LANGLEY CITY COUNCIL: Council takes step to create new administrative position (SWR) [AUDIO]
Kira Erickson reports in the South Whidbey Record from the Langley City Council meeting of Feb. 6, 2023:
The city of Langley is one step closer to codifying a new staff position that would alter the city’s administrative structure.
During a meeting Monday night, the majority of the city council approved an ordinance that calls for the structure of a position that combines the role of city administrator with the duties of the clerk.
The recommendation has been handed down by Langley’s citizen-led Finance and Personnel Commission, which has convened for nearly a year.
They Said It
Councilmember Thomas Gill, however, took issue with the word “shall” in the opening paragraph of the new code, saying that he didn’t think it was within the power of the council or the finance commission to demand that a new position be created.
“This should be an optional position as there have been, and there are, mayors who’ve run this city without the need of any sort of assistance,” he said….
Gill countered that the administrative branch of the city is the sole purview of the mayor, not the legislative body. While he agreed that the council can approve the use of funds to hire someone for the job, he also said the council cannot force the hiring of the position.
He suggested changing the word “shall” to “may” in order to make the code more palatable.
His fellow council members, however, said they supported the ordinance in its current form, and voted 4-1 to move it forward. Gill voted in opposition.
On the Ballot in November 2023
| CITY OF LANGLEY |
| City Council: Two of five council positions are on the ballot. Position 3: Thomas E. Gill The Whidbey News-Times reported on May 5, 2023 that Christopher Carlson, the chairperson of the Langley Finance and Personnel Commission, will run for this seat. On Tue., May 16, Kay Kenneweg filed to run for this seat as well. Position 4: Craig Cyr Councilman Cyr filed to run for re-election on Mon., May 15. Mayor Chaplin filed to run for this seat on Fri., May 19. |
| Mayor: Scott Chaplin. Mayor Chaplin was appointed after the resignation of Tim Callison. This election will be for the remainder of Chaplin’s term, which ends Dec. 31, 2023, and the succeeding four-year full term, which ends Dec. 31, 2027. In April 2023, Chaplin announced that he would not run to retain his seat. Councilman Thomas Gill filed his intention to run for mayor with the Public Disclosure Commission on May 6, 2023. Kennedy Horstman, a member of the city’s Dismantling Systemic Racism Advisory Group, announced her intention to run and filed with the PDC on May 12, 2023. |
