City Council - Regular Meeting

Good evening, everyone, and welcome to the North Bend City Council meeting for June 2nd, 2026. Will the clerk please call the roll?

Mayor Pro Tem Errol Tremolata.

Present.

Council Member Brendan Elwood.

Present.

Council Member Mark Jocelyn.

Present.

Council Member Heather Cullen.

Here.

Council Member Rob McFarland.

Present.

Council Member Christina Rustick. Present. Council Member Susan Targeson. All are present, Your Honor.

Thank you very much. Will you be able to lead us in flag salutes tonight? Okay, well, good evening, everybody, on this gorgeous evening. Thank you for coming inside and joining us online. We love that. Okay. Mayor Preutem, would you be able to make the motion to approve tonight's agenda?

Motion to approve city council meeting agenda for June 2nd, 2026 as presented.

Excellent. Thank you very much. All in favor.

Aye.

Thank you, Rob. Any opposed? Motion passes unanimously. Thank you once and all. Moving on to consent agenda. Before we do, however, council, does anyone wish to pull an item from consent tonight for debate? Seeing none. Okay. Hello? You say something? No? Okay.

I'll move approval of the consent agenda as presented.

Great. Can I have a second? Second. Thank you very much. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Thank you. That passes unanimously. Moving on to audience participation. If there's anyone wishing to speak tonight on an item on agenda or not on the agenda, this would be the time you come to podium. Look, we have someone running up to the, well, not running, but... Welcome. You have three minutes to speak. You probably already know that for the record. Please state your name and spell your name for the clerk.

Good evening, everyone. My name is Boyana Mastroiannis. While I do not live here in North Bend, my husband and I opened our business here eight months ago, Mastroiannis Distillery and Winery, which is located at 201 West North Bend Way. I'm here tonight to express my support for the North Bend Foundation. Before opening our business in North Bend, we were introduced to Jessica's self and the team at the North Bend Foundation when we participated as vendors at SIP, SAS, and SAI event. The support and encouragement we received from the foundation and the community were so meaningful that we returned year after year for three consecutive years. The experience ultimately played a significant role in our decision to open our tasting room here in North Bend. From the moment we began construction, Jessica and the foundation team were there to support us. They shared updates about our progress on social media channels and continued to promote our business leading up to our opening date eight months ago. After we opened, they hosted our first business after hours event at our tasting room, introducing us to other local business owners and helping us build valuable relationships with the community. Since then, there have been countless occasions with Jessica and the foundation team have helped promote our events and supported our efforts to grow our business. Starting a small business is challenging, especially when you are new to a town and still building connections. Having an organization like the North Bend Foundation to turn to for guidance, support, community engagement has made a tremendous difference for us. I hope you will consider continuing to support the North Bend Foundation. Based on our experience, I truly believe it is an essential part of what helps local businesses succeed and strengthens the North Bend community as a whole. Thank you for your time and consideration. Thank you very much.

Do we have anyone else wishing to? Oh, hey, come on up, Deb.

Hello, hello. Deborah Landers, 14615 438th Avenue Southeast. And once again, I'm here for North Bend Art and Industry. You already know Art Off the Rails is June 20th. I'm really hoping to see you guys come out. And then the other thing that we are super excited about is the inaugural 4th of July parade. Right. So I know it's exciting, isn't it? It's unbelievable that we haven't had a parade. So I was really excited when the North Bend Downtown Foundation talked about it with us and let us support. We're going to be doing decoration parties on June 30th and July 1st. June 30th, July 2nd, sorry. June 30th, July 2nd from 10 to 4 p.m. So kids can bring their trikes, their bikes, their wagons, their scooters, whatever they want to decorate with their vision for how they will appear in the parade and we'll help them create that vision. We're very excited about that. But that, in fact, made me reflect on the Downtown Foundation because I don't know if you know that this was my start to the nonprofit world. I was a board member on the Downtown Foundation for almost three years before North Bend Art and Industry kicked off. And it was a very, very different organization than it is today. So now, while I collaborate and communicate across the Snoqualmie Valley with cities and organizations across the Snoqualmie Valley, I realize how lucky we are in North Bend to have the Downtown Foundation. What they bring for support, for marketing, for promotions, for outreach to businesses, but also nonprofits and community members. It's really pretty remarkable. And there is nothing like it that I have found in the Snoqualmie Valley that does that. the extensive things that the Downtown Foundation does. So I just, I too want to express my support for the Downtown Foundation. I hope it continues to grow and to help North Bend thrive. That's it. Thank you so much. Goodbye. Thank you.

And welcome to Kako.

Good evening. Takako Wright for your record. I work at our Stokwabe Tribe Casino and Hotel, and North Bend Downtown Foundation has been a phenomenal support, and any of the activities our tribal member artisans participate. And they also actively encourage the promotions of the newly created Snoqualmie Tribal Member Art Bazaar, which happens the second Fridays of the month in the Spruce Room that is located beside our Hawks Peak in our hotel lobby. And they've been phenomenal supporters. By the way, you're all invited to join us if you have any Father's Day shopping you need to do. The bazaar will be open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., And then on behalf of the tribe, I'd like to extend an invitation to you all to join us for our annual Native Day of Protecting the National Day of Prayer to Protect Native Sacred Spaces. And that'll be Friday, June 19th at 530 in the morning. And we all gather at the Lower Boardwalk at the Falls. It is a time of reflection, gratitude, and celebration. And if you do plan to join us, One helpful hint is to keep your cell phones in your car as we do not allow technology in a celebration circle. And again, very thankful for the North Bend Downtown Foundation as we've been able to collaborate as an entity of the casino in collaborating and partnering and just helping build up the businesses and supporting the community throughout. So thank you.

Thank you very much. Anybody else wish to speak tonight? Anybody online, Phil?

Not tonight, Your Honor.

Okay, great. Well, let's move forward. Announcements, presentations, and appointments. Number eight, we have a proclamation. This is Pride Month, so let me begin. And we have someone from Snow Valley Pride. I'll present this to you in just a minute, Lori. Okay. Whereas the City of North Bend recognizes and celebrates the dignity, humanity, and contributions of our 2SLGBTQ residents, visitors, families, businesses, artists, and community members. And whereas diversity strengthens our community and helps create a city where people of all backgrounds, identities, and experiences can feel safe, valued, and welcome. And whereas Pride Month traces its roots to generations of 2SLGBTQ individuals to continue to bravely stand up for equality, visibility, safety, and the right to live authentically. And whereas even in challenging times, communities thrive when they choose kindness, compassion, inclusion, and connection over fear and division. And whereas the City of North Bend is proud to support efforts that foster belonging, celebrate creativity and culture, and create opportunities for neighbors to come together in joy and community. And whereas the City of North Bend remains committed to building a community where all people are treated with dignity and respect, and where every resident knows they belong. Now, therefore, I, Mary Miller, Mayor, do hereby proclaim June 2026 as Pride Month in the City of North Bend and encourage all residents to celebrate the beautiful diversity and strength of our 2SLGBTQ community and continue working together towards a future rooted in kindness, safety, equity, and love for all. And if you don't mind, come on up, Lori. I'd like to introduce you. Well, actually, do you want to speak first? Sure, let's do it. On that.

Hi, I'm Lori Oviatt. I am from Carnation, Washington. I am a new board director for the Snoqualmie Valley Pride, the Snow Valley Pride. And I'm representing the Snow Valley Pride tonight. And on behalf of Greg Jammiel, who's the executive director, he's incarnation and then running to Duval City Council. So we're covering the valley with pride. And I just wanted to say something about our powerful vision. You have a document in front of you. On one side, it shows the impact that we're making in the valley since 2023, which is when we started and were founded. And then on the other side, you'll see events for 2026. And we have I'll do a plug real quick. June 7th, this Sunday, we have a free pride picnic at the Tolt Commons in Carnation. So anybody and everybody is welcome. There's lots of vendors. There's unicorns. There's goats to pet. There will be lots of fun things and activities to do. So the vision of the Snow Valley Pride is to create spaces of belonging, celebration, and healing for 2SLGBTQ plus residents, allies, and visitors in the Snoqualmie Valley. So thank you very much. I appreciate this proclamation. We're happy you're here. Be right up.

Do we want to do it on picture, too? Sure.

That's very real. Thank you. And then... Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you, everybody. Appreciate you. Yes.

Okay, let's see. Let's move on to introductions. We have number 9, AB 26-054. Resolution, Mr. Moore, would you like to tell us all about it?

Yes, thank you, Mayor and Council. Just wanted to give a quick history on this project before we go through the award here. In April of 2024, the City Council approved an engineering contract with Parametrix to design the South Fork Avenue Extension Project, which included a five-leg roundabout at the intersection of North Bend Way and Northwest 8th Street, also known as the Starfish Roundabout. Due to time restrictions on the State Transportation Improvement Board grant funding, and permitting timelines, the Starfish Roundabout was broken out of the overall project last year and is being constructed separately from the extension project. Plan is to build a roundabout this year and the extension in 2027. Parametrics finished the design of the roundabout earlier this year and then a city engaged in a public procurement process for construction of the roundabout. Nine bids were received. Those bid results are on page 147 of the packet. The lowest responsible bid came from active construction in the amount of $3,193,193 including tax, which was about $585,000 below the engineer's estimate. TIB will cover 60% of the contract amount, or about $1.92 million, and local transportation TIF and TBD funds will cover the remaining 40%, or about $1.27 million. The TIB grant will also cover 60% of our staff time related to construction management. Staff recommends approval of the construction contract to Active Construction. And as a side note, Active Construction built the Park Street Roundabout in 2019, and we had good success with them on that project. Staff is excited to get this project under construction. It will better serve traffic needs in conjunction with the bypass project next year and will provide a nice entry to the west end of town. TPW committee recommended approval of this award at their May 26th meeting. And I'm happy to answer any questions council may have.

Thank you so much, Mr. Moore. Council, do you have any clarifying questions for Tom? Yes, go Mark.

Your favorite question. Are you able to simply ballpark the time frame for construction?

I'm hoping we will be done in beginning of November is our plan.

Excellent. Thank you.

Thank you, Mark. Any other clarifying questions? Ms. Colon.

Are you able to give a guesstimate on how much traffic you will be diverting and what will happen in the west end of town when it is diverted there?

So the Starfish Roundabout itself is probably not going to divert much traffic, but once we do the bypass project in 27, I think the Trent the traffic studies indicated like a 15 to 20% diversion of passenger vehicles so away from our downtown core. And also, obviously, the bigger impact that we want to see is to keep the the vehicles coming out of the trucks coming out of the commercial district on the West end to use that bypass and not go through our downtown core.

Great. Any other clarifying questions? Oh, Rob, excuse me, Mr. McFarland, you're on.

Thank you. Thank you, Tom. Yeah, real easy. Just for the benefit of the public listening, we use a lot of acronyms. Could you just spell out for TBD, et cetera, right? Just give what those acronyms stand for, the funding acronym.

Yeah, TBD is our Transportation Benefit District, one of our revenue sources. Transportation Impact Fees, or TIF, another one of our revenue sources. And then TIB is the Transportation Improvement Board, which is a state grant that we got for this project. I think that's all the acronyms I had in the thing, but if there's any more.

Hold on. Yeah. Thank you. Okay. Anybody else I might have missed who have a question or clarifying question? Okay. This came through TPW, which means Transportation Public Works Committee, otherwise known as the Get Her Done Committee, long known as that. And Ms. Colon, I think this is where you step in. Thank you, Mayor. Thank you.

Motion to approve AB 26-054, a resolution accepting bids and awarding the construction contract for the West North Bend Way slash Northwest 8th Street Roundabout project to Active Construction Incorporated. Do I have a second? Second. Okay, Ms. Cohen, would you like to speak to your motion? Well, I thought you might ask that question. It's a shocking question, I know. I do approve of this project. I do hope this project does help our roads in the downtown core. And it's always good to hear that 60% of it is paid through grants. That is all. Thank you. It's impressive. Ms. Rustick, do you have anything you'd like to add?

Thank you, Mayor. I just wanted to add that, you know, this project is getting ahead of what we anticipate traffic congestion is going to build to. And so I am extremely appreciative of that and supportive of that, that we're proactive before things get bad. worse than what they could be. Yes, in the short term, it's going to be an impact to our travel in and out of the city, potentially a little bit, but in the long run, it's going to definitely make significant improvements. So that's all. Thank you.

Wonderful. Anybody else wish to make a comment? Mark, Mr. Jocelyn.

Yeah, reiterating what's been stated prior by my fellow council members. This lays the groundwork for the bypass along the south fork of the Snoqualmie connecting Mount Sai Boulevard and making it such that egress from exit 31 up the hill to the casino and the west side of town can be accomplished without needing to stop at the stoplight. So over time, we are creating a significant new egress east and west through town and avoiding downtown, which over time we envision becoming more pedestrian friendly. People need to start adapting to the idea that the fastest way to get from point A to point B may not be to go through downtown. because the vision is to make it more pedestrian friendly. So that's where we're headed. And I'm, yes, supportive of this, very excited for it, exciting to see it move forward and pleased that it should be done within the year. That's great.

Excellent. Anybody else wish to comment? Seeing none. Okay. Motion to approve AB 26-054, a resolution accepting bids and awarding the construction contract for the West North Bend Way slash Northwest 8th Street Roundabout project to Active Construction, Inc. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Motion carries unanimously. Thank you, one and all. And I, too, am very excited about this project going forward. Okay, moving on to item number 10, AB 26-055, also a resolution awarding 2026 Sidewalk Gaps Project to Sescon LLC. Mr. Moore, back to you.

Thank you again, Mayor and Council. Again, awarding the 2026 Sidewalk Gaps Project. This project includes three sites that are sidewalk gaps determined to be high priority by our TPW committee. The three site locations are Cedar Falls Way from the North Bend Cottages to Stillson Avenue on the north side of the road, Southeast Orchard Drive from Southeast 5th Street to the Orchard Place townhomes across the street from the Sideview MPD headquarters. And then 436th Avenue between North Benway and Southeast 136th Street roundabouts. These locations are also shown on the map on page 159 in the packet. We received four bids and all the bid results are on page 155 of the packet as well. The lowest responsible bid came from SaskCon LLC in the amount of $856,800. And that was about $119,000 below the engineer's estimate. Similar to the previous project, TIB or the Transportation Improvement Board grant will cover 80% of this project or about $685,000. And local TIF or transportation impact fee funds will cover the remaining 20% or about $171,000. The TIB grant also covers 80% of our construction management time for staff. The sidewalk gap project started about four years ago and have been a big success in the community's eyes as we receive lots of positive feedback on these projects. With that, staff recommends approval of this construction contract to Saskon LLC. And again, TPW committee also recommended approval of this award at their May 26th meeting. Happy to answer any questions council may have.

Thank you, Mr. Moore. Any clarifying questions from council for Tom? We'll take it away, Mark.

Both the previous contract and this one, I'm just curious if you have any observations about these projects coming in what I consider to be significantly below the engineer's estimate. Is that a sign of the times or a fall off in construction demand in other parts of the economy? I mean, it's a good news story. It really is, and I think it's fabulous, but I am curious.

I think it's two things. I think it's the time of year we put these out to bid. We're striving to put these out in the spring when contractors are looking for work and they haven't filled up their schedules yet. And I would also like to think it's a product of the design and contractors are working with the city in the past and having a good relationship and feeling comfortable with turning in bids that may be a little bit lower than they provide other communities.

Anybody else from council? Okay, Mr. Tramlotto.

Um, I asked us in TPW, but I'll ask it for the group here. They're currently between project site one and project site three, the remaining part of Cedar falls way onto 436. That's a gap in front of the church. Is that planned to be filled at any point?

It's on our list for future projects, and we'll bring that forward to TPW next year to pick projects out. The only reason we didn't include it in this year's projects is because when we were talking with our TIB representative for the grant, they were more, we scored better to connect the North Bend Cottages, a residential area, to a school crossing right there. They didn't feel like the church met that criteria, so we just kept it out in order to be more competitive with the grant. Thanks.

Thank you.

Anybody else? Heather, excuse me. Two questions. First of all, do you know what order these projects are going to go in? And second question. Sorry, let's just stick with that one.

The first project that we have in the specs for them to do first is the sidewalk on 436th. between North Bend Way and 136 because we're also overlaying that portion of road this summer. So we want to get the sidewalk curb and gutter all in first. So that's in the specs to do that first. And then it's up to them whether or not they want to do Orchard or Cedar Falls Way next. We're not, we haven't, we didn't, you know, tell them which route to go in that.

That reminded me of my second question. And when should they be anticipated to be done?

October is what we have in terms of working days for completion.

Thank you. Anybody else? Susan Torgerson.

The project Orchard Drive between Southeast 5th and Orchard Place townhomes, is that going to affect our farmer's market?

Yeah, there'll be some construction interference. The farmer's market's on Thursday. We have it in the specs and we've done this the last few years. I think in 24, we did a sidewalk project just down a little bit further that the contractor needs to be done. Off the top of my head, I want to say it's two or three o'clock in the afternoon and wrapped up and cleaned up so that when people pull in, there's enough parking and they're not in the way.

Great. Any other questions? No more questions? Okay, this came through TPW again. Ms. Cullen, can you... Take the motion.

Motion to approve AB 26-055, a resolution accepting bids and awarding the construction contract for the 2026 sidewalk gap project to Saskone LLC. Second. Thank you. Can you speak to your motion, Ms. Cullen? Yes, I approve of this project. It's really important. It will provide more public safety for pedestrians and bikes. It's also, again, very nice to have these grants that's covering 80% of our staff time.

Terrific. Ms. Rustick, do you have anything you'd like to add? I'll just add that as somebody in my family and I love to, you know, walk, especially on a beautiful night like tonight and definitely has been a noticeable difference over the last four years that we've completed these projects, makes things safer, easier to get to. And I'm very appreciative of the work that the city has done on this.

So thank you.

Thank you. Well, let's see. Anybody else have any comments they'd like to make? Nope. Okay, well, motion to approve AB 26-055, a resolution accepting bids and awarding the construction contract for the 2026 sidewalk gaps project to Saskon LLC. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Motion passes unanimously. Thank you, one and all. I'm very excited about this as well. Moving on to item number 11, AB 26-056, resolution establishing RFA planning committee and appointments. Mr. Cha, please let us know all about it.

Thank you, Mayor. For the record, Martin Cha, Finance Director. Council, this is item number 11. It's on page 161 of your packet. Just by way of history for the listening public, the City and Fire District number 38 are both partner agencies with Eastside Fire and Rescue. District 38 in April sent a letter to the city indicating an interest in creating a regional fire authority with the city of North Bend. Council discussed this matter during work study in April and then subsequently authorized the mayor to proceed and respond to District 38, which we have. The letter of intent from the district as well as our response to the district is included in your packets. One of the key items as part of the RFA planning process is formation of a planning committee. RCW 5226-030 prescribes a process for creating such a committee. The committee is comprised of three members from each agency. So between the City of North Bend and District 38, this committee would consist of six members and the plan to be prepared by this committee would include matters such as governance, service levels, funding, including whether a fire benefit charge is utilized and operational responsibilities. Once the A plan is completed by the planning committee. The plan will be submitted to both agencies for review. And if each agency approves, then the next step then would be to present the plan as a ballot measure to the communities of both organizations for a public vote. We expect that the timeline for the study would last anywhere between 18 to 24 months, which would place us on track for an election in late 2027. Again, if approved. But for tonight's matter, this is a resolution establishing the planning committee appointments for the City of North Bend. So that concludes my presentation. I'll be happy to answer any questions you may have.

Thank you so much, Mr. Cha. Any clarifying questions for Mr. Cha?

Ms. Colon and then Mr. Tremlata. I'm wondering, obviously the three members will be one of us seven, but I'm wondering about the commissioners. Who are they? Do we know who they are? And on top of that question, you kind of said the timeline commitment of 18 to 24 months, but in that, is it like, what is the commitment? Are we saying the commissioners and the counselors, is it like a contract? How does that work?

So first of all, the commissioners, the three representatives from the district would be commissioner representatives. So they'll need to go through the appointment process just like what we're doing here. In terms of the plan, the plan would be prepared by the committee. And if there is a consensus amongst the committee, then a recommendation would be presented to the city as well as the district commissioners for review.

I think it will, if I can add to that, it would depend on how fast the commission, the planning committee wants to go. So you're asking about time commitment is up to that group to decide how, like, if you want to get it done in a year, you'd have to meet a lot more to get all those specifications done in the RCW. If it's 18 to 24 months, it would be up to the planning committee to decide how much time commitment and frequency of meeting. It's not dictated by us on that. Thank you. Any, Mr. Trimolata?

Yeah, I had a similar question. Are there actual checkpoints within the RCW that will dictate that timeline? I guess in other words, is the committee free to work as fast as they would like, or are there mandated 60-day review periods or something that are going to be part of that process regardless?

The schedule would be dictated by the committee. So the committee can work as quickly as they wish.

Okay. And then I guess a question just for who, once that committee is formed, I think what would be good for council is once that committee is formed, if we could maybe have like a skeleton timeline of what are we shooting forward so we can follow along. We can do that.

Anybody else from council? Oh, Mark.

At a high level and to just inform everyone, our residents because this would be a big deal if it moves forward. The action we're taking tonight would form a planning committee. The result of that effort would then be to come forward with, should this be the choice, with a proposal to form a regional fire authority that would then require an affirmative vote by at least a majority of the people living both in North Bend and within District 38. Is that correct?

That's correct.

Thank you.

Thank you. Anybody else? Mr. Elwood.

Just to follow up on that, to be super, super clear, this committee's actions could come back to this body and say we don't recommend moving forward with the district, correct? Correct.

That's correct.

Awesome.

Thank you. Mr. McFarland, I'm going to reach out to you if you have any questions, and Susan Torgerson, if there's anyone. Nope. Waving me off. Okay, great.

Oh, okay. Go right ahead. Just to clarify, it's based on it. Never mind. Sorry.

Going forward, Mayor Pro Tem, I think we're going to have you make the motion here.

I'm doing one first and then two.

Yeah.

Okay. Motion to approve AB 26-056, a resolution establishing a regional fire authority planning committee between the City of North Bend and King County Fire District number 38. On paper.

Second. Second. Yeah.

Any opposed? Well, hold on. They just seconded it. That's it? They just made a second.

I just seconded, yeah.

Okay, sorry.

Nothing more. I mean, I think it was said I'm excited about seeing what comes out of this committee more than anything. And then I think we have some big decisions down the road here.

Yeah, I think this is a logical step to go forward. I think a lot of communities across the Puget Sound are looking into doing this. And actually, I think that we have an opportunity of doing it before other people in EFER. So it'll give us a chance to actually create rules that we can help for all of EFER at the same time. So I think it's a great opportunity for us to have a lot of influence and maybe something that's really good. So, yeah, that's why I'm supporting it. Wonderful. Anybody? Ms. Cohen.

remember now what i wanted to clarify for the public is that district 38 is all of our unincorporated areas around north bend and so it's a natural fit there are neighbors their wilderness room their moon valley and so it is a natural fit this partnership if it should work out very good point anybody else mr elwood

Yeah, my point making that other point super, super clear is that I appreciate and welcome explorations on any front that could serve the betterment of our community as well as our neighbors and sort of partnerships and so forth. So I applaud staff and I applaud the fire. district themselves for coming forward with this kind of opportunity. So the exploration I'm all in on, but I also want to, you know, echo to some points that were brought up in the work study in the last council meeting, is that, you know, this has to serve the community of North Bend. And we need to understand what our residents get out of this in order for that to happen. So we can't learn that until this work is done. So I appreciate that and support the the formation of the committee. Thank you. Terrific. Anybody else?

Okay, motion to approve AB 26-056, a resolution establishing a regional fire authority planning committee between the City of North Bend and King County Fire District 38. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Motion carries unanimously. Thank you, one and all. And we're going to go to the part two of the motion. Mayor Pro Tem, would you take it away there?

Yes. Motion to appoint council members Jocelyn, Torgerson, and Rustick with Mayor Mary Miller as an alternate to the Regional Fire Authority Planning Committee.

Okay. Can I have a second? Second. Thank you, Ms. Rustick. Would you like to speak to that mouthful of emotion? Yes.

I think these are the great candidates for this job, and most of them have been very involved in the EFER conversation already, so excited to learn more.

Super. That's interesting. Yeah, I'll just reiterate that already established a great partnership as part of the EFER board, working with Eastside Fire, and yeah. working on the subcommittee that's looking at the finances. So I feel like that'll be a good balance of all sides of this picture to Brendan's comment about exploring this and making sure it's the right thing for the community. Terrific. Anybody else? We should make a comment. Ms. Torgeson.

Yeah. One of the things I was concerned about this particular motion is that it includes our mayor as the alternate for the regional fire authority. Because the statute says you only provide three elected members. And then what happens is the committee gets together and creates the rules. So at the point when they get together, then they would create the rules on alternates. So this is like kind of a little bit ahead of the game. We need to... have the committee define what that is, and then if the whole committee, both District 38 and North Bend, on that committee say, yeah, we need an alternate, then that's how that would work. So I feel like we're stepping out of step. It's kind of like being invited to a wedding, and they say, don't have any guests, and then we say we're bringing a guest anyway. So I just feel like it's a little socially awkward.

Well, thank you for not having me at the wedding, evidently. Can I ask our council online right now if there's any clarifying information to give to us tonight about that?

Yes, Mary, thank you. So RCW 5226030 states that each governing body participating in planning under the chapter shall appoint three elected officials. Elected officials is defined in Chapter 5226. as an elected official of a participating fire protection jurisdiction or a regional fire protection district commissioner. So it does not say council member from my reading of the statute. And I'd also like to invite Martin. I think he has some more experience and has worked with the planning element. So I'd invite him to fill in any blinks I missed also.

Thank you, Ms. Rosenberg. Martin, would you like to? Convey any information for us.

Thank you, Mayor. I would concur with Kendra. The RCW is clear about three elected officials, and it doesn't specifically specify council members, but it's three elected officials for the planning committee.

I'm sorry, we're talking about the alternate part, not the elected officials part. You guys didn't address that. Could you clarify?

Ms. Rosenberg, is there anything more you can add to clarify the... An alternate would serve in the seat of the person filling in for the planning committee. So I'm happy to... answer a question perhaps, and I think Martin was still explaining his answer as well, that we're talking about elected officials and the mayor is an elected official. So I think that having her named as an alternate is appropriate as part of the motion. Thank you.

And just to add to that, Mayor, I think with the naming of an alternate, that ensures that there's a quorum from the city. So in the event that there is a council member that is appointed council member that's absent, the city is assured that there are three represented voices.

Thank you. And I would assure you that I would show up for sure. Any other clarifying questions?

I'll just add one more point. Okay. One of the issues, too, I see, like, it specifically says three elected officials for each entity, and then they have their first meeting, and they basically create the rules. At that point, they create those rules. If we as a city said, well, we're also going to include an alternate without those six people creating that rule saying that they're going to have alternates, down the line, if we come up with something and say, someone wants to contest it. They could say, well, we didn't follow the rules. And so we're going to like try and back out because we didn't follow the rules. I'm not saying to not have an alternate. I'm saying the body that decides that would be the planning committee that comes together. And it's not just North Bend. It's also district 38. It's all, all of them that decide what the rules are on that. So I just want to state that.

Are we ready to move on? Okay. Okay. Alrighty. At this point, I think I'll read the motion or if you'd like to read the motion. Well, I read the motion. Excuse me. Motion to appoint, oh boy. Motion to appoint council members, Jocelyn Torgerson, Rustic, with Mayor Keller.

Could I just amend the motion before we go forward?

What would you like to?

I'd like to make a motion to amend it to remove the line about having an alternate.

Do you have, is there a second to that? Hearing none.

Second.

Second. Okay. Would you like to speak to your motion at all? I think I already did so. Mr. Elwood, would you like to speak to your motion?

Yeah, I think it'd be more of a clarifying question. I mean, even if we designate the mayor as an alternate, if the mayor, for example, wasn't able to attend, I'm sure we could ask some other member of this body here to attend as an alternate. Would that be appropriate? I mean,

Yes, I think that would be appropriate.

Okay, anybody else wish? Mr. Jocelyn.

My understanding of what's before us, we are appointing members to a planning commission as an elected body of individuals, and we can appoint whoever we want to to that board. I will be voting against this amendment. Thank you.

Okay, did I miss anybody else? Okay, all right, so we'll go to a vote here. Motion to appoint council members Johnson. Oh, sorry. On the amendment. Okay. As I guess we're going to be deleting Mayor Mary Miller as alternate. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed?

Aye.

So that's five, six to one. Okay. Motion does fail. Okay. So we're back. We're back to the original motion, which is, let me read it one more time to be clear. Motion to appoint council members Jocelyn Rustick and Torgerson with Mayor Mary Miller as alternate to the Regional Fire Authority Planning Committee. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Motion passes. And thank you, one and all. We're going to our last item, number 12, AB 26-057, motion authorizing contract with North Bend Downtown Foundation. Mr. Henderson, please let us fill us in. Thank you.

Yeah, good evening, mayor and council members. And I'd just like to recognize Jessica Self, executive director of the foundation, as well as some board members from the foundation as well. The item before council tonight is a proposed contract with the North Bend Downtown Foundation to manage downtown events in 2026. The contract is only for 2026. Future discussions about the city of North Bend funding for the downtown foundation will take place as part of the 2027-2028 budget process. The proposed contract provides City of North Bend support for the following events. The 4th of July Parade, which is an inaugural event to celebrate America 250, Downtown Block Party, Trigger Treat Street, Holly Days, and Holiday Lighting. These events support the Downtown Foundation's Main Street four-point approach to promote downtown and enhance North Bend's economic vitality. In addition to the city's contribution to these events, the Downtown Foundation also secures sponsorship, in-kind support, and volunteers to fund and manage the events. For example, in 2025, the city contributed $25,000 to Block Party, which unlocked nearly $47,000 in sponsorships and support for that event from both local and regional businesses. Also in 2025, local and regional businesses provided up to $10,000 in sponsorship for Trick or Treat Street, holidays, and holiday lighting, as well as other in-kind support. Moreover, these events bring thousands of visitors and residents to the North Bend that support local businesses, activate the downtown, and attract new businesses to our community. The proposed contract was discussed at a council work study on March 24 and at the Community and Economic Development Committee on April 21. Staff recommends approval of the contract, not to exceed $46,400, to support local businesses and promote economic vitality and opportunity in North Bend. Except for the 4th of July parade, this is the same level of support for events that was found in the 2023 contract. And with that, happy to answer any questions you may have.

Thank you for that, Mr. Henderson. Any clarifying questions from council? None?

Yes. Susan had a question.

Mrs. Torgerson. On the contract, I noticed in Appendix A, I'll bring that up. Here we go. Page 188. Nope, that's not it, sorry. We got 194. 193, that's what I'm looking for. So on this page, you notice all the events include basically a description of what the scope of work is, including the event duration time. But the only one that doesn't do that is the parade. Oh, wait, they added it. Oh, no, that's just in-kind. That's in-kind. Okay, so no, it still just says organize the parade. I think it needs to have a little bit more clarity as to the services, kind of like the other ones do, just so we're not doing any sort of gift of funds violation in that particular one. So I mean, we have Jessica here. She could say a list of things that she's doing for the $5,000 for that section. And then potentially the amount of time potentially that parade is. And if we could include that as the scope of work.

Yes, no problem. I'll work with Jessica to add some more language to that.

Okay, great. Thank you. Thank you. Any other clarifying questions? Nope. See none. Okay. Let's move this to Ms. Torgson. CED came through. You and your chair, can you read the motion for us tonight?

Let me find that. All right, here we go. Motion to approve AB 26057, authorizing the mayor to execute and administrate a contract between the city of North Bend and the North Bend Downtown Foundation in the amount not to exceed $46,400 in the form and contact approved by the city attorney. We have a second.

Second? Second. Well, that was fun. Okay. We're going to go for the monkey in the middle, and I apologize for calling you a monkey in the middle, but Ms. Cullen, I'm looking right at you for the second. Hey, would you like to speak to your motion there, Ms. Torgerson?

Oh, yeah. I'm a huge fan of the North Bend Downtown Foundation. I'm excited to see the new project they're doing, the parade, and I think it's important that we fund the Downtown Foundation for these events. Wonderful. Ms. Coleman.

Yes, the Downtown Foundation brings a sense of pride to our local businesses and also the events are very fun for all of our community and also brings a sense of pride to where we all live.

Terrific. Anybody else wish to come? Ms. Rustick.

Thank you, Karen. My pleasure. I just wanted to add, you know, In this environment today, we are so divided across the country and these events bring us together and they make this a great place to live. I know they help businesses, but more than that, they just are a real positive asset to the residents that lived here. So I support this. Thank you.

Terrific. Anybody else wish to speak? James Tremolato.

Um, yeah, uh, I'm, I'm a huge fan of the foundation. I think my comment is less on the foundation and more for administration and council. I think out of that work 30 was clear that there are a number of thoughts, uh, on how we move forward here. So I'd like. My hope is this passes tonight. I'll be supporting it, but I'd like to make sure that the administration's on board with having this item on our July. I believe we have a July 28th work study if I'm looking at it at the soonest or I should say at the latest. I think we have a few folks missing our end of June work study, but. I don't want the conversation to end. I want to get right into this. I think that we owe it to the foundation for them to know what the future looks like so they can continue to plan. And also any concerns that we have, we owe it to the residents that we hash this out and make sure we have a clear path on what this organization is going to look like going forward. So I hope I will support this up today.

Thank you, sir. Anybody else wish to come up? Mr. McFarland, I see your hand up.

Thank you, Mayor. Yeah, I support this motion. It's unfortunate it took us this long to get to this point for this year. These are great events. They're going to happen. I'm glad we could contract with the foundation to carry them out. And I do agree with Mr. Termolata that it's the conversation going forward we need hard work on.

Thank you. Anybody else? Mr. Joslin.

Yes, I too strongly support the foundation. I'll be voting in favor of this this evening. I wanted to acknowledge the significant number of folks throughout our community, especially from downtown, such we had one earlier tonight who took time, energy, and effort to come before us, state their support, state the impact that this foundation has made, both for them in their own businesses as well as our community and those of us lucky enough to live here. So thank you, Your Honor.

Thank you, sir. And Mr. Elwood.

Six other colleagues spoke, so I might as well type up as well. Yeah, I support the Downtown Foundation. I supported it back when it was conceived. I think there's a lot of great work that comes out of there. And I know there's been a lot of discussion on how we advance our thinking, at least the business model piece of it. how we get a little bit sharper with our accounting and our budgeting and our bookkeeping, understanding ROIs. You know, we're investing in our community and we want to see some of those numbers. So I appreciate and also support Councilmember Tremolata's point about bringing this back sooner than later. So it's still hot on our minds. And I know... Ms. Emery will appreciate because I think you want to have the majority of council members supporting things that come on the agenda. So hopefully you have that tonight. So, yeah, so I appreciate that. And thank you for that. And I will be supporting in favor as well. Thank you.

Great. So I'm going to say something too, because I'm totally in support of the Downtown Foundation from its impetus, as you will. And it's evolved through the years. And I think with the leadership we have had over the last few years with Jessica and her fabulous team of volunteers, some of them are here with us tonight. And they keep showing up every time at these meetings. So thank you for our wonderful community business owners who come up and have spoken to their support. Our local businesses are a backbone of North Bend. And you know what? There's nothing better than community spirit along the way. So I celebrate that at all times. So I'm glad to hear the support is strong tonight. All right. So let's see. Motion to approve AB 26-057, authorizing the mayor to execute and administer a contract between the city of North Bend and and the North Bend Downtown Foundation in an amount not to exceed $46,400, excuse me, in a form and content approved by the city attorney. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Motion passes unanimously. Thank you very, very much. Okay, we're gonna go to Mayor Council Administrator Concerns and Initiatives. Let's start with Mr. McFarland online, if you don't mind.

Okay, happy to. Wow, great agenda tonight. A lot of very impactful things for the city. And I should note that it seems to me that Council of the Whole seems to be catching on to TPW's Get Her Done meeting program. So way to go for all of us. Awesome business meeting tonight. We also find ourselves nearly half of the year spent. And for the public consumption that is out there, to know that city administration and the council are working toward finding common ground to provide you the best level of service affordable within the budget constraints in front of us. Before year end, council will adopt policies and spending authority for a new two-year budget to guide the administration carrying out that plan. So I hope you'll listen carefully as these months progress and provide your input to us as we make those decisions. It seems, moving on, each pronouncement or revelation at the federal level about executive excess and or what not so long ago was considered outright corruption just creates more spin in the slowly boiling pot. It seems there is fear in the air and there's tension everywhere. It was spoken to earlier by another member. So for tonight, how about a few lines from the ever-increasing ball of confusion we find ourselves in America in today. So from the temptations, 1970, ball of confusion. segregation, determination, demonstration, integration, aggravation, humiliation, obligation to our nation. It's a ball of confusion. That's what the world is today. Thank you. Good night.

Thank you, Mr. Rick Farland. Mr. Elwood.

Thank you, Your Honor. Thanks for those words, Councilmember McFarland. Appreciate them. A couple things. One thing I think I learned this morning or yesterday morning that Skagit County has recently put a moratorium on data centers and citing environmental concerns on that. Flooding, I think, was one of the things that they called out in the news headline, which I think is in line with what we did here yesterday. Last month or something with best this IT infrastructure. Those are serious things that we have to take Each one seriously one at a time and make sure that we're doing the right thing by our community So I just wanted to call that out because I think the last time we talked about this I said it's just the beginning and this is yet a Proof of that that the ball is starting to roll the other thing I got alerted by FEMA Yesterday or today today in fact that was saying, let me just pull it up here really quick. That if you were, if you had experienced any damage during the December, 2025 flooding, there is a deadline to apply for federal assistance, which is June 10th. And you can apply for FEMA assistance by going to www.disasterassistance.gov or calling 800 621-3362. You can also download the FEMA app. And if you need in-person assistance, you can see locations and hours at kcemergency.com. So I know some of my neighbors were impacted. We were impacted. So if you haven't heard that alert, there is some assistance out there if you need it. The other thing I would like to point out on a little bit on the lighter side is Valley Center Stage, our local community theater. And I think their only community theater in the Upper Valley bringing performance arts to us all will be launching Murder on the Nile, Agatha Christie classic. Opens June 12th and runs through June 28th, so come check it out. It's a good mix of local actors and Seattle actors. Fantastic set. Reflections is a local business here. I think their model is that they put on thematic set pieces for casinos and things like that. They graciously loaned us some huge statue of Anubises and things. Anubi, Anubises, I don't know if that's plural or not. But anyway, come see Egypt Alive at Valley Center Stage and get your mind off the ball of confusion out there and enjoy some theater while you're at it. Thank you.

Terrific. Miss Torgerson. Yes. First of all, it was no offense to you, Mary, about taking you off as an alternate. And it wasn't just you. It was like having any alternate was the point, not just your name. Thank you. I just like things to be legal and make sure we're doing things properly. I can appreciate that. Um, as far as concerns, uh, at the health, uh, public health and safety meeting this afternoon, um, we learned from the police chief that, um, Seattle is giving unhoused individuals bus tickets to come to our community, um, just ahead of the, of the world cup. And that was just concerning to me. I think it's wrong and inhumane. And, um, anyway, um, I just don't think North Bend should become the overflow for Seattle's situation and, um, Anyways, just want to put that out there. That's disappointing. But another issue that I think maybe council might want to think about in the future, what we'd want to do as a group is at the regional law safety and justice meeting last week, we had some different people speak to us. And one of them was the Department of Public Defense. They were saying how they have a perfect record in recent history of never turning down any client across criminal, family, and civil commitments. So basically, they're fully funded. But then we talk about the prosecution, and Dan Clark, he's the chief deputy prosecuting attorney office, he spoke to us about how they're really struggling, and they have a lot of funding that's been reduced. And so what's happening there, what had happened is they receive 350 to 500 misdemeanor referrals a month, but do the budget cuts. They slash the district court filing lawyers from three down to one, a single attorney. Because that one person can only process 200 decisions a month, they are on a constant permanent misdemeanor backlog by design. And so basically, the conclusion you can get from that is the justice system is out of whack. The taxpayer fund are funding a well-staffed public defense, but municipal cases are bottlenecked because the prosecuting attorney's office is severely underfunded. And so potentially maybe as a group, we might want to... Mention that to someone, you know, put our word out there that we would like to have this addressed in some way, shape or form.

And can you forward me that information? I've never, ever heard that King County Public Defense has been funded. So I'd like to see that detail if you could forward it over to me. Just due to the fact I was in that world for three decades and that's never been the case. So I'd like to see how they're funding their office. So if you could forward that to me, I'd love to dig into it.

So anyway, that was the point that I was making is that we need to advocate to have the prosecuting office be funded again so they can handle all the caseload. Okay.

Before I move on, I just want to add a little point of view that it might be a rumor what you spoke of a little bit earlier about busloads of people coming out here, transient individuals. We're not quite sure if that's still a rumor, but they're coming from somewhere. So I made an effort to reach out to Katie Wilson's office. Haven't heard back yet, but my intent is to still push forward to see if I can have a conversation to see if for clarity and see where we go from there. But I want the community to understand that I'm on that. That's great. Thank you. You bet. Ms. Colon.

Well, I had nothing prepared until I was looking out at our beautiful mountain, and I realized that we are a hiking town and that we do have serious accidents that happen to hikers while they are hiking, and that it takes a huge amount of resources, multiple departments to help these people get off the mountain, get to a hospital, helicopters. rescue teams. And so my point of this is when you are hiking, be cautious, know your limits and go prepared because it does take a huge team to take care of you if things don't go right. And that's all. Very important. Ms. Rustick.

Yeah, good reminder. Thank you. I just wanted to touch on last weekend. As we all know, the road construction closed down lanes on I-90 as it related to the work to Highway 18. We've had this happen before. North Bend gets impacted, North Bend Way, Cedar Falls Way, They become a detour for cars trying to avoid the backup on I-90. Last weekend, the cars were taking detours through our residential neighborhoods. My neighborhood has never seen so many cars backed up. And I know, side view, it was complete bumper to bumper. And not only is this obviously an inconvenience to residents, it impacts our quality of life, but it impacts our kids that are out on their bikes and playing, and it impacts the first responders. A first responder could not have gotten to my house over the weekend. I have been working with our city staff and they have been great about trying to get us in touch with somebody from Washington Department of Transportation to see if there is anything we can do going forward as we head into the summer months to try to mitigate, we're not going to stop cars, but can we mitigate the challenge? So I just wanted to share that. Thank you.

Thank you. And I too, that was an atrociously hard, difficult, challenging weekend for all uh, around here, but our staff is going forward to find information out that can be conveyed to the community that we appreciate that. You got it. Uh, and thank you for that concern. Okay. Mr. Jocelyn.

Thank you. Your honor. Let's see. I've come up with a few things. Um, I was in attendance at the Health and Public Safety Committee this afternoon and listened to this conversation around folks being provided bus tickets from Seattle to come out here, which led to a comment from a member who was president of the public, who normally aren't allowed to speak, expressed a concern that they had heard that homeless folks were filling the Mount Sai Hotel. And connected those two dots, and this was in the context of drug and concerns and issues that we all face. I appreciate Council Member McFarland referencing the uncertainty that faces so much of our governance structure these days. But we need to be so mindful of operating from a basis of fact and information and what's true. It's in that context that Chief Hall did make a comment that he's well aware of the folks involved at the Mount Sai Hotel, Jen, who runs Reclaim, and has dedicated herself to improving people's lives and making them self-sufficient and helping them get back on their feet. Because for any of us at any moment in time absent an unforeseen medical bill or who knows what, that could be me. And his statement was something to the effect, and I do not mean to put words in your mouth, Chief, but that those folks are not a problem population in this town. folks staying at that hotel. So just that conflagration of those two different issues today set me back on my heels because it's so easy for us to, in a heartbeat, assert things that simply are untrue. And so I encourage us all, especially in these positions we're privileged to hold, to be mindful. I, too, left town Sunday evening to run to the grocery store, drove to the end of my street on Fifth Street, where there were cars backed up in a way I had never seen from Cedar Falls Way. And I looked to my right, and as far as I could see down Mountain Boulevard, it was full of cars. I did a U-turn. I drove back home. I parked my car. And, yeah, it was incredible. I have a screenshot of every residential street in this town being backed up, and there's no way anyone... could have gotten anywhere, and it also then led to people driving in ways that are hazardous and put folks at risk. So the question that leaves me with, and there are stories about this, is so much of it is driven by driving apps, Waze and Google, and being directed different ways, and I don't know how one can go about... trying to influence those, you know, apps on our phones that tell people how to get between point A and point B. But goodness me, that was shocking. And anything that could be done to address it, there is a bridge through the south side of town in Unincorporated King County that is on the Transportation Improvement list that I certainly will continue to advocate, get attention, and get moved forward simply to help improve. I spoke to it early. The east and west flow of traffic through this town can present challenges, and at some point it could be a real challenge. safety issue. One more piece. I, along with the mayor and the city administrator, had the opportunity last Thursday to attend the Puget Sound Regional Council General Assembly meeting at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle. What's the word I want? Keynote address was former Governor Christine Gregoire with Challenge Seattle. But it also then included a panel, and on the panel was Eric Nordstrom, the CEO of Nordstrom, Kerry Schrader with the Pacific Northwest Regional Chair for J.B. Morgan Chase, and Brad Smith, the Vice Chair and President of Microsoft. And boy, it was quite a conversation about the challenges facing our region. And for all of us here who are looking towards and seeking to support economic development, I would encourage each of you, if you're able, it's now up on the Puget Sound Regional website under the General Assembly link. There is a reference to when this conversation starts. It's about 40 minutes in. It goes on for about half an hour. But these people are really smart and they know their business and they know the region and they are native. I mean, they have a real fondness for it. They speak very fondly of the place that we all get to live in, of the challenges. And so I found it very insightful. And again, I will leave it this evening that if you're able to take the time and listen to that, I would encourage you to do so. Thank you.

Thank you, Mayor Pro Tempala. Yeah.

Yeah.

A few things. First, congratulations to Ignite Dance Studio. They just wrapped up 16 years of a small business in North Bend. Many of the students will be competing in national championships, but it was the end of the season for most. So 16 years is pretty incredible for a small business that has had a huge impact in our town. Today was warm and river safety is pretty critical. The rivers are still very cold. I'm sure Chief can speak to it a little bit. I've read a number of articles about the flooding in December and how the rivers are maybe not looking like what they once were if you swam in them or tube. So we need to be very cognizant of getting out there right now. And even though it is a scorcher today. And speaking on mental health, as I have been, June is actually men's mental health awareness. Nearly one in five men experience some form of mental health issue and are significantly less likely than women to seek professional mental health treatment, which has produced suicide rates among males being alarmingly higher, with men accounting for nearly 80% of all suicides. Men commonly experience depression, anxiety, stress, PTSD. Please check on your friends, make the phone call, have a cup of coffee, and don't let the hard days win.

Thank you. Ms. Emery.

No updates from me tonight, Mayor.

Okay. Thank you very much. All right. On Friday, June 5th, Police Chief Ed Hall invites residents to join him in community conversation about local public safety and the city's new police departments. Please stop by for two opportunities to connect with us Friday at North Bend Bakery from 9 to 10 a.m. or Volition Brewery from 5 to 6 p.m. Additional meetups are scheduled. If you are unable to attend, please check the city's calendar on our website. Join me for my Meetup with the Mayor series where residents are invited to stop by, chat, and ask city-related questions or any questions at all, for that matter, that are important to you. And just to connect, I will be at a Rett Coffee Bar Tuesday, June 9th from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. 10 a.m., and Volition Brewing from 5 to 6 p.m. Let's see. This is going to be fun. The North Bend Farmer's Market opens this Thursday. Wow. Here we go. Summer. Summer. from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. I think Chief and I will be there to open it up. I think I got word on that, which is exciting. And it's going to be at Sideview Park, as it always has been. The market will be open each Thursday through September 3rd and features a variety of locally grown food and specialty items. The live summer concert series will also be held in tandem with the Farmer's Market from 6 p.m. to 7.30 p.m. at the park. And this, I might add, was the first time I actually had our soon to be, well, a year ago, city administrator, Amber Embry, I walked you through that park and offered the job to you. And I was so grateful that you're here and you took it. Okay. Anyway, the yard waste recycling program will be held Saturday, June 6th from 8 a.m. to noon at Public Works. Those attending are asked to use the Public Works entrance off of North Bend Way. The program is open to select Sundays through October and is available to all who reside in the 98045 zip code area. Council, I want to let you know that July 7th council meeting is going to be canceled. And I hope you have a wonderful holiday. I know. Are you terribly disappointed? I could change my mind. That's the one meeting he... Okay, forget it. Thank you to all our speakers tonight. Do I have a motion to adjourn? I'll move.

Thank you. Second.

Thank you. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed?

Aye.

Good night, everybody. Thank you so much.