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Key takeaways:
- Community members comment on Proposition 1 defeat. Council delays cultural sales tax and other possible sales tax discussions until after Friday budget discussions.
- The council holds a co-housing public hearing and presentation includes descriptions, maps and Planning Board recommendations.
- Council praises staff work on critical areas ordinance update, which will be 99% complete by next meeting.
- Council OKs wellness grant for Edmonds Police Department.
- Councilmembers share thoughts on Proposition 1 conversations and future budget discussions.
Mayor Mike Rosen started Wednesday’s Edmonds City Council meeting by acknowledging the exceptionally high city voter turnout of nearly 58% and the clear failure of Proposition1, the proposed $14.5 million property tax levy lid lift.
“This has impacts and actions for the council in the short-term, mid-term and long-term,” Rosen said.
In the short term, it will require the council to modify the budget to reflect a reduction of $6 million and decide future funding options, he said. “Mid term, we need to build a fiscal sustainability plan to preserve our critical services and implement non-property tax revenues you would approve. And long term, we need to build a citywide strategic plan addressing the existing and ever-growing [maintenance] backlog,” Rosen said.
An all-day post-election council budget discussion is scheduled for Friday at Edmonds City Hall. It begins at 8:30 a.m.
Several residents showed up Wednesday to share their thoughts on the Proposition 1 levy lid lift defeat and provided candid feedback on how they expect future discussions to go.
“Please represent the people [who voted no],” Ann Christiansen said. “Seriously consider the information published in My Edmonds News by Councilmembers Will Chen and Michelle Dotsch.”
Kim Bayer-Augustavo was more direct.
“Your citizens have spoken loud and clear. Stop passing the buck to us…you did not listen. In corporate America, if departments spent more than allowed, you were either fired or demoted… In a private company, we had to answer to shareholders. Citizens are your shareholders. We elected you to spend our dollars wisely, not frivolously.”
“Enough is enough,” Erik Nelson said. “Please hear what the people said last Tuesday.” He described the council as “anti-business’” and listed the projects and taxes that impacted business. He expressed opposition to the proposed arts and cultural sales tax.
“Please don’t take my money and decide what art and cultural things I want to support. I do that on my own in this community,” Nelson said.
Councilmembers acknowledged residents’ frustration. They also said they supported City workers, the value of Edmonds amenities and the hard work ahead.
“The morale in our city administration and amongst city staff is extremely low,” Councilmember Jenna Nand said. “Please do not scapegoat our departments who are working very hard to provide public services. The type of work that’s done at the level of City government is not comparable to corporations in the private sector.”
“I very much look forward to all activists and public commenters working with us to try to find solutions to a structural budget gap,” Nand said.
“We do need to have those difficult conversations,” Councilmember Vivian Olson said.
“We really need to come together as a community and not be villainizing government… [we need to] figure out how, together, we are going to solve this problem” Olson said, adding that she will host listening sessions in the next week or two that will include both Proposition 1 yes and no voters.
Co-housing proposal and code updates
The Edmonds Planning Board recommended moving forward with code updates related to the Washington State-mandated concept of co-housing in residential areas (HB 1998). The code changes allow co-housing in areas zoned for six units on a single lot by year’s end.
Co-housing is an old concept made new again to address lack of affordable housing in more expensive areas like Edmonds. It allows single people to rent a room with a sleeping space, bathroom and shared kitchen. It must be near transit and there is no requirement for on-site parking.
Co-housing units would be allowed where multi-family housing is allowed. This covers about 46% of Edmonds.
The Edmonds Planning Board could not get to agreement on whether co-housing should be allowed in all areas that allow multiple dwellings or just where density allowance is for six or more units. If it is in the larger area, it would increase co-housing potential to up to 70% of Edmonds.
The Planning Board did agree co-housing may not be used for short-term rentals like Airbnbs.
There were no public comments at the public hearing. The issue returns to the Council Nov. 25 for more discussion and on Dec. 9 for a vote.
Critical Areas Ordinance periodic update
The update has been two years in the making as Senior Planner Brad Shipley worked to revise, realign and update the layout of the code so it is easier and more logical to read and understand. He then included the environmental updates required by law.
“I know there’s a lot of red,” Shipley said, referencing the many edits included in the most recent draft. “We are 99% there and it will be ready in your next packet.”
Asked by Councilmember Chris Eck how he’s managing disagreements among affected parties, Shipley said that “They [those in the environmental community] are happy. We made changes they’ve wanted for a long time.”
Councilmember Nand expressed concern over pollutants in the stormwater system and asked if there was a way to manage, for example, fertilizer with nitrogen coming from local gardens.
“Education is key,” Shipley said, noting it is not something stormwater systems can address.
He shared that many updated reports on both fish-bearing streams and riparian management zones will go straight to the city’s website and GIS mapping, which makes it easier for homeowners to learn more about what they can and can’t do with their property.
Planning Board Vice Chair Jon Milkey praised Shipley’s dedication to process and partnerships. “This work speaks highly to the partnership that Brad formed with a lot of local expertise,” Milkey said.
Councilmember Olson took note of Shipley’s resourcefulness. “I saw here that you used reports that other cities paid for. I commend this practice. It is respectful of the taxpayer,” she said.
Other action
The council put off discussion on the proposed 0.1% cultural sales tax until sometime before the end of the year when there is more clarity on next steps for the 2026 budget. Olson asked for more information about Snohomish County plans for its cultural sales tax and what impact that could have on Edmonds.
The council approved the Edmonds Police Department’s acceptance of the Criminal Justice Training Commission’s wellness grant that includes peer support training and fitness equipment as required in the Edmonds Police Officers Association collective bargaining agreement. The council also congratulated now-Assistant Chief Josh McClure on his recent promotion.
Council President Neil Tibbott was excused from the meeting due to unexpected air travel delays.
Councilmember Vivian Olson, I believe your suggestion that people are vilifying the government is off the mark. A significant sixty percent of voters have indicated that they feel you are moving in an unfavorable direction and failing to listen. Your comments imply that ineffective management and a lack of listening continue to be issues. You have the option to either persist with misguided decisions or to begin interacting with your constituents in a humbler manner. Let us initiate a collaborative effort, which I believe should commence with attentively hearing the voices of your constituents.
I think to your last sentence there that
that’s what CM Olson is trying to encourage with her comment. She’s recognizing community frustration but also inviting people to come together for listening sessions. I think it’s a good thing and is a step toward rebuilding trust. It seems fair to expect our elected officials to lead, but it also takes participation from all of us to move forward productively. I read her call for less villainizing and more dialogue not dismissing anyone’s concerns, but inviting space for them to be heard in a constructive way. Engaging in those conversations she’s proposing might be an important part of finding the solutions we all want.
Indeed, I believe we share a consensus; however, up to this point, Olson has not demonstrated a level of dialogue that honors the concerns of others. It is possible that she is experiencing a realization after discovering herself on the unfavorable side of a vote.
It’s amazing to me that CM Olson and Nand point the finger at disrespected citizens who have tried to get their questions answered for 4-5 months, and have been ignored, and prevented from participating in Town Hall meetings that were designed to be 1-way tax levy sales pitches for the Mayor and staff directors. The Mayor’s ‘divide and conquer’ format isolated taxpayers and was in violation of the State Public Disclosure laws – a repeat of the illegal electioneering that the City was found guilty of during the RFA annexation campaign. There are so many good governance failures of the administration that they can’t be listed on 1 page. Most were covered in the 27 questions that were given to the Council prior to the last Town Hall meeting and remain unanswered. They all add up to colossal failures of good governance (lack of fiscal discipline, transparency, accountability, common sense, performance/results measurement, and putting taxpayers first). The tax levy lift was defeated, not for the amount, but for the breadth and depth of mismangement and out-of-control spending. When a Council member whinges about the low morale of City staff, but refuses to acknowledge taxpayer despair over millions of dollars wasted on legal fees, consultants, excess hiring, inefficient operations, failed land development, failed technology investments – that epitomizes tone deafness and broken trust. Dialogue requires trust.
CM Nand, who are you targeting when you say “Please do not scapegoat our departments who are working very hard to provide public services”? Are you insinuating that the citizens of Edmonds who voted no in a landslide are responsible for the low morale in city workers? Not exactly a good way to accept defeat and change the course.
Morale is low for anyone living here or working here. I hate to see this but is a fact. Now we try to heal this gap. I appreciated what Jeremy says about Vivian Olsen. Vivian through her many years helping our city all of our city is what we need to remember. Her knowledge and her professionalism when she is out and about and attending meetings in so many orgs here is incredible. Her volunteer work in every way is a hard act to follow. This Levy Lift situation and the fact the city she loves Edmonds so much I think is why she supported the lift. Everyone is desperate to find some way. I am sure she gets it that obviously a large percentage of Edmonds homeowners, voters whatever did not want that tax lift and she will continue to work to find answers to how we can keep Edmonds a city we can all be proud to call our home., pay our bills and not get carried away with the wants in the future. Go shop in Edmonds. Its Christmas or Xmas or The Holiday Season…Buy some Art buy some nice Christmas gifts and have fun. Eat out and Be nice. It’s not easy every day believe me I know I am not always nice either, but I do try. Love Deb.
This levy lid lift vote was unequivocal: voters do not feel a levy of this size is affordable. This vote was not a referendum on services. As in, this supermajority/mandate/landslide victory against this property tax hike was not about citizens agreeing to cuts in city services or amenities in Edmonds. It was a clear steer to the mayor and council: spend taxpayer dollars wisely, conservatively, implement responsive city government, good governance and be guided always by affordability. Citizens do invest in their city with their tax dollars. They are not unlimited, however. They are also not to be spent on non-transparent interests or minority desires and ideas. There should be no confusion here. This was a decisive up or down vote, paid for by a lot of worry and anguish suffered by residents, many of whom had to consider whether they could continue to afford their homes were this to have passed. This theme of ‘the beatings will continue until morale improves’ must end. The people have spoken. It’s time for government to listen and respond in kind, with care and concern.
While I applaud their efforts to serve, both CM Olson and CM Nand have not acknowledged why the levy failed; however, they want to chastise citizens for calling out the need for better governance and blaming us for low staff morale. What about citizen low morale? Tax-payers are the ones being villainized by council’s actions to bring an over-inflated levy to us, and spending unnecessary PR dollars promoting the “Yes” campaign, causing a lot of citizen resources to fight it. My hope is their flawed logic changes to focus on citizen “needs” first and not just staff “wants”. If I were on the city staff, of course, I would want to enlist help from consultants, hire more support positions and resources. It is the council’s job to scrutinize and justify them to make sure they fit within our means. This clearly has not happened with past Administrations and now. Also, CM Nand’s scolding remarks on the dais last night were quite out of line, borderline offensive and clearly, tone deaf. This sentiment was shared by many who witnessed her closing comments. When she referred to my remarks, she took them out of context to fit her narrative. When I stated, “spend wisely, not frivolously,” I was referring to the city council, not staff It is the city council’s role to approve the staff’s budget.
I too was shocked by CM Nand’s comments. So few folks speak at council meetings – to voice an opinion and be pointedly scolded for it seems inappropriate. No one “scapegoat[ed] our departments.” A difference of opinion doesn’t make someone an activist. Asking our representatives to represent the majority is how politics operates. Perhaps CM should be more mindful of her words.
CM Olson must be aware there are many citizens and two CMs with ideas and budgets to solve this budget issue. Reach out – people are ready to help – not just listen.
Thank you, Kim. I attended last night too as we are all eager to hear the response from the city following such a clear, significant vote. The tone was surprising. CM Nand claimed that children no longer trick-o-treat in Edmonds, as they did during her childhood. My own two nephews trick-o-treat annually in Edmonds. Her remarks do not comport with reality. It was highly concerning to hear. I too grew up in Edmonds. My parents as well were educators – my Mom a public school Spanish/English teacher. I had folks running out of their homes during my canvassing in Edmonds for No calling out to me, “what is happening in Edmonds?!” Or “I’ve lived here for 30 years! I cannot afford this! Do I have to move? Do they want me to have to move?”
Another mention last night during council closing remarks was a call to help with donations to the Edmonds Food Bank by recently re-elected, pro-levy council member Chris Eck. I couldn’t help but wonder how a vote to increase property tax at this astronomical level went hand in hand to drop off food donations. This disconnect, while staggering to me, represents the disconnect writ large going on in Edmonds right now. A vote to tax folks out of their homes while simultaneously calling for food bank donations.
Melinda, you captured exactly what so many of us are feeling — and thank you for showing up last night.
The tone, from what I’ve heard, tells us everything. When elected leaders like CM Nand start rewriting basic reality — saying kids don’t even trick-or-treat in Edmonds anymore — it’s hard not to wonder whether they’re living in the same city as the rest of us.
And you’re right: the comments about the food bank were jarring. You can’t push an unprecedented property tax hike that would price people out of Edmonds, then turn around and ask those same struggling families to help stock the food bank. That contradiction is the problem. It’s exactly why voters sent such a clear message on 11/4.
Real change is only going to come when we have a council that actually listens — and that means leadership shifts. Until Nand and Olson are out, we’re going to keep seeing this same pattern of tone-deaf decision making, disconnected narratives, and policy choices that ignore the financial stress households are under.
The community has spoken. Now we need elected officials who respect that and respond accordingly.
So the Edmonds Food Bank doesn’t need donations? And there is no value in asking? And what about trick or treating in the Hwy 99 neighborhoods?
I listened to the City Council meeting last night. CM Nand’s and Olson’s comments were so out of touch with the sentiments of the close to 60% of the electorate who voted NO to your proposed outrageous 14.5 million dollar levy lid lift. You clearly haven’t heard the “Will of the People”. You totally disregarded the comments of the people who courageously spoke at the podium. You are sitting as CM’s because of the voters who elected you and who you now so cavalierly are discounting. The mayor and council have not shown the voters – who by-the -way are at the top of the Org Chart – that you are good stewards of our tax dollars. Just a few instances where you literally threw our money away: Landmark debacle, sewage treatment plant, $64,000 paid Liz Loomis, PR firm to collude with you in pushing the RFA annexation on us and where we are now paying double for the same level of service (the PDC issued you a Warning, I know because I filed the PDC complaint), Sherman Pruitt, Nathan Rimmer tree debacle – the list goes on. Folks were begging me for VOTE NO yard signs to oppose the levy. This defeat of YOUR levy was a revolt against City Government and you apparently still haven’t heard us.
I have stated this in past comments, but CM Nand has never been “competitively” elected to council. Initially she was appointed to an open position and then ran unopposed. Just the facts. Next time hopefully she will have to defend her stance on city financial issues and her comments.
Here’s more facts. In Nov 2023, 11,664 voted for CM Nand, 338 write-ins and 4424 didn’t vote for that position at all. 11,664 to 4762 is a landslide.
It is time for the city to make the tuff decisions it avoided a couple of years ago I just hope they make the right decisions but I have no confidence they will, my guess is they will fight to keep the wants by gutting the needs. Sorry that the morale is low seems to be a lot of that going around so join the club. Trick or treating has changed since I was kid we never had many visitors but in the last 20 years there have been very few and most of those have been grandkids I think there are more parties and less door knockers these days, things change and the city is going to have to realize the days of big bags full of candy bars are gone, hope you like candy corn.
Jim, one of the main reasons you see less trick or treaters is that families have not been able to move into the neighborhoods. Everyone who had kids years ago are still living there now, but their children are all grown and gone. This is what happens when there isn’t enough housing, no one can afford to move so neighborhoods slowly die.
Connor I have at least 3 families with children adjoining my lot 2 of those were brand new houses when they moved in I can also hear a group of kids playing a few doors down. I don’t know if our elementary schools are overflowing but they sure aren’t being closed due to lack of children.
It seems most neighborhoods aren’t having a problem with no trick or treaters. Maybe Ms. Nand lives in an area where there are apartments or something. Ya know Connor sadly many people want to live where they cannot afford to buy. Edmonds citizens can add a dadu or Dadu to their yards if they want to about anywhere in town. Housing will and is coming but you are correct for most it too will not be what you are hoping for I think. Rent is expensive in most of Edmonds too. It’s like when I purchased my home I would have preferred to live in well then it was Ballard or Queen Ann Hill but I couldn’t afford that so moved here. Now I might prefer Mercer Island of Medina or Woodway. I can’t afford those either. These I am afraid are the facts of life. I wish the best for you. Do you live or own in Edmonds? We have some youngers around owning but they don’t have children. Maybe they don’t want any? Don’t know. I bet Lynnwood or maybe Mountlake Terrace would be more affordable? Have you checked? Are you looking for a home? There is some pretty reasonable housing in other states I am always looking. The other coast like North Carolina has some nice small homes my friend moved there.
The early rain did not dampen the kids in our neighborhood. We keep track and in recent past years we had 125-150 kids. This year it increased to 285. We asked a few kids what school they attended. Over half were not from the nearby local schools.
In response to Mayor Rosen’s comment that “it will require the council to modify the budget to reflect a reduction of $6 million and decide future funding options”, I challenge the Mayor to first look WITHIN the ‘City spending’ and present to the Council the details of what existing revenues are actually being spent on BEFORE deciding what needs to be cut or how much more revenue is needed.
For example, what is the Parks Dept doing with all the dollars allocated if its not for maintenance. Why are City maintenance staff (the REAL workers) being targeted for cuts – why isn’t Parks Administration spending being cut first if there are insufficient funds?
What are the overwhelming tasks that Parks Administration is doing that prevents them from working with community volunteers to help get essential work done? The community has volunteered multiple times to help fix the bridges and trails in Yost Park, and Parks Director instead is asking Council to approve a $630,000.00 “study” on the bridges and trails with NO commitment to immediately fix the obvious problems.
Does it make sense to pay contract attorney $1M+?
Let’s first get transparency on how City funds are being spent before rushing to make potentially unnecessary cuts.
There may NOT be a need to cut staff if City programs are being undertaken efficiently for essential services
Who watched the meeting today? It wasn’t easy to find but I did and I zoomed it. Might be interesting to some of you. It was to me. I don’t know if you can find this budget session meeting recorded as it appears on the Edmonds Gov site you can as of Nov first this year no longer watch the City Council meetings taped. Odd there is a big red sign stating that when you go to the meetings section. The ones from Oct back are there?? eh oh well I watch every week on zoom the CC meetings but those who can’t watch live zoom might miss them? I suppose one could record them on the TV channel?
When I vote, it includes a calculation that my favored candidates will speak their mind freely on the dais. Not that I’ll always agree with them, but that they are transparent about how they think things thru. I really appreciate and applaud all council comments.