Candidate Profile: Jeni Woock For Gig Harbor City Council

GIG HARBOR, WA — For the Aug. 3 Primary Election, Pierce County's 566,000 registered voters will be asked to weigh in on dozens of high-profile elections, including mayoral races in Tacoma, Eatonville, Buckley, and Bonney Lake. Nearly a dozen cities from Puyallup to Lakewood are holding city council elections, and six school districts will also have candidates on the ballot.

To help readers make informed choices, Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as election day draws near.

Jeni Woock is running for Gig Harbor City Council Position 1.

Age (as of Election Day)

71

Position Sought

Gig Harbor City Council Position 1

Party Affiliation

Non partisan

Family

Del Woock, husband

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

Currently I sit on the city council. I am running for re-election

Education

BA Southern Illinois University

Occupation

Retired 30 years as a small business owner.

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

Gig Harbor City Council position #1, 2018 - present

Campaign website

electjeniwoock.com

Why are you seeking elective office?

Citizens have asked me to run for re-election. I'm still the slow growth candidate and will vote to put our citizens and a livable Gig Harbor first. I believe in preparing for a Gig Harbor that is healthy, safe and functions into the future for everyone.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Slowing growth. I will vote to put infrastructure in place before development. I will continue to vote for lower density development and conserving more land. I will continue to put neighborhoods and citizens first.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

Of the three of us running for position #1, I am the only one with a successful, proven history of keeping my promises to our citizens: In the last 4 years high-density developments are reduced, developers are now paying their fair share of impact fees, a new park and heron homeland is preserved, clear cutting trees is great reduced, pedestrian cross lights and sidewalks have been added, special deals between developers and the city are gone and I have promoted transparency with monthly open houses. I created accountability policies with a council vote tracker page and a quarterly budget item report.

How do you think local officials performed in responding to the coronavirus? What if anything would you have done differently?

I think the city acted responsibly and closed down pretty quickly. I was happy to vote for grants for our small businesses and to forgive $588,000.00 of utility bills for our citizens during COVID. It was a good thing to relax some of our codes that allowed businesses to operate outside to try and help with their income.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

Our citizens in Gig Harbor North need a new grocery store, I will work for that and the retail village of small shops. Our local small fishing village atmosphere and preserving that heritage is a responsibility I take seriously. Speeding is a big issue in our community and we need to investigate traffic calming strategies and pedestrian safety plans. Gig Harbor citizens deserve to have a council that realizes climate change is real and there are things we can do in our small city to be more sustainable.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I made promises and kept them. With 7 members on the council it is vital to work as a team in getting things done for our citizens.
I have a successful, proven history of keeping my promises: In the last 4 years high-density developments are reduced, developers are now paying their fair share of impact fees, a new park and heron homeland is preserved, clear cutting trees is great reduced, pedestrian cross lights and sidewalks have been added, special deals between developers and the city are gone and I have promoted transparency with monthly open houses.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Kindness matters all the time.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I am endorsed by Gig Harbor Firefighters, # L3390. I am endorsed by Gig Harbor Police Officers, city employees and city supervisors through their union teamsters JC #28.