City Council - Regular Meeting

Good evening and welcome to the Federal Way City Council meeting for Tuesday, September 1st. Would you all please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance. United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. All right, welcome everybody. Let's see here. Now, we've got item three, proclamations and presentations. Item A, community volunteerism proclamation. Council Member Walsh.

All right, thank you, Mayor. And tonight, we're proud to recognize the incredible impact of civic engagement by proclaiming September 11, 2026 as Community Volunteerism Awareness Day in the City of Federal Way. And true strength comes from neighbors helping neighbors. And before I read the official text, I would like to take a moment to recognize the hands-on service in this room right here tonight. First off, our city commissions are made up of dedicated volunteers who spend countless hours helping Federal Way be a great place to live, to work, to play. And if you are currently serving on a c

Yeah, council members too. All right. And remain standing. Okay. Remain standing. Remain standing.

All right. Next, the volunteer work of our civic organizations, such as Rotary, Kiwanis, Alliance, or Optimist, and a multitude of others, provide critical support across our city. If you're involved with any of our local civic or service clubs, please stand up and stay standing. All right. Thank you. Finally, we have so many other groups supporting our youth, families, and vulnerable neighbors, including organizations like We Love Our City, the Moldy Service Center, local food banks, faith-based organizations, school volunteers, neighborhood groups. If you volunteer with any of these organiza

Well, thank you very much, and thank you very much for the work you do. All right, now we're on item B, the Arts Commission Mid-Year Update. Arts Commission Chair Tom Bristol. share a few comments. Tom?

Well, thank you very much for the presentation. Thank you for the work you do every day. Let's give him a big round of applause. Thank you. All right, and now we've got the Health Through Housing update, and we've got the King County Health Through Housing section manager, Shana Clinton, will present this item. Shana?

Oh, and stay close just in case we have any questions. And a great presentation from you both, from both groups. Council, are there any – oh, Council President Honda.

Thank you. I saw on one of the slides that you accepted a resident from the youth shelter.

I was hoping you were taking youth under 18 who need housing, so.

Well, you've really scaled up very quickly. I could see the numbers going way up. So I know we were asking about that just recently, and it's great to see so many folks getting into that program. Council Member Walsh?

Yeah, with the people moving into the Booker House, has it actually reduced the number of people living outdoors here in Federal Way?

And second question, how have things been as far as, I mean, you know, Booker House, I think it has done a tremendous amount of good. We also need to protect the safety of the people who are residents there and the safety of other people in the community. Have there been any incidents there at the Booker House so far that police have needed to be called or anything?

Okay. Thank you for doing that. Thank you. That's good news. Thank you. Council Member Hamilton.

Thank you, Mayor, and thank you for that great, great presentation. I'm the council member who probably asks the most questions about the Booker House, but the reason why I ask so many questions is because I want to see this succeed. And it's because as the people's representative, I get asked a lot, what are we doing to address homelessness? I mean, I think I get that question probably once a week, if not more. And sometimes, you know, it's a genuine question. What are we doing to address homelessness? Sometimes it's an accusation that the city's not doing anything to address homelessness. An

okay all right thank you I know it's an odd question but I'm seeing Janet and she brings us up a lot with the sharps container and I just thought I would ask if there was anywhere for people to drop that off well thank you we can look into that as the county manages the property and we can explore the need for that at this site yeah yeah okay well thank you very much and thank you for your presentation and good job

Councilmember Sefa Dawson the councilmember coach Marta councilmember more Thank You mayor and thank you for your presentation and thank you for the work that you're doing and it's we've been waiting for this for a very long time so we truly appreciate your effort and also appreciate the report that we heard I mean it sounds very positive I also want to caution us when we're asking questions around The increase of crime around these facilities, I get a little frustrated because I don't want homelessness or people experiencing being unhoused to be criminalized. And so to be looking for that kin

Thank you, Council Member. Council Member Kochmar.

Thank you, Mayor. So I have two questions. I realize your union gospel mission and the county owns the property. So what is your anticipated length of stay? This is for single men and women, correct, not families? Correct. And so what is your anticipated length of stay for the individuals?

So do you? So the people the same question is kind of a little more involved more complex. So the people who live there are they can Use they can use drugs they can drink what as they would in their own homes. That's correct They can use

So we'll get into that, but I'm just curious with part of that, do you offer them educational training, rehabilitation training that they'll accept it? And then my final question would be, what is your success rate for them to become independent?

So then again, what would be the success rate, probably not in this facility because they've been open long enough, but in other facilities of this nature?

So part of that, they wouldn't necessarily have to accept rehab services, that you don't have that as part of your model?

Well, I can certainly appreciate what you do. I've been to your facility. It's lovely. Having had members of my own family that I've had that have had issues, and how important it is, in my estimation, to be offered rehabilitation services. Sometimes they won't take it unless they're forced. And I am of the assumption that I want these people to be successful and not simply housed, but that would be my opinion. But thank you for what you're doing.

All right. And then we also have Council Member Moore.

Thank you so much for being here again. I appreciate it. I went to your grand opening and I just want to say this is an important service that you guys have that you're offering here in our community. And as I'm listening to the report that you're giving, I'm appreciative of the words you guys are choosing to use. I think that's really important because we're all human beings. We all deserve dignity and respect. And I just appreciate how you're going about doing that. And I appreciate the partnerships that you guys are creating, the fact that you're building relationships with local law enforc

Fantastic. Thank you for that. And I, like you just alluded to, I am looking forward to the updates. And I know that you guys have just started, technically. And so I am looking forward to, at the most appropriate time, to be able to look at the data of what's going on in the Booker House. And one last question. Obviously, there's There's people that are excited about this, and there's people that are just apprehensive. What's the process? Is there an opportunity for people to volunteer?

No, that's fantastic. I appreciate hearing that, and I do want to make sure that we capture your contact information as well. And then, ooh, I just lost my train of thought there. Oh, 82, so I heard you say that you guys have 82 of the 86 rooms filled, and the majority of that is, in doing that survey, they're from this local area, is that correct? Am I off a little bit with my numbers? Okay. Okay. Well, that's good. I'm glad we're – thank you for that. Thank you, Mayor.

All right. Thank you. All right. Council President Honda.

Thank you. So you have to be referred to the Booker House to be able to reside there. Have you turned down anyone who's applied? And if you've turned them down, why would you turn them down and what services were provided to those that – might not be able to live there.

If they're not able to get in here and they haven't found housing when Red Lion opens, do you know if they'll be able to be housed there?

Okay, thank you. All right. Oh, Council Member Sepin-Hawson?

Yes, thank you, Mayor. In your service plan, I think you have financial literacy also? And that's something I'm very interested in personally, and I would love to even be a part of. So just a comment.

Thank you. Well, on behalf of the people of this community, thank you so much for the work you're doing, both King County and the Urban League. And thank you so much. And thank you for this informative and very thoughtful presentation. Thank you.

Okay, and now we're under the Mayor's Emerging Issues and Report. So we've had a lot going on in the past few weeks. We had what is now, I believe, with a fourth annual back-to-school haircuts events. We started in 2023. A big, big thanks to Kristen Speakman, who owns and operates Bella Red Salon and the dozens of stylists not only that work there but throughout the community and they gave hundreds of haircuts to young folks getting ready for school and one of them was right there and it was just great. It was great to see. A big thanks for our Parks Department, the Good News Department that m

At least and people waited up to two hours. Yeah, it was a long line.

It was great. It was it was really just one of those great events becoming really one of the great events in our community was right there in Town Square Park. And it was it was also Councilmember Hamilton and Council President Honda were there as well. And just a really it was a beautiful day. And it was really fun to see that happening in our community. Then, on August 25th, we had the Good Eggs Breakfast put on by our King County Councilman, Pete Von Reichbauer. He brings in local elected and regional leaders, school districts, city councils, members from pretty much all of South King Count

They had us there with my business, Sub Zero Nitrogen Ice Cream, freezing ice cream with liquid nitrogen. And when you toss the nitrogen out onto the sidewalk or drive, great billows of fog come out and it makes a great photo opportunity. And so, and it kind of, you can tell that the mayor there is, he had not seen it before and was somewhat surprised at what happened.

It was an involuntary reaction. I'm like, oh my God, what's that? So, yes. So, you know, the asphalt was not on fire, but it was fun. And that's a really, if you haven't been in that location, it's really It's beautiful. Right there on where Dashpoint Road starts at about 312th and Dashpoint Road. And they're doing, there's a lot of work about getting businesses in that business park. And we're really happy to see that there. Okay, then.

Mayor, can I make a, and at that same time, the Grocery Outlet made a great donation to the Federal Way Senior Center Food Bank.

That's right. Susan, how much was that? Do you remember?

That's right. Yeah, that's really nice. And Council Member Hamilton was there, Council Member Walsh, Council President Honda, and it was just a great group. Okay, next we've got some upcoming community events. We've got Rainfest at Steel Lake Park on September 12th. That will get started about 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. And really just talking about just sort of the – you know, the environment and, and, uh, you know, rain trees and, and, uh, we've got, you know, important work being done, uh, by the folks, uh, in our public works department, uh, in our parks. Also, we've got Taste of Federal Way at the

Can you tell people where they can buy tickets? No, I don't. Is it poverty bay?

Jason, how can people buy tickets to the Taste of Federal Right?

Correct. $25. Okay. Well, we'll put that on social media, and we'll put it on our newsletter as well. Okay. Okay, upcoming community events. We've got the Pumpkin Plunge at the Federal Way Community Center on October 17th. You know, when I was walking in like mid-August, I walked into some place and they're already talking about, they're already advertising for Halloween. I thought, my gosh, it's going to be right around the corner. So we've got the pumpkin plunge at the community center at that time and that'll be on a Saturday the 17th $10 for youth $12 for adults then we've got the tricks a

We did not have a Land Use and Transportation Committee meeting in August, as most of the committees did not meet. Our next one will be September 14th, which is a Monday right here, and look forward to seeing some of you there.

All right, great. Council Member Sessoms, Parks, Recreation, Human Services, and Public Safety.

Hi, everyone. The committee last met on July 14th. We didn't meet in August. But as we prepare for the budget season, I'm going to be setting up virtual meetings with all of the directors to learn their priorities and their concerns going into this new biennium. Our next meeting will be next week. All are invited Tuesday, September 8th. 5 o'clock right here.

All right, thank you. All right, Council Member Kuchmaier, Finance, Economic Development, and Regional Affairs Committee, also known as FEDREC.

Thank you very much, Mayor. So our next finance meeting will be September 22nd, 5 p.m., right here in Council Chambers. And thank you very much to our Economic Development Director, Tanya Carter, who just spoke with me about her report for economic development. So we'll be doing that once a quarter. So the first one then, this... end of this year will be in October. And so moving forward, I'm hoping that we can, you know, we'll be in the middle of the budget, which is going to take up most of our time. And so I'm assuming we're going to be getting that budget document fairly soon. Okay. It's a work in progress. Thank you. Just make a miracle, provide money out of nowhere, and we'll be good.

That's right. That's right. So I'll be giving my budget presentation at our next city council meeting in two weeks, and council will receive it days before that. Okay, and we'll see it before the public sees it. Okay, now Council Member Sefa Dawson for Lodging Tax Advisory Committee and Regional Committees.

Yes, thank you Mayor. We, unlike the other committees, we did have a meeting in August. We had it on August 13th, and we kind of had like a retreat to just go over the budget and talk about other things regarding the grant applications and the review process. So our next meeting is on September 8th at 2 o'clock, and we're going to, again, go over a little bit over the budget. And we have 10... tourism enhancement grant applications to review so it's going to be a long meeting and with regional reports with the PIC meetings the next meeting is Wednesday September 9th from 7 to 9 and there are a

Okay, thank you very much now report from our council president, thank you I'm excited to invite everyone to attend coffee with council.

It'll be held September Saturday September 19th from 10 to 12 it'll be at the farmers market but you attended kicking it you saw that there were some little shops in those temporary buildings that have the murals on them and we will have that available to go into in case it's raining so please come rain or shine you don't have to get wet we will have coffee and pastries it's not an event where we have an agenda and you can just meet and uh sit down with those of us that are there and talk to us about anything that's on your mind we hope that you you come and um come see us so rain or shine you

All right. Thank you. Okay, and now for the most important part of the meeting, to hear from the folks that we work for, you, for public comment. So I'll name a number of individuals, and if you could sort of cue toward the back there, and then after we go through a few, then I'll call some more up. Green means go, yellow means you've got about 30 seconds, red means please stop. Everybody's got three minutes unless you're here with five other folks and you've listed them. Okay, now first we've got Janine Barber, Jack Dovey, Jeffrey Tancredi, Bob Derrigan, Lana Bostic, Julie Oliva, Paul McDanie

Thanks. All right. Thank you so much. Next is Julie Alava.

Nathan Orth. And as Nathan makes his way up here, we do have some three other folks. Sean Damon Hagler, Harold Booker, and Gordon Bach.

Thank you, Nathan. All right. Sean Damon Hagler.

Thank you, Sean. We're going to have Bill Vedino in the back of the room. Get your contact information, and we're going to get that to you tomorrow. You're welcome. Thank you. Appreciate it. Okay, and you guys, when we get all done with public comment, then I'll follow up on some of the items that have been discussed. Mr. Booker.

Thank you, Gordon. And thank you, Nathan and Harold. Thank you. Okay, thank you very much. Okay, is there any other public comment? I'm out of pink sheets, at least at this stage, because I know we've got the public hearing, which I do want to let everybody know we're not going to be voting tonight on the data centers. We did issue a six-month moratorium as required, 12-month moratorium, thank you. What's that? One year. One year. But what's required is a public hearing. So that is the public here tonight, and we thank everybody who's here to let us know your opinion on this issue. So that's g

Great, okay. Okay, and if Bill gets here, we'll have her come back up. And Celebration Park. Chief, I saw the same thing about the RV in Celebration Park at exactly 9 a.m. this morning. So let's have a conversation about that. I know you've got patrol. Our parks director, did you hear anything about that today?

We close off that parking lot every night?

And we wouldn't leave an RV there overnight, would we?

All right. Council President, did you have?

I would say the other day I ride my bike through there frequently. The other day there were four RVs camping there.

And they're allowed to do that during the day. They're allowed to, you know, there's nothing, you know, it's a parking lot. So, okay. Okay. Angelina, I know I was trying to, do you know anything about where we're at with, this is Angelina Pisi, everybody, our human services manager. Angelina, would you tell us anything you may know about the Red Lion status?

Great. All right. Thank you very much. Thanks. All right. Okay, now that concludes public comment. Thank you, everybody. We have the consent agenda. These items, we only have one item, and it's the approve the minutes for the August 11, 2026 City Council Special and Regular Meetings. Council President Honda, do you have a motion?

I move approval of the consent agenda item A.

Second. It's been a motion to second. Is there any discussion?

All those in favor? Aye. Opposed? All right. The minutes are approved. Good job, Heather. All right. Item 6, public hearing. Item A, public hearing ordinance number 26-1048, data center moratorium. I will now open the public hearing at, what do we have here, 8.07 p.m. And Senior Planner Evan Lewis will present this item.

Well, could you tell us, we know the cons, but what are, I'm not interested in a data center, but I want to know what the pros are for data centers. In particular, the smaller data centers that are called edge, I think.

So you're talking really quickly. So the MRSC website, that's the Municipal Research Services Corporation. So anybody can go, if they're interested in the public, can go to the MRSC website and see the pros and cons. But you're not going to present those here?

So can you tell me what a small data center, an EDGE, what that is?

Sure. Nobody here wants that. But when you make your presentation, can you put in about the edge and the smaller data centers? I'm just wondering what the pros and cons of those are. and you know what so a lot of the stuff that the data centers will be addressing is ai implementation speed speed of your internet user correct is that okay and so i'm i'm in order to um keep up with business as it develops new businesses as they develop um you know i mean literally it's amazing how things are changing so quickly um whoever thought we'd have a space force academy i mean not not that that's going i

The MRSC is Municipal Research Council. You can access that through the AWC website, the Association of Washington Cities. So if you go to the website for AWC, Association of Washington Cities, you can access. It's really sort of a clearinghouse of all kinds of information. not only for elected officials but also for the public as well. And so if you look on the AWC website, you can look under MRSC, Municipal Research Council, and many individuals on this dais and around the state rely on some of the information there. Council Member Moore.

Thank you so much, Mayor. Evan, I am looking forward to the studies and that you guys can be doing the research and having a really fruitful conversation when the time comes. Next year, I guess, I should say. So I am very, very curious. Correct me, this is just kind of a curiosity question, and I am looking forward to the public comments, and I know that this is only meant for public comments, for us to open that up. And not to get into the weeds or the details yet, but I'm just curious. FedAway does have one smaller data center, is that correct? That may be classified as old or out of use?

Good. Well, I'm looking forward to that research and that conversation when the time comes.

I would note, I think you're talking about the former DeVita building. Yeah, thank you. Which is no longer being used. This is on 32nd. It's that first light on the other side of the freeway on 320th. where you take a right, right there, it's the street where KOAM is at, at the very end of that street where DeVito was, that's now empty and it's not being used for that purpose. Perfect. I just want to make sure that it's clear about that.

And that's perfect, and that's exactly what, because I've heard it in the community, and I just thought we can kind of clarify a little bit. And also I'm grateful for the council that we unanimously voted. to put a moratorium because I know is a concern amongst the community and This to me seems like we're listening So this is step one and I'm hopeful that I certainly have my opinion, but obviously you want to wait till we do the research and have that thorough conversation Thank you.

I think it also just said, you know, I've been on I was on the council. I've been mayor for a while Normally when we do a moratorium, it's usually it's almost always for a six-month period, and then they could always make it a year. Here, the council did a full 12 months right off the bat. So, okay, the most important thing is we need to hear from the folks that showed up here. I've got four public comment sheets. The last one is via Zoom. So we've got Gail Mailer. It's okay, Gail. As you make your way, I'll announce the others. Ryan Lee will follow. Then Jenna... Karofsky Weeb, or Weeby, and

Anyway, there's currently... You can finish your thought.

Thank you. All right. Okay, we've got Sarah Lee via Zoom. Sarah, can you hear us?

All right. Thank you. And then Gordon Buck. Mayor, we also have someone else on Zoom. Okay, great.

Thank you. All right. That concludes a public comment for this. Oh, that's right. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Peter Garcia.

Okay. Thank you very much for that. And stay on the line just for a second. Okay. Council President, you said you know where this is?

Yes, the gentleman has been there for a number of weeks at this point. That's right. Town Square Park. Oh, on the east side.

It's the same person I told you about. I was hoping we could connect them with services.

That's right. Chief, we talked about this. Peter, I just want to let you know that I actually spoke with the chief about this very issue yesterday. Chief, what can be done? I know that you and I spoke about this issue. Council Member Hamilton brought it up. People are seeing this. Can you tell us what's going on with that individual or at least why we keep seeing that repeated violation on the east side of Town Square Park on that sidewalk?

Okay. If you could let your patrol know, obviously, about that location that Peter was talking about right there at the Chick-fil-A. And remember, we had that issue right next to or right behind the nearby Starbucks as well that I think has been very much addressed. So, you know, it's a little bit of a moving target, but it's important to hear that.

Okay, thank you. And Peter, if you're still listening, keep letting us know about it. And also to the folks out here, please let us know what you're hearing and seeing, and we'll take care of it and do our best to get people back on the right track. Okay, now back to this, the public hearing. Council Member Walsh, do you have a motion just with regard to the public hearing?

Yeah, I move to close the public hearing. Second.

There's been a motion and a second to close the public hearing. Is there any discussion? All those in favor? Opposed? It closes unanimously at 8.34 p.m. Okay, thank you very much. Item 7, we're on to a number of second readings. Item A, second reading and enactment for Council Bill 943 for an ordinance residential parking code amendment for the city center core and city center frame zones. Would the city clerk please read the ordinance title?

I move to approval of the proposed ordinance.

There's been a motion to second. Is there any discussion? All those in favor? Aye. Opposed? The matter passes unanimously. We're on to item B. Second reading and enactment. Council Bill 933, Ordinance Condemnation for Pacific Highway Non-Motorized Corridor 16th Avenue South. Parenthetically, it reads South 308th Street to South 288th Street Project. Would the City Clerk please read the ordinance title?

All right. Thank you very much. Council Member Walsh.

I move approval of the proposed ordinance.

It's been a motion. A second. Is there any discussion? All those in favor? Aye. Aye. Opposed? Matter passed unanimously. Item C, second reading in the APMEC, Council Bill 944, Ordinance, Rough Grading Code. Would the City Clerk please read the ordinance title?

I move approval of the proposed ordinance.

Second. It's been a motion to second. Is there any discussion? All those in favor? Aye. Opposed? The matter passes unanimously. Item D, second reading and enactment, Council Bill 945, Ordinance, Sign Code Amendments. Would the City Clerk please read the ordinance title?

I move approval of the proposed ordinance.

It's been a motion and a second. Is there any discussion?

as far as the sign code amendment goes I would like to offer a technical amendment to the ordinance before final adoption and maybe we can talk about that but I don't think the city intended to distinguish between different types of houses of worship and I noticed in the ordinance under land use under the the tables it says church and it just says church and so I would like to make sure our terminology reflects all religions, and so.

Let me get a ruling here. Ryan, can we amend this now?

Is there an opportunity to amend it later, is what you're saying? Because I want to make sure that we're not just saying church. Because right now, this ordinance only applies to churches, not temples, synagogues, mosques, and other houses.

Do you have a recommendation with regard to, I mean, should we?

But this one has the incorrect language in it.

So am I not able to make an amendment to this?

All right. So would it be advisable to pull it at the stage and to fix it? I don't advise you to pull it. I'm sorry, what?

And that we would fix it in – We would fix it in about two months.

I don't see et cetera. I just see church. I'm looking at... Table 2, standards for all residential zones. So the table, sir. It just says church, period. That's it. It doesn't say et cetera. I'm just worried about the technicality of this.

So should we not be politically insensitive, I guess, is what I'm asking.

I do think it's important to be sensitive especially when we're talking about religion and inclusiveness and so if you're not recommending that I make this amendment now I'll follow that advice but I would like to make sure this gets changed And what I would suggest, I won't make the motion tonight, I guess, but what I would suggest is to strike the word church and just put in religious facilities.

All right. Okay. Thank you. Council President?

I would suggest that we go ahead and pass it tonight but have a date that this comes back to us for a change, that we know that it's coming back within the next two months, which is what you're telling us.

And this will be coming before the end of the year?

I just don't want it to be forgotten and that it goes to the bottom of the list. You know, we always hear that there's priorities and sometimes the things that council – are concerned about sometimes drop to the bottom. And since this seems it's a concern, and it's a very good concern, I agree with Councilmember Hamilton. I don't want it forgotten. So I would like it to be addressed sooner than later.

Thank you. All right, Council Member Moore.

Yeah, I mean, I appreciate that Council Member Hamilton caught that and saw that and saw the lack of inconsistency there, but what I'm hearing is that it'll be covered in a future meeting where there's going to be a cleanup on all sorts of things to make sure everything's consistent is the way I kind of understand it.

Right, and that... Yes. So I'll leave my comment at that. So I think this is procedural. I mean, I see that as pretty normal, but I appreciate the fact that you got that. So thank you.

Is it practical to have that code cleanup ordinance before us before the end of the year?

BRIAN, WERE YOU GOING TO SAY SOMETHING? NO. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. BRIAN, DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO ADD?

OKAY. ALL RIGHT. Okay, there's been a motion, a second, and a quite vigorous discussion. All those in favor? Aye. Opposed? All right, matter passed unanimously. All right, now we're on to council reports. Council Member Sepedosin.

Thank you, Mayor. And, yeah, I appreciate the Human Services Commission, the email that we received and them reading the letter. uh... boys and men commission and i think it's i just wanted to talk about it because i'm a mother of three sons and uh... they happen to be black and so i've always made sure that they understand their values and their uh... ability to make positive change in the community so that was my main focus when they were uh... when they were growing up And I also wanted to live that by example. So actually, that's why I'm here on the council is one of the reasons how I just

All right, thank you. Council Member Moore. That's it.

Thank you so much. Well, welcome back, everybody. I feel like it's been years since, never mind. It's only been a few weeks. I know you guys miss me. But it's good to be back, and it's good to hear the public comments as well. And before I go any further for personal privilege, I'm sad, Mayor. I'm sad because the kid that I held as a baby is now going to kindergarten for the first time. Wow. And I'm sure you remember Ben going to kindergarten for the first time, and I think my colleagues on the diets remember their kids going off to kindergarten. And let me tell you, my son is absolutely ready

Thank you, Mayor. I have a few events that I attended to report on. I attended the grocery outlet ribbon cutting. That was super fun, especially with Jack there with his nitrogen, whatever it is. I'm no scientist, but Jack is apparently. And I also attended the Summer Watercolor Festival at the PAC. Great opportunity to do some art together as a community at that event. And then a really special event, the Korean American Day. Lots of cultural performances during that event. It was a packed house at the PAC. And I'm a big fan of K-pop. And so they had a lot of K-pop performances. And it was ju

All right. Go Bulldogs. All right. Councilmember Walsh.

Hey, just kind of going back to the volunteerism thing, Martin, Joining the PTA, that is a great volunteer organization. And once again, the volunteerism is so critical and Federal Way is awash with great volunteers, and I appreciate that. I was gone for about nine days out of state, and so I missed some of the events. I was here for the Korean American Day celebration. And it was great. Before that, to be honest, I'm not up as much on pop culture, but I wasn't even sure what K-pop was. Sorry about that. But it was very, very, very good. And I loved the fusion of the traditional Korean dances

Very good. Thank you. Council Member Sessoms.

Thank you, Mayor. Yeah, it is good to be back, and I'm looking forward to many of the events that we discussed tonight, in particular the coffee with the council on September 19th. I hope to see everyone there, and I'm looking forward to that big time. I really enjoyed the presentation on the Booker House. feel that it is an asset to our community and I hope that we can build on the successes and maybe next time as we hear about the reports of progress made with occupancy maybe we can hear even more about the outcomes I'm very optimistic that we will realize some of the good outcomes that the

Thank you, Mayor. Thank you to our staff who worked so hard all summer on all of the events that we had. Really a great job. So the mayor likes stories. I'm going to tell you a story. So if you look at your picture on the wall over there, I would imagine that that was what this area might have looked like about the middle 1800s when it was being homesteaded. 1873, they found gold in the stream in Liberty, Washington, which is up by Leavenworth. And so that was part of the start of the gold rush. We were the jumping off place for Alaska. 1889, I believe, we became a state. We joined the union.

All right. Thank you. That's president Honda.

Thank you. I So the haircutting event at Town Square Park, I volunteered for the fourth time. And the non-haircutting volunteers, we had way more than we needed this year, but that was good. And it's not just Bella Red Salon, but it's Castaway Beauty Salon too. So there's the two women who started it. And there was one little boy who was in line for a while. With his sister, he was a little shy about getting his hair cut. He was so cute. Oh my gosh, he was going into preschool. And he got his hair cut, and he walked by me, and he was going like this. And oh, he was just adorable. Anyway, it's

Awesome. I know the city has a team, and the city's team's been very good in the past. So, yeah. So, okay. Anyway, I hope you all turn out. We still are looking for people to golf, and the money that we raise goes towards children here in Federal Way and around the region. So I would encourage you to come. I have been working with Jan Barber on the sharps container issue. And this is a public health issue and an environmental issue. But I do have a new idea I'd like to throw to you, Mayor. And I will do that maybe tomorrow if we have time to talk. It does not. have the lobby involved. But I ta

Hear, hear. And with that, we're adjourned. Thank you, everybody.