City Council candidates offer varied skills for post
February 15, 2011
Interviews start March 1 for nine council contenders
Candidates offer assorted skills for the open City Council seat created after Maureen McCarry resigned in late December.
The candidates bring backgrounds in community, military and municipal service to the interview process.
The midterm opening for the Position 5 seat attracted nine candidates.
Candidates face the council in public interviews scheduled for March 1. Then, after the 10-minute interviews, council members could recess into a closed-door executive session to discuss candidates’ qualifications.
Under state law, the council can discuss candidates’ qualifications in a closed-door session, but interviews and the decision must occur in public meetings.
The vote to appoint a member to the council is scheduled for March 7, though the appointee might not join the council until later in the month. The salary for council members is $700 per month.
McCarry created the vacancy late last year after she resigned to fight amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig’s disease.
City Council vacancy attracts nine applicants
February 8, 2011
The contenders in the running to succeed Maureen McCarry on the City Council include people familiar to city leaders.
Joe Forkner has served on the council before, including a stint as a caretaker member after a councilwoman resigned. Stacy Goodman, past editor of The Issaquah Press, used to cover City Hall as a reporter. Nathan Perea campaigned against Tola Marts for the open Position 7 seat in 2009. Paul Winterstein managed Marts’ successful campaign. Other applicants serve on municipal boards and commissions.
The rare midterm opening for the Position 5 seat attracted nine candidates.
In addition to Forkner, Goodman, Perea and Winterstein, the lineup includes Michael Beard, a district manager for a facilities maintenance company, attorney Cristina Mehling, Urban Village Development Commission member Nina Milligan, Boeing analyst Erik Olson and Development Commission member Mary Lou Pauly.
Candidates face the council in public interviews scheduled for March 1. Then, after the 10-minute interviews, council members could recess into a closed-door executive session to discuss candidates’ qualifications.
Under state law, the council can discuss candidates’ qualifications in a closed-door session, but interviews and the decision must occur in public meetings.
Candidates jockey for open seat ahead of Feb. 4 deadline
February 1, 2011
The race to replace Maureen McCarry started long before Election Day, and although the candidates only need to earn City Council members’ votes, the race to fill the seat in November is a key part of the decision.
The process has generated more activity in recent days, as potential candidates started to meet council members on a one-on-one basis and interested residents completed applications for the post. The application deadline is Feb. 4, and candidate interviews start March 1.
The appointee to the vacant seat serves until the next council election in November. The victor in the council race serves until Dec. 31, 2013.
The council could appoint a caretaker to the seat until the term expires in December. Members could also appoint someone who is interested in campaigning for election to the seat through 2013.
Though the application deadline is still days away, the vacancy has attracted a handful of applicants and potential candidates.
Issaquah Highlands resident Stacy Goodman, a Carson & Noel PLLC associate attorney and past editor of The Issaquah Press, said she plans to apply.
“I think it’s a terrific opportunity to get involved,” she said. “It’s an exciting time with a lot of projects and decisions that are in the beginning stages.”
Builder plans to add 70 townhouses in the highlands
February 1, 2011
Homebuilder Pulte Homes has purchased land to build 70 townhouses in the Issaquah Highlands, the company announced last week.
The planned neighborhood, Sunset Walk, is on 5.86 acres adjacent to Sunset Park and near planned retail offerings. The project is Pulte Homes’ first foray into Issaquah.
The homebuilder purchased the land from highlands master developer Port Blakely Communities in late December. Urban Village Development Commission and City Council members approved the project late last year.
“We have been looking for the right location and time to expand locally, and this is an excellent opportunity for us to do so,” Pulte Homes Division President for the Pacific Northwest John Ochsner said in a press release.
City Major Development Review Team Program Manager Keith Niven said construction should start in the spring.
Plans call for Sunset Walk to feature five two- and three-story townhouse floor plans ranging from 1,460 to 2,054 square feet.
City seeks civic-minded citizens for volunteer posts
January 11, 2011
City leaders seek civic-minded citizens to serve on municipal boards and shape environmental and land-use decisions, guide the future of municipal parks, and foster relationships between Issaquah and the international community.
The city has openings on 11 boards and commissions. Not all applicants must be Issaquah residents. Read more
City seeks civic-minded citizens for volunteer posts
January 6, 2011
NEW — 4 p.m. Jan. 6, 2011
City leaders seek civic-minded citizens to serve on municipal boards and shape environmental and land-use decisions, guide the future of municipal parks, and foster relationships between Issaquah and the international community.
The city has openings on 11 boards and commissions. Not all applicants must be Issaquah residents.
Candidates can pick up the application at the City Clerk’s Office at City Hall, 130 E. Sunset Way, during regular business hours.
Applicants must submit signed and completed applications and city forms by noon Jan. 31.
In the weeks ahead, city staffers contact applicants and schedule interviews for February.
Bellevue College president sketches bold vision for Issaquah campus
January 4, 2011
Hurdles remain before construction can start in Issaquah Highlands
Jean Floten
The formula for the Issaquah Highlands remains, for the most part, unchanged since residents settled in the community a dozen years ago: homes built almost eave-to-eave on tree-lined streets, even as plans for offices and retail offerings sputtered.
Bellevue College could juice up the long-established formula, or so community leaders hope.
The college campus proposed for the highlands could someday serve as a learning center for groups as assorted as school-aged children and retirees, a gathering spot for cultural festivals and fuel for the economy — if Bellevue College opts to transform a forested parcel near Central Park into a satellite campus.
College President Jean Floten started to consider the possibility more than a decade ago, as the population boomed on the Eastside.
Committee appointed to guide redevelopment
July 6, 2010
The city and developer Rowley Properties called on former city councilmen and community leaders last week to help guide redevelopment on almost 90 acres.
City planners and Rowley representatives announced the creation of the citizens group to offer input on a proposal to redevelop land near state Route 900 and Interstate 90.
The committee appointments represent the latest step in a decadeslong process to reshape Hyla Crossing — about 62 acres arranged in a rough triangle and wedged between the interstate and the base of Cougar Mountain — and Rowley Center — about 26 acres bordered by Northwest Maple Street, 12th Avenue Northwest, Northwest Gilman Boulevard and state Route 900 — into mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly areas.
City Council members agreed in early April to proceed with the proposal. The council agreed to spend up to $750,000 — to be reimbursed by the developer — to complete the framework for a development agreement.
City, Rowley Properties form committee to guide redevelopment
June 29, 2010
NEW — 5:15 p.m. June 29, 2010
The city and developer Rowley Properties announced the creation of a citizens group to offer input on a proposal to redevelop almost 90 acres in Issaquah’s commercial center.
The city unveiled the committee lineup Tuesday afternoon. The group plans to meet throughout the summer and fall, and then deliver recommendations to the city and developer.
Members meet for the first time 4:30-6:30 p.m. Wednesday at the John L. Scott building, 1700 N.W. Gilman Blvd, Suite 100. The city plans to post a complete meeting schedule online.
Council confirms board and commission appointments
May 11, 2010
Former City Council candidates Nathan Perea and Vincent Ippolito will serve the city in a different capacity in the years ahead: as volunteer members of a city commission.
City Council members confirmed 35 appointees to city boards and commissions May 3. The appointees — selected by board officers and Mayor Ava Frisinger — advise officials about everything including development, the environment and the arts.
The mayor reappointed 18 members and chose 20 people for other positions. Some appointees, like former Councilman Joe Forkner, serve on multiple boards.
“Congratulations, and welcome to the many volunteers who will be helping the city with a wide array of issues and important work,” Frisinger said after the council OK’d the appointments.
Rules do not require appointees to live in Issaquah, but officials said most of the members reside in the city. The council praised members for donating time and expertise to the myriad boards and commissions.
