Luisa Loi reports from the Oak Harbor City Council workshop of Tue., Mar. 25, 2025 for the Whidbey News-Times. Read the whole story.
The city of Oak Harbor is looking at potentially changing the way it responds to emergencies.
The last version of the city’s Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan was adopted in 2019 and it’s due to expire at the end of the year, according to information presented by Oak Harbor Fire Chief Travis Anderson at a city council workshop March 25.
…[One] option proposes the creation of a memorandum of understanding in which Oak Harbor commits to taking the lead if the incident is primarily affecting the city, with the county acting as supporting agency, and Island County commits to taking the lead if the incident primarily involves the county, with support from Oak Harbor. This agreement would also identify a policy group composed of city and county representatives who would set the rules for emergencies involving both jurisdictions.
Mayor Pro Tempore Tara Hizon, as well as Councilmembers Christopher Wiegenstein, Bryan Stucky and Eric Marshall, said they preferred [this] option.
Anderson will bring back an updated proposal to be approved by the council and promulgated by the mayor at a later meeting.
They Said It
Wiegenstein said the city and the county haven’t been working well historically, and invited county commissioners to join the conversation.
Marshall said he would be in favor of either reviewing and updating the plan, or adopting the county’s plan with the addition of an Oak Harbor annex.
Stucky asked if the Navy would be involved in any way, to which Anderson said the military can provide support in emergency scenarios, and so can power and gas companies.
On the Ballot in 2025
| CITY OF OAK HARBOR |
| City Council: Four of seven council positions are scheduled to be on the ballot this year. Position 4: Barbara Armes Councilor Armes was appointed after the resignation of Dan Evans. This election will be for the remainder of Evans’ full term, which ends Dec. 31, 2025, and the succeeding four-year full term, which ends Dec. 31, 2029. Position 5: James P. Marrow Councilor Marrow was appointed after the resignation of Shane Hoffmire. This election will be for the remainder of Hoffmire’s full term, which ends Dec. 31, 2025, and the succeeding four-year full term, which ends Dec. 31, 2029. Position 6: Jim Woessner Position 7: Bryan Stucky |
