Position 1 Questionnaire: Mark Baughman

Posted on by
5

Mark Baughman

Questionnaire

Name:                  Mark Baughman

Position:              Position 1

 General

Why are you running for Sammamish City Council?

My wife and I have lived on the Sammamish Plateau since 1997 and have seen the inception and development of the City of Sammamish and the simultaneous and continuing development, growth and changes to our community during these 20 years. I experienced the angst with King County that ultimately lead to the founding of our City and the aspiration that local control would provide the opportunity to greatly improve the prioritization of local projects and the level of service from local government. Much of this vision has been accomplished through the dedication of many of our City leaders over the past 18 years. Now that there will be a significant transition in the City Council, I hope to lend my experience from the private sector to help guide the City’s path to continue in a long term, well planned trajectory of financially disciplined progress toward accomplishing those goals that were expressed in the founding of the City of Sammamish.

Continue reading →

Position 1 Questionnaire: Jason Ritchie

Posted on by
4

Jason Ritchie

Questionnaire

Name:  Jason Ritchie

Position:  Sammamish City Council Position 1

 General

Why are you running for Sammamish City Council?

I believe in public service. I want to be a part of creating a future for our City that we can all be proud of. This means managing growth with significant investments into our infrastructure, protecting our environment, including heritage trees and wildlife and making sure we are creating a transparent, accountable and balanced budget process. I own and operate a small business here in Sammamish helping to create housing for people with physical challenges. I want to be a voice for the small business owner on the Council.

Continue reading →

Democrats, Unions lining up behind some City Council candidates

Posted on by
5

Democratic elected officials and other known Democrats, plus several labor union organizations, are lining up behind several candidates in the Sammamish City Council primary.

The City Council is a non-partisan election, but it’s not at all unusual for the Democratic and Republican parties to endorse and even send mailers or undertake robocalls on behalf of candidates.

So far, the Republicans haven’t endorsed any of the candidates–at least none is listed on any of the candidate websites–except for King County Council Member Kathy Lambert.

Unlike the 2015 City Council election, the incumbents are largely staying out of this election. The exception: Kathy Huckabay, who is retiring at the end of her term in December. Huckabay publicly endorsed Jason Ritchie, who is running in Position 1. (Position 1 is not on the Aug. 1 primary ballot, however.)

Former Mayor Tom Vance, who was defeated in his bid for reelection in 2015, endorsed two candidates.

Behind the scenes, several Council Members are helping candidates.

A graphic of the elected officials and organization endorsements is below the jump.

Continue reading →

Keller is Mayor through the end of the year

Posted on by
2

Bob Keller

Bob Keller has been selected mayor through the end of the year.

Don Gerend resigned as mayor, but remains on the City Council, due to personal commitments.

Council Member Tom Hornish nominated Ramiro Valderrama for mayor for the sake of leadership continuity with a new Council coming in come January.

Continue reading →

GMA nuanced in development control, says City staff

Posted on by
5
  • The special study session on Sammamish transportation concurrency and traffic issues continues at the City Council meeting today. This begins at a special time, 4:30pm, to about 6:30pm. It will be televised by Comcast 21 and webcast on the City website.

The Growth Management Act doesn’t exactly mandate development, as Sammamish officials often said, a special study session last night on traffic and transportation concurrency revealed last night.

Instead, the GMA gives cities and countries some options to respond to growth.

The deep-dive into how Sammamish developed and uses its currency system continues tonight in a special time, 4:30pm, at a City Council meeting that will be webcast and televised on Comcast 21.

The special meetings were prompted by a study by a Sammamish citizen, Miki Mullor, who concluded Sammamish manipulated concurrency to approve development.

He claimed the GMA allows cities to stop development if concurrency fails.

Not entirely so, the City Council was told last night.

And, yes, through policy decisions from a succession of City Councils, the Staff crafted concurrency that approves development—but the rationale is far more complex than the black-and-white reasons claimed by Mullor.

Continue reading →