The Enumclaw City Council has a new member.
With Mayor Anthony Wright now at the helm, his council seat became vacant this year, meaning elected officials needed to appoint someone to fill the position.
Eight people applied for the honor, and seven were interviewed during the Jan. 26 meeting — after a short period of deliberation, the council unanimously appointed Amber Stanley.
“I’m really grateful for the opportunity to serve Enumclaw. I appreciate the confidence from the mayor and the rest of the council,” she said in an interview after her appointment. “… I look forward to listening and learning collaboratively with council members, city officials, the mayor, and the community to support responsible growth and a strong quality of life for everybody.”
Each candidate was interviewed individually and were asked a series of questions by the council, some identical and others posed by council members. The whole meeting can be viewed on the city’s website, but below is an abbreviated version of Stanley’s presentation.
INTRODUCTION
Stanley isn’t a stranger to public service, having worked her way up from working with Bonney Lake and Tacoma to becoming a Washington State Department of Transportation principal planner — specifically, she leads a community outreach team to address mobility, safety, and environmental justice with the public for large-scale projects.
“A lot of my work is centered on doing community engagement with communities are impacted by our projects… making sure we’re really transparent and meaningful,” she told the council.
Although not mentioned, she is also on the Board of Directors for the Northwest Trek Foundation.
WHAT WILL BE CHALLENGING AS A COUNCIL MEMBER?
Staley said she expects that the most difficult part of being an elected official is weighing public comment and collaborating with her peers on the council with different opinions.
“That’s been true for my role in pretty much all of government, is that you have to make a choice… [and] it’s not always possible to please every single person,” she said. “But looking at the greater good, putting aside any of my personal biases or agendas, and choosing what’s best for the majority — I think it’s always hard, because you know some people you’re going to let down, and others, you’re going to give them what you hoped for.”
WHAT IS SOMETHING YOU WANT TO MAKE BETTER?
Stanley said she wants to focus on boosting downtown businesses and focus on meaningful growth “while maintaining what makes Enumclaw, Enumclaw.”
HOW TO YOU WEIGH SHORT-TERM INCONVENIENCE AGAINST LONG-TERM BENEFITS?
Stanley said this comes up a lot in her line of work, and that it all comes down to being transparent and actively engaging with affected communities.
“I think there’s always value in being transparent,” she continued. “So explaining we recognize this is causing a short-term burden, but in the long-term these are the outcomes you can get, and here’s how we can work with you… seeing what resources might be available to make the short-term burdens less of a burden.”
HOW WILL YOU CONTRIBUTE TO THE COUNCIL?
Stanley said her work with government has made her a good listener.
“I love to hear other people’s opinions because I think that is how we can solve problems. WE’ve all got different experiences, different ways of thinking that can be really valuable,” she continued. “… I don’t think of myself as someone who manages, but leads, so working as a team.”
IF YOU HAD AN “EASY BUTTON” HOW WOULD YOU CHANGE ENUMCLAW?
Stanley said she’d focus on downtown design standards in order to boost tourism and business.
“Perhaps implementing policies… to provide an incentive to bring people down so they spend time there, so they’re engaging in either entertainment-type activities or restaurants or things like that, instead of businesses that are oftentimes closed during the weekends or offer only a service, like a financial service… that aren’t bringing people in,” she added.
HOW WOULD YOU SEEK OUT LESS-REPRESENTED PERSPECTIVES?
Stanley stayed on theme and said Enumclaw needs to actively engage with its residents when it comes to collecting opinions, doing research on affected communities, and finding flexible ways to allow those communities to access their city government.
She mentioned targeting messages to various communities, like contacting schools for the youth or the senior center for older residents; she also said the city should provide translated messages and notices for non-English speaking residents.
WHAT DOES GOVERNMENT SUPPORTING SMALL BUSINESS MEAN TO YOU?
From her work in Tacoma, Stanley said there are many ways a government can support local businesses — grants being only one example.
“I think there are a lot of strengths that can come from that kind of relationship, and I think we see that in a lot of our neighboring communities,” she said.
WHAT SHOULD ENUMCLAW DO NOW TO AVOID FUTURE CHALLENGES?
Stanley said the city needs to focus on growth management, and again, specifically design standards.
“… Making sure that the buildings that are having to be construction to be in coordination with what’s required [by the Growth Management Act] do fit with the overall esthetic and charm that… make a lot of us love the city for what it is, so it doesn’t lose its history,” she added.
HOW WILL YOU RECONCILE YOUR EMPLOYMENT WITH BEING AN ELECTED OFFICIAL?
This was a question from Council member Chance La Fleur.
“Do you see any issue… since your current employer is the organization that some of us love to hate at times?” he asked. “How do you you feel on reconciling that to a position here on council?”
Stanley said she’s in the same boat as the council, which La Fleur said has to deal with unfunded state mandates and “solutions to problems that don’t exist yet.”
“We’re in the same boat, getting our direction oftentimes from the federal government or legislation,” she said. “… It comes down to doing the best we can to accommodate the requirements that we have to follow, and then asking questions where we can to see if any flexibility exists.”
