Kenmore City Council re-elects Baker as mayor

In a 5-1 vote with one abstention, Kenmore City Council re-elected Mayor David Baker to serve a second term in office.

Also at its first meeting of the new year Jan. 11, council selected Councilman Milton Curtis as deputy mayor.

Finally, Baker swore in three councilmembers elected to office in November, including two incumbents and one newcomer of a sort.

The incumbents returning to serve four more years are councilmembers Laurie Sperry and Allan Van Ness. Former Councilman Bob Hensel also returned to office, replacing the departed Randy Eastwood.

Hensel was the only candidate to file to replace Eastwood, who chose not to seek another term. Hensel previously served on council 2004-2007 when he lost a bid for re-election.

Baker said he was glad to serve as mayor, but stated he still is just one local legislator among seven.

“I don’t hold any special powers any more than any other councilmember,” Baker said.

Kenmore uses a city-manager form of government. The general public elects the councilmembers, who then select a mayor with that person essentially acting as council president, presiding over legislative meetings. The city manager is responsible for Kenmore’s day-to-day, nuts-and-bolts operations.

Along with Baker, Van Ness also was in the running for the mayor’s spot, nominated by Councilman John Hendrickson. Van Ness said he had been approached by Hendrickson prior to the meeting about challenging Baker, but Van Ness said he declined to do so.

Van Ness added that just prior to the Jan. 11 council session, he was again approached about trying for mayor, not only by Hendrickson, but by several members of the public. Van Ness stated he decided to take a wait-and-see approach.

“It became obvious to me that the rest of council wanted David back and I kind of wanted David back, too,” said Van Ness, who eventually earned Hendrickson’s vote but abstained from the mayoral vote himself.

Van Ness went out of his way to praise Baker’s representation of Kenmore on various regional boards and committees. He further noted Baker was chosen in November to serve on the 2010 board of directors for the National League of Cities. Van Ness expressed a belief that appointment will create dividends for the city.

Baker said council will set its priorities for the coming year at a weekend retreat to be held this month. Still, a few issues on his mind include adding park space and outdoor recreation activities. He also expects some update on the stalled Kenmore Village project, which was supposed to put a new mixed-use development at the site of the current Kenmore Village shopping plaza. Baker added he expects that update to arrive soon.

On a different topic, Baker stated he wants local officials to keep a close eye on the city’s budget.

“I think we’re going to work very hard to live within our means,” Baker said.

For his part, regarding what the rest of council might be thinking about, Van Ness said he expects legislators to continue the hunt for dollars to fund the last portion of improvements on State Route 522. Like Baker, he mentioned the Kenmore Village project, but also said he’d like to see some movement regarding delayed development along Lake Washington, as well.

“There aren’t any major crises in the city right now,” Van Ness contended.

Council plans a town-hall-style meeting for 6:30 p.m. Jan. 25 at the Northshore Utility District, 6830 N.E. 185th St. Residents are invited to speak on virtually any topic affecting the city.

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