Redmond City Council candidates vying for Pos. 3 are incumbent Dayle ‘Hank’ Margeson and challenger Jessica Forsythe. Margeson has served Redmond since 2007, holding various leadership positions. Forsythe is a small business owner and a creative director, working primarily with nonprofit organizations and clients.
How will you keep Redmond affordable to live in?
Hank Margeson: I will keep Redmond affordable by working to reduce the upfront construction costs for dwellings built near our light rail stations as well as the few infill lots within the city. Specifically, I will be seeking ways to reduce costs associated with building parking spaces in transit adjacent locations, adjusting transportation impact fees to be reflective of transit-oriented development, working with partners like Cascade Water Alliance to reduce connection fees and establishing a permitting process that simplifies the accessory dwelling unit application. I would also add that the city was able to add 75 affordable senior retirement units at the Providence St. John Gabriel House by entering a long-term land lease with Providence and partnering with ARCH on the project. The land was originally purchased for stormwater treatment and became available when a more environmentally sound project was pursued. Similarly, if I am reelected to city council, I will advocate for a similar project near the future downtown light rail station. My goal will be to ensure a variety of affordable residences at all levels of affordability to suit the needs of a diverse populace.
Jessica Forsythe: No one should be forced to leave the neighborhood they love, or a home close to their job, grocery stores, or good schools, because the cost of living has gotten too high. I will fight for more affordable housing options and more varied housing types.
Redmond currently has about half of the number of new housing units needed to reach our commitment to the Growth Management Act. I believe we need to evaluate the impact this growth has had and will have on our current infrastructure. We must ensure our roads, public safety, and parks are properly prepared to scale with the additional growth.
I will work with city staff to improve our permit process for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) as it has been called out as cumbersome and confusing. ADUs play a major role in serving our national housing needs and they provide a great way for our older community members to age in place while providing affordable housing options for friends or family.
What are some solutions for controlling/bettering traffic? Especially in higher traffic areas like Avondale or Red-Wood Road?
Margeson: There are a couple things we should consider. The city should invest in traffic signal infrastructure which intelligently adjusts to ensure maximum mobility for all users on our streets, bike lanes and sidewalks. The goal will be a steady and safe flow of traffic, bicyclists and pedestrians. We will also need to partner with our neighboring cities and the county to add attractive public transit options that will incent commuters to use a bus or other option. As light rail arrives in downtown and Marymoor Village in 2014, I will work with the Regional Transit Committee, where I serve as the vice chair, to craft routes that maximize the opportunities for residents along Avondale to use transit to and from the stations. One other thing the city can do relates to the first question regarding affordable housing. During my next term I want to continue the momentum we’ve established in Downtown and work to ensure that Overlake Village is similarly enhanced as we see public mobility projects go online. Our success as a city and in the region depends on delivering quality homes near our light rail stations. My goal will be everyone who works in Redmond can live in Redmond regardless of their occupation. If it is achieved, traffic may tic up for internal trips, but will be more than offset by a decline in commuters from outside the city.
Forsythe: First, we need to advocate for getting more frequent busing to these neighborhoods to ease the impact of single occupant vehicles on the road. I have been told by many residents in the neighborhoods around these main thoroughfares that they would use public transit if it came more frequently and had better schedules.
We should learn from the pilot Redmond LOOP program and implement a smart, reliable program that shuttles residents to common and frequently needed destinations. Implementing a reliable shuttle would benefit seniors, students, and commuters throughout the community.
Additionally, we can work with city staff to ensure that the timing of signals creates the best possible traffic flow during peak travel times. There are many smart technologies that we must consider to help ease the stress of traffic as we grow. These approaches will not only work to improve our daily lives, but also help reduce the environmental impact of cars idling in traffic.
What would be your budget priorities and why?
Margeson: My top priority is going to be moving staffing costs for Fire Station 17 and neighborhood resource officers (police) from the 2007 levy fully into the general fund. I will prioritize addressing climate change through budgeting for the purchase of renewable energy, phasing out combustion motor use, and addressing energy audit items. I will also look to ensure the continuing evolution of an interactive City Hall, enabling residents to consume information and share thoughts that best suits their needs. Another priority is recreation, park and open space preservation and enhancement. I’ll seek to ensure Idylwood Park’s lifeguards are funded for the entire summer season to ensure the safety of our lake users. I’ll also seek capital resources for improvements at Westside Park and a Southeast Redmond Park. Finally, I’d like to begin the process of securing a community center facility, which can serve Redmond residents now and long into the future with potential for growth to suit the needs of our evolving community.
Forsythe: One of my top budget priorities will be to ensure our city buildings and infrastructure are well maintained so they do not cost tax payers more money in the long run. Ensuring we are fully staffed and properly funding maintenance projects is key to the survival of our city. And it will help reduce backlog and fatigue on city employees, as well as improve morale and resident satisfaction.
We have recently seen one of our vital pieces of infrastructure, the senior center, close due to water damage. We must learn all we can from this extremely unfortunate event to make sure it does not happen again.
City council’s job is not only to set policy and approve budgets, but to also provide the guidance to ensure things stay on track. Council must work with city staff on a process for fiscal re-projections throughout the year. We need to stay nimble so we can adapt when issues arise. This is how I approached my time as treasurer of The League of Women Voters of Seattle-King County and while running a small business.
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How do you balance development and growth against maintaining the town’s current character?
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Margeson: The city has absorbed a tremendous amount of growth since coming out of the great recession, which has enhanced the city’s character. I made a pledge in my first campaign to maintain our single-family neighborhoods by focusing most of the growth within our urban centers. That strategy has worked in downtown Redmond and helped create a vibrant and walkable center. Redmond is not alone in this endeavor. As vice chair of the Puget Sound Regional Council’s growth management policy board, I collaborated with my peers across the four-county region to develop and implement a regional growth strategy. That strategy is the foundation for Vision 2050, which is the region’s plan for how to accommodate growth while enhancing the character and beauty of all our home towns. As Redmond’s diversity has grown, so has the character of our community, we’re a more culturally enriched and friendly community and that’s a source of great pride. Being named by Money Magazine as the 12th best place to live in America speaks to the growth in character and livability of Redmond over that past several years. I look forward to enhancing the character and livability over the next four years.
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Forsythe: We best balance growth against maintaining the character of Redmond by listening to our community. As council, we are elected to represent the community’s voices and concerns and we must actively seek input from our residents.
From conversations I’ve had with community members, my takeaway has been that people love Redmond because it’s a quiet, safe, and livable city. To maintain this character, we must support our public services and spaces as we grow. We can enhance the experience of our parks by connecting them so they become a series of alternate ways to get around town.
And we can do more to preserve Redmond’s historic buildings so that we honor our city’s history. Developing better building and signage codes for new growth would pay respect to the community and its history.
From those who were part of Redmond when it was a single-stoplight town to those who are just moving in, we can all continue to make Redmond a city that everyone loves. We can do this with just a little more attention to detail, a lot more listening, and the understanding that we can only achieve our goals by working together.
The general election is Nov. 5
