Regional committees help mayor and council in serving Redmond

Published 9:51 am Friday, March 22, 2013

As public servants for the City of Redmond, the mayor and City Council members work to represent their constituents’ best interests in various areas.

Many of those areas are on the local level but a number of them go beyond the city limits, which is why Mayor John Marchione and City Council members also serve on regional boards and committees.

“It’s important that Redmond be plugged into the region,” Marchione said.

The mayor added that participating in these regional conversations also works to ensure that funding and resources are utilized in a way that benefits everyone, not just the biggest cities or those with the loudest voices.

Council member John Stilin agreed, saying it’s important to be involved regionally because there is a lot of policy making on various levels — from local to federal — and if you’re not at the table, you can’t defend your position.

For example, Stilin, who serves as a Sound Cities Association (SCA) representative to King County’s Regional Law, Safety and Justice (RLSJ) committee, said if there is funding available for the whole region but it’s voted to go toward waterfront development, communities without ports — such as Redmond — would not benefit from this. A representative from the city would be able to argue Redmond’s case and make a suggestion that would benefit the city and surrounding area.

Some of the regional committees and boards Marchione serves on include the Cascade Water Alliance (CWA), Puget Sound Regional Council (PSRC) executive board, Northeast Regional Public Safety Communications Agency (NORCOM), A Regional Coalition for Housing (ARCH) and the Eastside Public Safety Communications Agency (EPSCA). He has also been recently elected to the 2013 board of directors for SCA, which represents 35 cities in King County and provides a regional voice for nearly 1 million people.

Marchione is also serving his second term on the board of directors of Sound Transit, having been reappointed by King County Executive Dow Constantine.

“We’re very pleased that the county executive reappointed me last year,” Marchione said.

City Council members serve on boards and committees addressing issues ranging from human services and economic development to growth management and the environment.

Some of the outside organizations council President Pat Vache is involved in include the Eastside Human Services Forum, Lake Washington Schools Foundation and Hopelink. He said by having council members involved in groups and organizations outside of the city, it increases the influence of Redmond in regional issues and prepares council members to be better able to serve citizens.

While some citizens may think the mayor and council members being involved in regional groups may be distracting, City Council member Hank Myers doesn’t see it that way. He said as a City Council member, he must understand issues affecting the community and in many cases, that means going beyond his role as a council member.

Myers, whose outside involvement includes serving as chair for the Together Center in Redmond and has served on various committees related to regional transportation, said it’s also important to know what is going on throughout the region and learn from other communities.

“It is important that we do develop regional appreciation and knowledge of what other communities are doing in our area,” he said.