Two SeaTac council members suggested Oct. 25 that the city should require nonprofit groups that receive money directly from the city to remain neutral in city elections.

The proposal from Deputy Mayor Gene Fisher and Councilman Rick Forschler stems from emails between Councilwoman Mia Gregerson and Human Services director Colleen Brandt-Schulter that were recently made public.

The emails indicate that Brandt-Schulter gave Gregerson contact information for nonprofits that receive human services funding. The information was reportedly used in a campaign against the elected mayor proposition in 2009. An anti-proposition meeting was held in 2009 at the Lutheran Services building along S. 188th Street.

The elected mayor proposition is back on the Nov. 4 ballot for a fourth time. The proposition failed by only 9 votes in 2009.

At the Oct. 25 council meeting, Human Services Advisory Board member Cheryl Forbes complained that a campaign flyer sent by a political action committee (PAC) on behalf of council candidates Michael Kovacs and Erin Sitterley claims that the city budgets only $2,500 for senior services.

Forbes said the statement is misleading because in addition to funding for the North SeaTac senior center, the city budgets money for senior transportation, meals on wheels and local food banks.

“That information is in error,” Forbes declared. “The city does support seniors.”

D. Omaha Sternberg, chairwoman of the 33rd District Democrats, has filed two Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) complaints against Kovacs and Sitterley as well as Councilwoman Pam Fernald.

Sternberg maintains the mailer contains false claims regarding SeaTac’s human services budget.

The political mailing was sent out by “Citizens to Save SeaTac,” which is not registered to the PDC, according to Steinberg.

According to a PDC spokeman, the PAC is registered.

Sternberg also noted the mailing address for the public action committee is Fernald’s mailing address.

The mailing states that no political candidate approved the flyer.

Both Kovacs and Sitterley said they were not involved in sending out the flyer.

Earl Gipson, from the SeaTac Citizens for Elected Mayor, previously filed a PDC complaint against Gregerson and Brandt-Schulter based on the emails.

Councilman Forschler, in his comments at the end of the Oct. 25 council meeting, addressed concerns that council members have not been effective in rooting out problems in city government.

Forschler advocated hiring an ombudsman to deal with some of the issues.

Forschler said individual council members are limited in how much staff time they can use for their information requests.

He also said he disagrees with City Manager Todd Cutts over whether lawmakers should be involved in staff issues.

But Forschler also defended Cutts, noting that Cutts inherited problems left over from the previous manager.

Previous City Manager Craig Ward left the city’s employ after being suspended by the council.

Forschler added that Cutts has operated under the cloud of not knowing whether SeaTac would switch to an elected mayor form of government.

If the proposition passes on Nov. 4, an elected mayor will become the chief executive of city government, replacing Cutts. The new mayor could hire Cutts or someone else to serve as a city administrator under the mayor.

Mayor Terry Anderson cautioned both sides in the election to campaign in a credible way that doesn’t cause people outside SeaTac to look down on the city.
“Any time you degrade the community, remember you are part of it,” Anderson declared.

The opposing sides also clashed in a discussion over forming a citizen’s advisory Community Building Committee.

City Manager Cutts said Gregerson had suggested the committee as a way to build trust in the community and act as a citizen’s sounding board for the council.

The committee would have seven members from a diverse cross-section of the city and be appointed by the mayor.

Cutts said an assistant city manager has been budgeted for next year who could act as a staff liaison to the committee. If only administrative support is needed, then current staff, according to Cutts, could absorb the work.

Councilwoman Fernald suggested residents could form their own committee without funding from the city. She noted she helped found the Neighbors Without Borders Action Committee that works on community problems in SeaTac and Tukwila.

Involving current human services groups would be another option, according to Fernald.

Gregerson argued that other cities have similar committees. She noted that SeaTac has one of the most diverse communities in the state.

Deputy Mayor Fisher moved that consideration of the committee be postponed until January after the November election and after the new council is sworn in.

Fisher’s motion passed 4-3. Mayor Anderson, Fisher, Forschler and Fernald voted in favor. Gregerson as well as Councilmen Tony Anderson and Ralph Shape voted against.

In a signal that a new council majority may have already been formed before the election, Mayor Anderson voted with Fisher, Forschler and Fernald. She previously had voted with the others in most close votes.

Mayor Anderson has also changed her position on the elected mayor proposition, coming out in favor of it.
In 2009, she opposed it.