a number of “contract cities.”

Region 13, South King County

Derek Matheson, Chief Administrative Officer, City of Kent

Sscott@covingtonwa.gov

253-480-2400

28

Kent chief administrative officer Derek Matheson reports:

The Kent city council unanimously adopted the city’s 2015-16 budget on December

16. It adds police officers and relies on banked property tax capacity to close a

structural deficit … at least for this biennium. I expect even tougher budgets in the

future due to the 1% property tax limitation and our heavy reliance on state-shared

revenues combined with our generous service-delivery model. We’re going to create

a public process in 2015 to determine what the city's service-delivery model should

look like in the future. Do residents want to pay significantly higher taxes and fees to

sustain what we have, or do they want to scale back?

We came up a bit short on a couple funding efforts this fall. Fifty-four percent of Kent

voters said “yes” to a ballot measure to replace an overcrowded police station, but

60% was required for passage. Our council has yet to decide whether to put it back

on the ballot. Our current police station is a former library that was remodeled for the

police department in the late 1980s when the city’s population was a third of what it is

today.

We also started the process to form a large local improvement district to match $20

million in soon-to-expire grants for three railroad grade-separation projects, but our

business community came out solidly against the proposal. Our next step is to pursue

funds from the state legislature and/or scale back the projects.

We continue to work closely with the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers and King County

Flood Control District on a $70 million effort to make the Green River levee system

“accreditable” by 2018. Current Federal Emergency Management Agency flood

maps show much of Kent underwater, and it’s critical for our economic development

efforts that the next maps look very different. The engineering, recreational, and

environmental communities all have different (and often contradictory) perspectives,

so each project requires a delicate balance.

Speaking of economic development, Amazon is currently building a new fulfillment

center that will bring hundreds of jobs to Kent with salaries 30% higher than traditional

retail jobs.

We welcomed our first vertical mixed-use housing project to downtown Kent this year,

and another one is slated for construction in 2015. In October, we cut the ribbon on a

new Trader Joes that will anchor The Marketplace at Lake Meridian, a redeveloping

commercial center at the east end of our city. Last but not least, we’ve submitted two

city-owned properties to compete for the Federal Aviation Administration’s Region X

headquarters, which comes with 1,600 well-paid jobs.

I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year!

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Region 14, Pierce County

Don Morrison, Chief Administrator, City of Bonney Lake

morrisond@ci.bonney-lake.wa.us

253-447-430

Bonney Lake city administrator Don Morrison reports:

The city council adopted the proposed 2015-2016 biennial budget with few changes and little

fanfare. One thing of note, the council increased the local utility tax by 2% in 2015 (from 8% to

10%) and will add another 2% in 2016. This is the first time in years the council has ever been

willing to consider a tax increase of any type. More amazing was the fact that it was not even

proposed or required to balance the budget. It will be needed in the next biennium,

however, as our financial model shows it will be a challenge to balance the budget in two

years.

Bonney Lake’s first significant multi-family residential project in the downtown is about ready

for occupancy. This is a piece of the city’s adopted downtown plan. The city sold a parcel it

had, which was merged with an adjoining parcel to make the project work, subject to a

development agreement. It turned out to be a win-win for both the community and the

developer.

On a more somber note, our fire district could not pass its excess levy. It tried in August and

barely failed; so it pared back the request and tried again, but failed with similar results. This

was the first time in years that the fire district has been turned turn for an O&M levy request.

That has made the city and school district nervous about putting any bond issues on the ballot

in the near future.

How WCMA News works

Each new edition of WCMA News is sent by e-mail to all those who have access to the WCMA

listserve. It goes out three times each year, once before the Northwest Management

Conference (joint with Oregon), once before the WCMA Summer Conference (the annual

meeting), and once shortly before the end of the calendar year. Unfortunately, sometimes

members move or change jobs and don’t notify anyone of their new contact address and/or

e-mail. This also applies to those who find themselves “in transition”. Please, please, please

keep current on the WCMA roster by contacting Donita at dknutson@mrsc.org.

Each time a new edition of WCMA News is published, the latest issue is entered on the WCMA

website. Earlier issues are also available there.

Sometimes the filters on various receiving computers prevent transmission of WCMA News. For

that reason, a mass e-mail is also sent as a notification.

Here’s how to gain access to the website:

30

1. Go to the WCMA website at http://wccma.org.

2. In the list on the left side of the page, you’ll see “Newsletter”. Click on it.

3. The page that comes up contains links to many of the past issues of WCMA News, or at

least those available in electronic format. The top one is the latest edition.

If you should stumble upon somebody who does not have computer access or hasn’t

received WCMA News, please contact dknutson@mrsc.org. We can snailmail them a paper

copy. They should be a member of WCMA, so perhaps some arm twisting is in order.

WCMA Officers and Board Members

The President, President Elect, and Vice President, and Past President each serve for a one

year term. The Secretary-Treasurer is appointed by the Board of Directors. Board of Directors

members are elected for two year terms.

Officers

President

Marilynne Beard, Deputy City Manager, Kirkland

(425) 587-3008 mbeard@ci.kirkland.wa.us

President Elect

Bob Larson, City Administrator, Snoqualmie

(425) 888-1555 blarson@ci.snoqualmie.wa.us

Vice President

David Cline, City Administrator, Tukwila

(206) 433-1800 david.cline@tukwilawa.gov

Secretary/Treasurer

Lynn Nordby, Public Policy and Management Consultant, MRSC

(206) 625-1300 lnordby@mrsc.org

Past President

Bob Gregory, City Manager, Longview

(360) 442-5004 bob.gregory@ci.longview.wa.us

Board Members

(2012 - 2015)

Mike Thomas, County Manager, San Juan County

(360) 370-7406 miket@sanjuanco.com

Deborah Knight, City Administrator, Stanwood

(360) 629-2181 deborah.knight@ci.stanwood.wa.us

Pete Rose, City Administrator, Lake Forest Park

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(206) 368-5440 prose@ci.lake-forest-park.wa.us

(2013 - 2016)

Cynthia Johnson, City Manager, Richland

(509) 942-7381 cjohnson@ci.richland.wa.us

Randy Lewis, City Administrator, Westport

(360) 268-0131 city_administrator@ci.westport.wa.us

(2014 - 2017)

Gwen Voelpel, Assistant City Manager, SeaTac

(206) 973-4800 gvoelpel@ci.seatac.wa.us

Derek Matheson, Chief Administrative Officer, Kent

(253) 856-5711 dmatheson@ci.kent.wa.us

Dawn Masko, Assistant City Administrator, North Bend

(425) 888-7630 dmasko@northbendwa.gov

Ex Officio Members

Bob Harrison, ICMA Regional Vice President, City Administrator, Issaquah

(425) 837-3033 bobh@issaquahwa.gov

Mike McCarty, Chief Executive Officer, Association of Washington Cities

(360) 753-4137 or 1-800-562-8981 mikem@awcnet.org

Ron Bartels, ICMA Liaison, Senior Advisor

(360 ) 438-5216 rangeriderwest@comcast.net

Lloyd Halverson, Senior Advisor

(360) 834-0153 lnhalverson@aol.com

Bob Jean, Senior Advisor

(253) 566-2654 bjeanup@gmail.com

Stan McNutt, Senior Advisor

(208) 245-5043 rangerider@cpcinternet.com

Anne Pflug, Senior Advisor

(509) 925-2608 AnnePflug@gmail.com

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2015 Calendar

• Northwest Management Conference (Washington and Oregon), and West Coast

Summit, OCCMA host. March 25 -- 27, 2015, Jantzen Beach Red Lion, Portland,

Oregon.

• Washington City/County Management Association (WCMA) Summer Conference.

No conference is planned due to the efforts going into the ICMA Conference in

Seattle in 2015.

• International City County Management Association (ICMA) Annual Conference,

September 27 -- 30, 2015, Seattle/King County.

WCMA News is a publication of the Washington City/County

Management Association. President, Marilynne Beard, Deputy City Manager, Kirkland.

Editor, Ron Bartels

Please send news articles to:

WCMA News c/o MRSC

2601 4th Avenue, Suite 800 Seattle, WA 98121-1280

(206) 625-1300 Phone 1-800-933-6772

(206) 625-1220 Fax

or preferably e-mail rangeriderwest@comcast.net