Contributors

Olympia City Council Position 4 Candidates

19

Jul

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2021 Elections, City of Olympia, Columns, Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers

Olympia City Council Position 4 Candidates

Heard around Olympia: “I don’t know anything about these people.” What people? These people: The 14 who are running for five seats on the Olympia City Council. Of the five races, four have primary races involving three candidates. In each of the four, two will advance based on the August 3 primary election results. That’s a lot of candidates, and it is unusual for five seats to be up for grabs in a single year. The races are non-partisan and despite the fact that council candidates run for a position, all are elected “at-large,” meaning city residents may vote in…

2021 Port of Olympia Commissioner District 3 Candidate Profiles

16

Jul

By Mindy Chambers

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2021 Elections, Columns, Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers

2021 Port of Olympia Commissioner District 3 Candidate Profiles

Editor's Note: Commissioner District 3 is the largest of the three commissioner districts, but that's due to the fact that Capitol Forest takes up about half of it. It's on the west end of Thurston County and includes the cities of Tumwater and Bucoda, a sliver of Tenino, the western half of Olympia, and a bit of the Chehalis Indian Reservation in the southwest corner. The Port of Olympia, a sprawling public enterprise that’s been besieged by controversy and is millions of dollars in debt, will have two new commissioners in 2022. The decision by Commissioner E.J. Zita (Port District…

2021 Port of Olympia Commissioner District 2 Candidates

15

Jul

By Mindy Chambers

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2021 Elections, Columns, Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers

2021 Port of Olympia Commissioner District 2 Candidates

Editor's Note: District 2 is the easternmost commissioner district in Thurston County. Its eastern border follows the meandering Nisqually River. District 2 includes much of Lacey including the Jubilee and Hawk's Prairie areas and includes parts of the Nisqually Indian Reservation and Joint Base Lewis McChord and the cities of Rainier and Yelm. The Port of Olympia, a sprawling public enterprise that’s been besieged by controversy and is millions of dollars in debt, will have two new commissioners in 2022. The decision by Commissioner E.J. Zita (Port District 3) to not seek re-election had been expected. Commissioner Bill McGregor’s (Port…

City of Olympia to Host Cooling Center During Heatwave

26

Jun

By Mindy Chambers

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City of Olympia, Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers

City of Olympia to Host Cooling Center During Heatwave

This weekend is going to be hot hot hot! Together with Thurston County, the City of Olympia, and Partners in Prevention Education, Interfaith Works is hosting a cooling center Saturday, Sunday and Monday from noon to 6 p.m. at the Old Fire City Hall 108 State Ave. in downtown Olympia. Please check the InterFaith website for more information about volunteering, donating, and details: https://www.iwshelter.org/code-red.html Donations are needed Bottled water, other cold treats for immediate distribution (no freezer unfortunately), cup o' soups, granola bars, tea, coffee, decaf coffee, creamer, sugar, pastries, sandwiches, fruit, cereal, milk, etc. Individually packaged sunscreen packets, individual aloe…

Olympia Equity and Justice Commission Begins Work

09

Jun

By Mindy Chambers

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City of Olympia, Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers

Olympia Equity and Justice Commission Begins Work

Quick. Answer this question: What can the city of Olympia start, stop and continue doing in order to be an inclusive, equitable place for all community members to live, work and thrive? The answer is, there’s no quick answer. But there are dozens of opinions. “Racial justice work is unlike anything we have ever done as a City organization,” Olivia de Breaux, the city’s equity and inclusion coordinator said in a recent blog post on the city’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion webpage. She did not respond to The Tribune’s request for an interview. “We took on this task understanding and feeling…

31

May

By Mindy Chambers

5 Comments

2021 Elections, City of Olympia, Columns, Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers

Oly Council Races Locked In & On-Track for Record $$$

The field is set... And the campaign contributions are flowing. Fourteen people, including four incumbents, are diving into Olympia’s 2021 political arena, seeking election to a City Council that continues to wrestle with the incredibly thorny issues of police reform; public safety; incorporating equity and diversity and inclusion into how the city does its daily business; homelessness and housing; and pandemic-related difficulties experienced by small businesses and their employees, workers at a high risk due to COVID 19, landlords and renters, and others. Council members are elected to four-year terms, unless they are filling the remainder of a term for…

Five Candidates File for Olympia Port Commission

25

May

By Mindy Chambers

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2021 Elections, Columns, Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers

Five Candidates File for Olympia Port Commission

Two open seats on the Olympia Port Commission drew five candidates by the end of the filing period last week. One race will have a primary election contest that already is racking up a slew of campaign contributions. Melissa Denton, Amy Evans and Joel Hansen will face off in the August 3 primary for the District 3 seat being vacated by E.J. Zita. Bob Iyall and Jesse Simmons are vying for the District 2 seat being vacated by incumbent Bill McGregor. In the primary, candidates for Port Commission run by district; they run countywide in the Nov. 2 general election.…

A Healthy Democracy Requires Transparency; Then Why Do Lawmakers Seek to Limit the Powers of the Public Disclosure Commission?

30

Apr

By Russ Lehman

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Contributors, Features, Russ Lehman

A Healthy Democracy Requires Transparency; Then Why Do Lawmakers Seek to Limit the Powers of the Public Disclosure Commission?

In 1972 the Washington state Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) was created by the dogged determination of a small group of citizens with the radical notion that transparency and disclosure are essential for a healthy and vibrant democracy. With I-276, (you didn’t really think the legislature would create it did you?) the voters passed the measure, by a phenomenal 72% to 28% margin, voting to require financial disclosures about political campaigns, lobbying contributions, and expenditures, and for a prohibition against use of public facilities in electoral politics. It is especially helpful, and informative, after the passage of time, and with the resulting experience, to…

Microhomes On Their Way to Downtown Mitigation Site

26

Apr

By Mindy Chambers

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City of Olympia, Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers

Microhomes On Their Way to Downtown Mitigation Site

"Two down! Eight to go!" Those triumphant words rang out across a tent-filled asphalt parking lot in downtown Olympia on a recent sunny spring morning as the first of 10 new homes made its way there by forklift from the Port of Olympia warehouse where it was built. The brightly painted structures were settled in with precision, and safely and carefully leveled on the uneven pavement in an area near the Intercity Transit station. Known as “mitigation site,” it has been home to about 80 people living in tents since the city set it up in December 2018. When the…

26

Apr

By Mindy Chambers

2 Comments

City of Olympia, Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers

Movement To Flip Olympia City Council Picks Up Steam

Is it a slate? A collaboration? Cooperation? Just what is it? Whatever it is, Olympia City Council candidate Candy Mercer says she’s leading the charge to “flip” the council. Mercer, a frequent, vocal, and acerbic critic of the city’s response to the community’s growing homelessness crisis (more on that here). Mercer is adamant that she has only one goal. “I will continue working on both my campaign and to get like minded candidates elected. My goal is to funnel volunteers and donors to the various campaigns I see as viable alternatives to the current council. In essence, I am running against…