by Ralph Nichols

Finally, it’s official – Burien will annex unincorporated southern North Highline on April 1. City Council members voted 6-1 at their Jan. 11th meeting to establish the effective date.

Their action came after a delay of almost two months in setting an effective date, which occurred when the city learned in late November of an eleventh-hour maneuver by former King County Executive Kurt Triplett to sell Puget Sound Park in the unincorporated annexation area to the King County Library System.

New county Executive Dow Constantine announced on Jan. 6 that King County will not sell the five-acre park at 1st Ave. S. and SW 126th St. and, instead, will cede it to Burien as part of annexation.

Councilwoman Lucy Krakowiak cast the lone no vote against setting a formal annexation date. Krakowiak has continued to oppose annexation even after residents of southern North Highline voted by a large margin on Aug. 18 to become part of Burien.

City Manager Mike Martin told council members before the vote, “This is the long-awaited resolution … I’m very pleased to bring it to you.”

He said setting an effective date “was not a matter of pulling it out of thin air.” Rather, annexation on April 1 “allows the maximum amount of revenue to be provided to the City from King County while allowing time for technical work needed to make the annexation effective.”

That work includes conducting a population census of the annexation area, contacting businesses there, and working out transition details with the state Department of Transportation.

During public comment, Burien resident Ed Dacy urged council members to use their influence to discourage any move by the King County Library System to close the White Center and Boulevard Park libraries – both of which are in the annexation area – and consolidate them in a new facility.

The library system earlier hoped to acquire Puget Sound Park as a location for a consolidated library – although the library board, on which Krakowiak also serves as a member, has not voted to close the two community libraries that soon will be within the City of Burien.

A 2004 bond issue passed by King County voters included funding for replacement or remodeling of both the White Center and Boulevard Park libraries. That money remains untouched in the library system’s capital budget.

The future of these library sites will be discussed by members of the King County Library System’s Planning Committee at 12 noon this Thursday, Jan. 14, in the second floor meeting room of the Burien Library. The committee will take comments from the public during the meeting.

Four Burien-area politicians have thrown their hats into the ring to replace King County Councilmember Dow Constantine’s vacant seat, including: Burien’s first Mayor Arun Jhaveri; current City Councilmember Lucy Krakowiak; Kathleen Quong-Vermeire, Commissioner, Highline Water District and former Mayor of Normandy Park, and Shawn McEvoy, current Mayor of Normandy Park.

Constantine was sworn in as King County Executive on Tuesday, Nov. 24th, which means there is now a vacancy in Council District 8. The King County Council received a total of 11 applications from individuals who are seeking to replace his vacant seat on the County Council.

The replacement appointee will serve in office until certification of the next general election in Nov. 2010.

Of the four local candidates, two (Jhaveri and Quong-Vermeire) have stated that they would not seek re-election, while the remaining two (Krakowiak and McEvoy) have stated that they would.

The finalists will be determined by a 12-person panel that includes Burien Mayor Joan McGilton and Normandy Park Councilmember Doug Osterman, who were appointed on Nov. 16th.

So with any luck and perhaps a touch of local favoritism, we just might see one of our neighbors on the King County Council, at least for about a year.

The selection process for making the appointment will begin Monday, Dec. 3rd, when the 12-member advisory committee created by the Council will conduct interviews with the 11 who submitted their applications by the Nov. 23rd deadline, listed below in alphabetical order:

• Jan Drago—A member of the Seattle City Council who is leaving the Council this year
• Helen Howell—Former Director of the state Department of Financial Institutions, served as Deputy Chief of Staff under Governor Locke
• Zack Hudgins—State Representative from the 11th District and Tukwila resident
• Jake Jacobovitch—Engineer in the Road Services Division of the King County Department of Transportation
• Arun Jhaveri—Former Regional Technology Manager with the Federal Energy Management Program and former Mayor of Burien
• Lucy Krakowiak—Burien City Council Member and a member of the King County Library Board of Trustees
• Joe McDermott—State Senator from the 34th District
• Shawn McEvoy—Mayor of Normandy Park
• Sharon Nelson—State Representative from the 34th District,
• Vlad Oustimovitch—A partner at VoKa Incorporated, and a former Development Program Manager for the Seattle Housing Authority
• Kathleen Quong-Vermeire–Commissioner, Highline Water District, former Mayor of Normandy Park

The advisory committee will interview all of the applicants and send to the County Council for its consideration three to six candidates who meet the qualifications.

The committee will then use the following criteria to evaluate candidates, including:

• Knowledge of the functions of King County government;
• Knowledge of the issues and challenges facing King County government;
• Knowledge of the issues affecting the constituents of Council District 8;
• A demonstrated ability to develop a responsible budget;
• A demonstrated ability to respond to public concerns; and
• Demonstrated leadership skills.

Council Chair Bob Ferguson and Councilmember Reagan Dunn, chair of the Committee of the Whole, said the Council is ready to act quickly on filling the vacancy

“The Council is acting quickly to ensure representation for the nearly 200,000 residents of District 8,” said Ferguson. “Timely appointment will also allow the new councilmember to transition into the position, hire staff and hit the ground running in the new year.

“The process is in place to quickly review the applications we’ve received,” said Dunn. “With input from the advisory committee, I expect the Council to make the appointment before the end of the year.”

The panel’s recommendations will include at least one candidate who intends to run for election as Councilmember in 2010, and one who does not. Drago, Howell, Jhaveri, Nelson and Quong-Vermeire have stated they will not run for election. Jacobovitch, Krakowiak, McDermott, McEvoy and Oustimovitch said they would run for the position. Hudgins has not made a final decision.

The King County Council has final authority for making the appointment. The interview of the finalists will be done in the Council’s Committee of the Whole. Dunn said the Committee will interview the finalists on Monday, Dec. 7th.

The Council is expected to take action by Monday, Dec. 14th, the last Council meeting of 2009.