Sammamish City Council Race: John Robinson Vs. Pam Stuart

ENUMCLAW, WA - In late September, Patch sent each local candidate a questionnaire to help voters decide which candidate they want to elect. We did not edit the answers and allowed candidates to write as much or as little as they wanted. Here are the answers from John Robinson and Pam Stuart, who are competing for the open position 7 seat on the Sammamish City Council.

John Robinson

Why did you decide to run for this seat? For incumbent candidates, what made you decide to run for reelection?

My wife and I have been blessed to raise our family in Sammamish. As long-term residents of nearly 30 years, we have witnessed the dynamic growth of our community as it transitions to a more urban setting and we are concerned that we are losing our city character and our quality of life. I retired last year from a career in the healthcare industry and I am now devoted to applying my seasoned business leadership experience for a more accountable and transparent government. I believe it is my obligation to apply the learned management principles and skills of my business experiences to find the proper solutions for balanced growth management, creative solutions to our traffic issues and protection of our environment, all the while maintaining fiscally accountable policies on City Council.

My goal is to bring to City Council my real world organizational management view of how to resolve the issues and challenges facing Sammamish and our Citizens. Our local government requires that the council be responsible to its citizens and hold the city manager, staff and fiscal policies accountable. Our local government requires that it be good stewards of our tax dollars, efficient in operation, lean when necessary and always transparent. I will be a non-partisan, independent voice within City Council that listens to the views of our Citizens and works for them to resolve our issues and to enhance our quality of life.

If you could snap your fingers and have it done, what’s one thing you would fix or change about your city?

My magical powers are bit rusty, but first I will give you a view of our city from my eyes. When I was in business I travelled extensively throughout the U.S. and upon returning home I always cherished the airliner approach to SEA-TAC from the east, as we would fly over Sammamish from about 10,000 feet. My view from a window framed my city set among the lush, green carpet of trees with our illuminant lake to the West – few, if any, cities are as uniquely blessed with our beauty, community and natural environment. So, my magical powers would provide a city where its residents move about easily on a multi-modal road network accommodating autos, pedestrians, cyclists and transit adjusting intelligently to the demands of our citizens. I see a city where the major employers in our region (MSFT, AMZN, COST and others) step up to tap the genius of their employees, partnering with the City to incentivize ride sharing and alternate means of commuting for a strong employee work-life balance. I see a city that embraces its environment and protects it with a logical and sensitive planning of its communities to include solar energy generation and electric car charging stations – always maintaining our City character and aesthetics. I see a city that honors its natural environment by completing an emerald necklace of forest preserves and trails surrounding the city and connecting its citizens. I see a City that is all-inclusive of its diverse population, age and cultures that enhance our community to be a stronger and better place to live. I see a city framed by the airliner window thriving in its growth from generation to generation.

What’s the most prominent issue facing your city right now and what can you do about it?

Moving people about, and to and from, our City is the most prominent issue facing Sammamish. We must collaborate with the county, state and cities to the north and south of us to create an interconnected, multi-modal road network that serves all of our populations. The problem is that we can’t build our way out of our traffic issues because it would be geographically impractical and cost prohibitive. And, you can’t isolate traffic by itself since the root cause of our road network issues is how accelerated growth has descended upon our City. We need a strong City Council that will execute development policy that aligns with our city character and our quality of life; and, this can only happen when we listen to our Citizens by developing a long term comprehensive plan our Citizens desire.

Assuming the city you live in is your favorite in the state, what’s your second favorite city in Washington state and why?

I do live in my favorite city in the state, as I have known it since we moved here nearly thirty years ago. The area has provided a wonderful place to raise our family and educate our daughters – it has been generation changing for the better. A second choice would be North Bend as it is set in the foothills of the Cascades offering a rural setting in close proximity to the mountains and its hiking trails.

Do you think the city budget is in decent shape? Why or why not?

Currently, the Sammamish operating budget is in good shape as it has no debt and has benefitted from the dynamic growth of our city. Unfortunately, the majority of revenue is tied to real estate taxes and developer impact fees; and, when a downturn occurs the City must be able to adjust without raising taxes or borrowing money. My business experience directs me to be fiscally accountable and to offer the City my management skills. First, the City must be completely transparent in its finances allowing its Citizens to understand the basics of our financial operations. Our City has no debt and I will work to insure that we maintain this fiscal policy. Lastly, government typically spends to its revenues, so I want to insure that Sammamish remains lean in its operation and insures that staff is optimally placed to support our services and respond to our Citizens.

If you could pick one thing for the city to stop spending money on, what would it be?

Our city provides services to our citizens, so spending money is a result of meeting the expectations of our citizens for infrastructure and community services. The City has a policy and practice that growth pays for growth, so I would concentrate on how are money is spent on roads and whether we are getting the best use of our taxpayer dollars. The City bidding process for road and infrastructure projects requires transparency and review of whether the City is providing its Citizens the maximum productivity and efficiency for their tax dollars.

If you could increase spending on one thing, what would it be?

We need to attract business to Sammamish in the form of services for our Citizens and anchor high tech businesses for employment. The areas I propose where the City can assist in business growth are to keep our business taxes low (no B&O tax), support growth of home and small businesses that rely on the Internet by taking a lead on building a reliable and fast Internet service partnership for Sammamish. Additionally, we are a center of highly educated individuals with a wealth of high tech knowledge. I propose that the City work with the surrounding high tech industry and take a lead to attract a technology campus to our Town Center. A growth in business means more sales’ tax revenue for the City and less dependence upon real estate and impact fees to balance our operating budget.

King County is planning to open a safe-injection site somewhere in the county. Do you think providing a safe-injection site will help reduce overdose deaths? Do you support one in your city? Why or why not?

I believe that “compassion” for the addicted will provide more help to reduce overdose deaths. Everett is a city with a high incidence of illegal drug use and the police in this city do not arrest the users but attempt to persuade them to seek medical and counseling help. This policing policy is a significant departure from arresting a user and thereby continuing their addictive behavior because they don’t receive medical nor counseling assistance. Fortunately, Sammamish has avoided a significant plague of illegal drug behavior so the need has not been as urgent as other cities, but we must remain alert to our Citizen’s health. An injection site is not appropriate for Sammamish because we lack the public health facilities to accommodate and supervise users, a undeveloped transit system making user access difficult and a relatively low incidence of illegal drug addiction.

In your free time, what’s your favorite thing to do locally?

We are abundantly provided with many opportunities to explore our environment with hiking throughout our forests and mountains. Within a ten-minute ride from my home I can access a trail system deep within a preserved forest and hike a network of trails for hours. A hike in the forest is good for one’s soul and physical well-being.

When you go to a coffee shop, what drink do you usually get?

A short cup with room for cream – usually a medium roast.

Pam Stuart

Why did you decide to run for this seat? For incumbent candidates, what made you decide to run for reelection?

I’m running for Sammamish City Council because I believe that Sammamish is a special place; however, the growth and development in our region have many worried that what we love most about Sammamish – our great schools, incredible green spaces, and unique Northwest charm – may be at risk. I’m running to protect our environment, manage growth in a sustainable way, reduce traffic through and from town, manage our finances efficiently and invest in the areas that really matter to us. I want to make sure that Sammamish continues to be a city that our kids can be proud to call home.

If you could snap your fingers and have it done, what’s one thing you would fix or change about your city?

I would snap in a road system with multiple north-south routes in and out of the city as well as several east-way connectors.

What’s the most prominent issue facing your city right now and what can you do about it?

Rapid growth and all of the ill effects that come with it. I can propose plans to build out needed infrastructure and pace the growth to only what the total infrastructure can handle. This means that we look at not just roads and transit (traffic) but storm water management, health and human services, and coordinating with the school districts to ensure there is room at the local schools for new families.

Assuming the city you live in is your favorite in the state, what’s your second favorite city in Washington state and why?

I love the holiday season, so Leavenworth…

Do you think the city budget is in decent shape? Why or why not?

I believe our current budget is solid. We essentially have no debt and our revenues are strong. However, given our rapid growth and the issues that brings, we have a significant list of infrastructure projects which will put a strain on our budgets in the next few years. We need to understand the list of needed infrastructure items, obtain estimates, and prioritize with these with the community.

If you could pick one thing for the city to stop spending money on, what would it be?

I don’t think have an entire category of spending that is unnecessary. I would like to see us spend less on fuel, electricity, and heating and cooling through the use of more electric vehicles and renewable energy.

If you could increase spending on one thing, what would it be?

Given how many residents are concerned with the traffic and the loss of trees due with recent large developments, I would increase spending on roads and transit and replanting trees.

King County is planning to open a safe-injection site somewhere in the county. Do you think providing a safe-injection site will help reduce overdose deaths? Do you support one in your city? Why or why not?

Studies show that overdose deaths are reduced in areas where rampant drug use regularly occurs and if the proper oversight and services are available. I do not support a safe injection site in Sammamish as our drug issues have not yet manifested in overdose deaths. Our resources would be much better spent on community policing, drug education and outreach, and health and human services supporting families dealing with drug addiction.

In your free time, what’s your favorite thing to do locally?

Spend time with my family, biking, going to parks, enjoying the resources at the YMCA, or dinner and movie, just to name a few things.

When you go to a coffee shop, what drink do you usually get?

Are you buying? Chia latte (non-fat).

Image via Patch.com