12 Vying For Rob Johnson's Council Seat: Who Are They?

SEATTLE, WA — Several important dates are coming up for the selection of a temporary replacement for retired Seattle Councilman Rob Johnson, whose last day was on April 5. The Council will hold a public hearing with the 12 candidates on Monday, followed by another public meeting with candidates on April 17.

Council President Bruce Harrell wants a vote to pick Johnson's replacement on April 22. Harrell has said he wants a "caretaker" candidate for the role, not someone who's going to run to keep the seat this year.

These excerpts are from the applications each candidate sent to the City Council:

Brooke Brod - Director of community engagement, Stand For Children (nonprofit)

"For the past ten years, I have worked in the non-profit advocacy world helping people build collective power and then use that power to have their voices heard by elected officials, agencies, and other decision-makers. In my work, I have empowered undocumented immigrants in Tacoma to engage with their schools, facilitated policy discussions in living rooms in Medina, and helped formerly homeless students from Spokane connect with legislators in Olympia."

Darby DuComb - Land use attorney, Schlemlein, Fick & Scruggs, PLLC; former Seattle City Attorney chief of staff

"At work, my career has provided me significant experience with routine and controversial land use
issues, as well as years of management collaborating with colleagues and managing public budgets behind the scenes. I can organize a wide---range of people and activities successfully in a dynamic and fluid municipal environment. I can support the Council’s strategic initiatives and work plans, review and help plan for the next budget, and professionally and successfully engage community members, city staff, elected officials and others on the full range of municipal matters. I will also make an excellent representative for the City of Seattle on the various regional boards that will require the temporary representative’s time and attention."

Kathryn Gardow - Chief operating officer, MetroAG Strategies

"At the municipal level and in private practice, I've worked for three decades in land use, public policy, civil engineering, and zoning. I am grounded in land use, the Growth Management Act (GMA), and the state Environmental Policy Act (SEPA). I understand policy and revenue decisions and know how to ask good, relevant, important questions. I make data and analysis informed decisions that can help move the city forward."

David Goldberg - Ombudsman, WSDOT SR 520 project

"I bring more than two decades of passionate work on urban planning and housing issues and a deep desire to engage as we work to make Seattle ever more resilient, humane, and welcoming. In addition, I am a professional communicator who thrives on collaboration with others to find solutions to tough challenges."

Jordan Goldwarg - Community volunteer/consultant; former Seattle Chapter Director of Kids4Peace International

"While the rapid growth of recent years has brought its share of challenges (such as housing affordability and homelessness, gentrification and displacement, and transportation squeezes), I am always inspired by the efforts of countless residents to help us live up to our highest ideals and dreams. Whether those ideas come from grassroots activists, elected officials, public servants, or workers in the corporate sector, it is clear that we will only solve our problems if everybody commits to working together. We have the resources and passion to build a city that is a model for our nation, and I would be honored to contribute to that effort by serving on the City Council."

Sherae Lascelles - Organizer/strategist SAW (Strippers Are Workers); former manager of Full Tilt Ice Cream store

"Over the past decade, I have witnessed the impacts of the growing pains of the city in my district and fought for those most impacted by these circumstances. The problems my community face include housing insecurity, transportation inequities, harm reduction and implementation, and gentrification and displacement. Many long-term family business-owners and residents have been deracinated, which has removed employment opportunities in the neighborhood and ultimately destabilized our sense of community. By removing the roots of this neighborhood, our community is desperately in need of a community organizer that can overcome seemingly disjointed values and interests and identify the intersectional aspects to fuse our common interests, and motivation to take action, back together."

Jay Lazerwitz - Land-use chair, Roosevelt Neighborhood Association

"Over the past 30 years, I have been engaged in civic roles, from my early involvement within Allied Arts, in support of affordable artist spaces; to my current role as Land Use chair of the Roosevelt Neighborhood Association (RNA) and many activities in between, I have taken the role as a community educator, coalition builder, and affordable housing advocate. I value community input through knowing it is important to stay focused on current needs and next-generation planning, in conjunction with long-term visioning."

Juan Martinez - Community grants strategic advisor/supervisor, Neighborhood Matching Fund

"My diverse professional experiences - whether working as a project manager for the City of Seattle, as staff in a congressional office, co-director of a non-profit organization, housing commission, or a union president - demonstrates my committment-centered approach to serve the community. "

Abel Pacheco - Director of strategic engagement, Washington MESA (Pacheco is running in the 2019 election for Johnson's seat, but has said he'll leave the race if picked for the placeholder seat)

"My knowledge of the public policy process is extensive as I’ve taught introductory political science at North Seattle and Seattle Central Colleges. Additionally, my current position as Director of Strategic Engagement for the University of Washington’s Washington MESA (Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement) program, the state’s largest STEM diversity educational pathway program, has allowed me to refine my skillset in understanding the
intricacies of government. I have led MESA’s legislative efforts through three sessions and have worked to increase opportunities for students of color and young women in STEM. In partnership with the Governor’s Office, the Washington State Board of Community & Technical Colleges, and other public and private partners, I led our team’s effort to expand of our community college program. As a result, funding for six additional sites was secured to expand our program from 12 to 18 centers across Washington State. This expansion allowed us to serve an additional 750 community college students from underrepresented communities (i.e.; women, African-American, American Native, Southeast Asian & Pacific Islander, & Latino) in areas across our state with the greatest need. I’ve also led our strategies to work with Republican and Democratic leadership to secure a budget proviso for Native American youth in the Yakima Valley. The work of my team in impacting the lives of young people has been recognized by the University of Washington as we won the UW’s Team of the Year award in 2017."

Marjorie Press - American Planning Association board member; investor, Terra Plata

"As a board member and long-time leader of the American Planning Association (APA), a 40,000-member organization, I have participated in the development of our strategic plan and budget, policy guides, legislative and policy actions, and equity policies and practices. APA provides planning strategies, resources, and education for planners and communities facing challenges at the local, regional, and nation level. These challenges are quite like those facing Seattle as a result of exponential growth: an affordable housing crisis, aging infrastructure, traffic congestion, access to all the components of livability, and social equity and inclusion."

Maritza Rivera - Senior operations manager, Seattle Office of the Mayor

"The priority of the interim representative must be to ensure Seattle's land use policies help families thrive in robust, ever-growing neighborhoods. Growing up in an apartment in the inner city to now raising children who attend Seattle Public Schools, I have a unique understanding of the myriad land use issues the City Council faces and look forward to applying my skill set to help Seattle become more affordable for everyone."

Luke Wigren - Substitute teacher, Renton School District; swim instructor/coach at Olympic Athletic Club and Renton High School

"I believe that for my friends and I, and so many others struggling to maintain a place here, the City of Seattle can do better and I believe, for the health of the city, it must do better. This is why I am submitting an application for the interim City Council seat for District 4. With the critical demand for affordable housing citywide, District 4 needs not just a caretaker, but a representative who can forward the dialogue around the city's joint crises of rising rents, houselessness, and the alarming trend of racial and economic re-segregation."