Citizens Answer the Call to Service in City Council

Do you enjoy tons of reading, have a good grasp of what it takes to manage a mid-size corporation, and count yourself as a people person?

At least 17 people think they've got what it takes to on Mercer Island City Council, left by departing councilman Steve Litzow. last year and resigned from the Council on December 31, 2010.

To replace him, local residents of more than one year on the Island to speak directly to City Council in a public hearing. The applicants include Robert Bersos, Deborah Bertlin, Adam Cooper, Patricia Darling, Jon Friedman, Aaron Kornblum, David Laub, Steven Marshall, Jane Meyer Brahm, Craig Pedersen, Clark Powell, Rachel Reynolds, Tana Senn, Aric Weiker, David Wells, Carrie Wernick Newman, and Mary Yakmoto.

Mercer Island Mayor Jim Pearman complimented the quality of the group vying for the seat. Pearman thanked them for coming to the meeting and said he hoped to meet many of them personally before the council decides on Litzow's replacement at a Jan. 18 meeting.

"The resumes are humbling," he said. "It's a shame we can't pass a resolution and enlarge the council to 22."

The mayor also said he hoped those who were not selected would run in the next election or volunteer for service elsewhere with the city's commissions, boards, councils or countless other organizations on the Island. On the other hand, he did warn the gathering that service on the City Council requires a lot of time and sacrifice made by their families.

The seat will be subject to re-election this November.

Each of the candidates was selected at random order to approach the council for five minutes. The men and women took the opportunity to thank the council for past efforts, shared their visions of the future and struck upon a wide variety of themes. Some mentioned working closely with the school district or maintaining the Island's quality of life, while nearly all mentioned the looming transportation challenges of a and the Sound Transit's Project.

Patty Darling, a nurse who ran for City Council in 2007, said she was a consensus builder and could help build unity in the body. She called herself a political moderate and an independent thinker.

"I know I can't please everybody but I do the best for the most," she said.

David Wells said he wanted an opportunity to serve and give back to community, and said his previous work experience as an estimator and project manager would give insight into budgeting process.

He said his major concern was transportation and preserving the Island's quality of life.

"I would like to see these enjoyed by Islanders as they have been in the past," he said.

Seattle Museum of History and Industry president-elect Aaron Kornblum said his work on that organization's board and his experience at Microsoft as an attorney had given him the polish and experience to represent Mercer Island locally, regionally and nationally.

"As council member I want to continue to grow the positive relations we have with the school district and continue to explore innovative initiatives like the recent interlocal agreement over the ," he said.

And former editor of the Jane Meyer Brahm, commented on her long-term interest in the City Council as a subject of journalism and the public interest, and more recently as a collaborator in her work with the Mercer Island Sister City Association.

Councilman Mike Cero, who took the opportunity to publicly ask each of the candidates a question, asked Meyer Brahm what see saw as the city's biggest challenge in the coming years.

"I think the city has been well managed the challenge will be keeping what we have," she said. "I believe that in the next few years, the biggest challenge will be for the city to live within it's means."