It’s about the policy, not the person

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When I ran for City Council, I ran for policies, not against a person. I could have run against any of the three incumbents and had similar results. Because the public is ready for change. Last Thursday’s reappointment was also not about the person, it was about policy. The current majority did not want change and

Campaigning, History, Transparency

Competitive City Council Races Des Moines 1995-2024

Last Updated:December 28th, 2023 @ 02:03PM

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*Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends. Update: 03/12/2022: At the Thursday March 10, 2022 I said I could count on the fingers of one hand the number of competitive elections in Des Moines over the past ten years. I was wrong. Make that twenty. And three of those winners resigned. Some

Campaigning

Smells like… Victory?

Video

I believe I can now be properly referred to as Council Member-Elect, Position #2 for Des Moines, Wa. Sorry for the delayed announcement. I know it’s been a pain waiting. But the race was so close that it did not seem prudent to declare ‘victory’ until we were sure of the result. You may now

A statement from Advertiser JC Harris for Des Moines City Council

October 22, 2019October 7, 2023

2023 Campaigning, External Articles

Waterland Blog

My name is JC Harris and I’m running for City Council because Des Moines needs change. Now. I say ‘now’ because our current council is moving far too slowly. They exaggerate the health of our city, touting our turn-around from near-receivership in 2016 as being an indicator of future success. But that is a very

2019 Campaigning, Campaigning

Let’s Be Careful Out There

I have something to say about Social Media and politics in Des Moines. 😀 This town has no newspaper or other truly objective coverage of city hall. During my campaign I’ve doorbelled over 5,000 homes and actually talked with thousands of DM residents. And the sheer tonnage of misinformation, rumour, inuendo and just plain blather

Campaigning, Neighborhoods

Dear Fireworks Enthusiast…

A drunken neighbour burned my back fence one year by lighting off a rocket horizontally. Apparently, this was his way of celebrating a Seahawks Playoff Game. Fortunately, I came home from work early that night and was able to put out the fire before it spread to my house. I think it’s fair to say

Campaigning

City Council considers future of Wasson property at Des Moines Marina

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City Council considers future of Wasson property at Des Moines Marina By Jack Mayne When longtime Des Moines Councilmember Donald Wasson died a year ago he left his waterfront property located at the entrance to Beach Park to the city and now City Council and staff are working to figure out whether to continue it

Campaigning, History, Transparency

Competitive City Council Races (Part II)

Last Updated:December 28th, 2023 @ 02:20PM

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As I wrote in Part I, we’ve had forty two City Council races or vacancies in the past twenty years, only seventeen competitive races and only thirty eight (38) candidates that may be called ‘competive’. And since many of them obtained office running unopposed or via appointment, the number of candidates who have been tested

Ongoing Stuff

Get vaccinated! Yeah I know you’d like to forget about it, but there are new variants and the infection rate is climbing. Fortunately, there is an effective booster, which is recommended for people 65 and older and those who are immuno-compromised. It is available now, effective, free and you can get your appointment today here and here , including walk-Ins at SAFEWAY, Walgreen’s, Rite-Aid, SeaMar and Healthpoint.

Sign up for the King County Code Red Alert program. When you sign up for Code Red you’ll be notified immediately when there is a possible health threat. After the recent ‘Boil Water Notice’ I received just a few grouses that ‘it did not work’. I’m 99% certain that the problem is that you have to actually sign up for an account. Do It! There is this ‘guest’ option which is stupid and should not even be an option. Everyone who had an account in their system was notified. If you’re like me and signed up ten years ago (after the last notification), go to the site immediately and verify your account. Ten years is a long time for any computer system.
Check out the 223rd Green Street Project web site and take the 223rd Green Street Survey before December 11th!
Check out the Des Moines Marina Steps web site and take the Marina Steps Survey.
If you’re interested in any of our Kids or Senior activities, you can sign up here.
Learn more about our Comprehensive Plan and take the Housing Action Plan Survey.
Take the City Communication and Engagement Survey
Give blood! Schedule an appointment today. There is a CODE RED emergency shortage.
Masonic Home! There is a petition for those who are interested in historic preservation of the property. If you have questions, don’t contact me. Contact Barbara McMichael and Lloyd Lytle Jr
Community Service Officer Tonya Seaberry wants to hear from neighborhood groups interested in establishing block watch programs: Tseaberry@desmoineswa.gov or 206-878-3301.
City Of Des Moines Minor Home Repair Program: Low to moderate income households can get grants to do all sorts of necessary repairs. Email Tina Hickey (206) 870-6535.
Every home should have a Carbon Monoxide Detector–especially during the colder months! Full stop. If you need one but money is tight, South King County Fire And Rescue will get you one. Just call their Community Affairs Office at 253-946-7347.
And last, but not least: If your home has Port Package (sound insulation system) that is having issues, please go to SeatacNoise.Info

How to attend meetings and provide Public Comment

City Council Meetings are scheduled for Thursdays at 6:00PM at City Hall 21630 11th Avenue S., Suite #C Des Moines WA 98198. They can also be viewed live on Comcast Channel 21/321 or on the City’s YouTube channel. Committee Meetings are either at 4:00PM or 5:00PM, also on Thursdays.

You do not have to sign in to attend a meeting!
The sign-in sheet is only for people wishing to make a Public Comment.

There are three ways to provide Public Comment:

In person: Show up a few minutes before the meeting and sign the sheet. Public Comment is usually conducted at the beginning of the meeting.
By e-mail: All e-mails sent to citycouncil@desmoineswa.gov are considered public comment. They are instantly available to all members of the City Council and the City Clerk who includes them into the record of public comments at the next meeting.
By US Mail: Attn: City Clerk Office, 21630 11th Avenue S., Des Moines WA 98198 no later than 4:00 p.m. day of the meeting. Please provide us with your first and last name and the city in which you live.

All letters or e-mails requesting a specific action are referred by the City Clerk to the appropriate City department.

If you would like a follow up from me, personally please indicate that or call me (206) 878-0578.

The Clerk does not read e-mails to the Council in full; only the subject line. However, we do see them as soon as you send them. Your comments are added to the Agenda Packet available on the City web site following each meeting.

How to view public comments, correspondence and meeting materials

The City publishes a meeting agenda on the Friday (six days) before city council meetings. On the day after the meeting (Friday) the City updates that same file with all the slide presentations, the correspondence, and a list of the people who signed up to give public comment at the meeting. Currently, there is no button on the web site that says Show me the meeting comments for xx/xx/xxxx. You just have to know that this is the procedure. Below is a recipe to get you there.

Go to www.desmoineswa.gov
Once there, hover over Your Government and then click Council Meeting Center. (Or, you can skip Step #1 and just click on Council Meeting Center.)
Select the meeting date you’re interested in from the Schedule Of Meetings calendar.
Click on Regular Meeting for the meeting date you want. In this case, December 1, 2022.
Click the Agenda Packet link under “Print Verson”.
You can also select a meeting using the list near the top. You can also use the left and right arrows to select older meetings.
Once the agenda packet loads, there are two links we’re interested in:
- Correspondence to view all e-mails received by the City Council since the last meeting.
- Comments From The Public to view a list of the people who spoke in-person at the meeting.