John Robinson
Pamela Stuart
Sammamish voters should advance John Robinson and Pamela Stuart through the Aug. 1 primary to the November general election for Sammamish City Council.
As with our Recommendations yesterday for Position 5, both are newcomers to Sammamish politics. All things being equal, we like to see some seasoning and education on the complex issues of government in general and Sammamish in particular through service on the Planning Commission.
Commentary
Sammamish residents have an unusually good set of candidates this year from which to choose for the Aug. 1 primary, and from this, the November general election.
This hasn’t always been the case. In some years, some very weak candidates, or some with clear and self-evident personal agendas, ran. In several years, at least some incumbents were unopposed or had token opposition.
There are nine candidates seeking three Council seats, requiring a primary. These are in Positions 3, 5 and 7.
Position 3 candidates are Minal Ghassemieh, Karen Howe and Karen Moran.
Position 5 candidates are Ryika Hooshangi, Rituja Indapure and Chris Ross.
Position 7 candidates are Melanie Curtright, John Robinson and Pamela Stuart.
Position 1 candidates, Mark Baughman and Jason Ritchie, go straight to the November election; they are not on the Aug. 1 primary ballot.
By Scott Hamilton
There were no break-out candidates during the only Candidates Forum for the Sammamish City Council last night, although there were a few minor rookie mistakes.
Given today’s national political environment and the bitter City Council elections two years ago, last night’s forum was a marked contrast for its civility and friendly nature.
A standing room crowd was here to listen to the nine candidates for the three of four Positions that are contested in the Aug. 1 primary: 3, 5 and 7.
The candidates said traffic and development were the issues they most heard from resident during their campaigning.
Ross (Position 5) was the only candidate to hit hard on City finances, carving out a position that his professional finance background for Boeing will be needed as the City approaches the so-called cross-over point (operating deficits) in a few years. Others including Moran (Position 3), touched more lightly on finances.
Today Sammamish Comment publishes the candidate questionnaires of Position 7 for City Council.
The candidates are Melanie Curtright, John Robinson and Pamela Stuart.
A fourth candidate, Roger Chapanis, dropped out of the race too late to remove his name from the ballot.
The candidate responses are printed verbatim. The Comment only checked their responses for spelling and grammar. Each response is in its own post, so scroll down on The Comment’s Home Page to see each response.
The responses were reviewed and processed by Scott Hamilton.
John Robinson
Name:Â John Robinson
Position: Sammamish City Council Position 7
General
Why are you running for Sammamish City Council?
My wife Daphne and I have been blessed to raise our family in Sammamish, and as long-term residents of nearly 30 years, we have witnessed the dynamic growth of our 
community as it transitions to a more urban setting and we are concerned for our community character and our quality of life. Recently I retired from a business career and I now have the time to devote to City Council and apply my seasoned business leadership experience for a more open and transparent government. I believe it is my moral obligation to apply the learned management principles of my cumulative experiences to find the proper solutions for growth management, traffic and transit balance, and protection of our environment while maintaining a conservative fiscal policy.
Sammamish Comment 