The Olympia City Council met on January 28, 2026, starting at 6:00 PM. The meeting included a public hearing on a resolution supporting the Olympia School District's technology and capital projects levy, a large public comment period, and the unanimous approval of new names for three park properties. The mayor also opened with statements condemning recent federal immigration enforcement actions and clarifying that no decisions have been made about closing the last encampment, known as 'the Jungle.'
Councilmember Green. Good evening and welcome to the Tuesday, January 27th, 2026 regular business meeting of the Olympia City Council. For the record, we have a quorum with all council members present tonight. So before we move on to the business on our agenda for tonight, I do have a couple of statements that I wish to share with the community, and then we will move on to adoption of the agenda. So first, uh, I just want to express that we are heartbroken and angry about the recent killings of Alex Purdy at the hands of ICE federal agents just a couple weeks after the shooting and uh and killing of Renee Good. Unfortunately, many others have died as well as at the result of this presidential administration's inhumane approach with immigration enforcement. No family should lose a loved one on this way, and no community should have to live in fear of the people who are supposed to uphold the law. What we are seeing right now is deeply disturbing, and it demands accountability, transparency, and leadership from every level of government. So prior to this event this weekend, I've been working with County Commissioner Carolina Mejia to hold a meeting to coordinate with elected officials and our staff throughout the county. Local leaders need to be on the same page, prepared and clear about how we protect our residents and our public employees when federal actions put out put our community members at risk. So just a few topics that we're hoping to cover in this meeting include immigration 101 to ensure that a shared understanding of our immigration system, responsibilities and limitations across our jurisdictions, and our jurisdictional coordination, including communication pathways between cities, schools, local law enforcement, and county departments. Lessons observed in other jurisdictions, including obstructions of emergency response, arrest or detention of public employees, and impacts to service delivery. Planning for scenarios involving external federal actions with a focus on how local governments respond collectively and lawfully. Situational awareness, reporting, and employee support protocols should an incident occur. City staff are also preparing additional information to our city residents, encouraging you to prioritize your safety. If you see what appears to be an altercation or a detention by a federal agent, please be safe. Call 911, and Olympia police officers will respond to the scene and handle any necessary questioning. As a sanctuary city, our officers are prohibited from assisting ICE in any of their efforts to detain anyone in our community. Olympia police will ensure that there are legitimate agents on the scene. They have warrants verified and maintain order for our community members. You are also permitted to record an incident from a safe distance in a public space without physically intervening. The safety of everyone in our community remains our top priority. Should the federal government increase its presence here in Thurston County. Our community deserves to feel safe, respected, and heard. And these actions are steps within our local control toward building the knowledge, coordination, and accountability needed to serve and protect everyone. So I also have a statement here in regards to the closure of one of our encampments. So I just want to provide an update on that as well from a statement that I made at our Chamber of Commerce Forum known as the State of the Community on January 14th about the city's intent to develop a plan to close the last remaining encampment in Olympia, commonly referred to as the jungle, to manage expectations and also address rumors. We are committed to working collaboratively with our regional nonprofit and service provider partners. Rest assured, no decisions have been made, including a timeline for when the encampment will close. It's early days, and city and county managers are working with their teams to kick off the work to start developing a plan soon. And we do not anticipate a closing of the encampment this year. So hopefully that provides some clarity. And obviously, if you have additional questions about that, please reach out to the city. All right. So with that, I need a motion to approve tonight's agenda. So moved. Second. All right. We have a motion and a second. All those in favor of adopting the agenda as published signify by saying aye. Aye. We have an agenda. So our first item tonight is item one C, which is the consideration of a resolution expressing city council support for the Olympia School District number one eleven proposition number one, technology and capital projects replacement levy. And we have our assistant city manager, Debbie Sullivan presenting. Hi, Debbie. Thank you, Mayor. For the record, I'm Debbie Sullivan, Assistant City Manager. Tonight, you are considering a resolution to express support for Olympia School District number 11, proposition one, a technology and capital projects replacement levy. Before City Council can take action to support or oppose a ballot proposition, Washington state requires that the public have an opportunity to comment in support or in opposition to the ballot measure. So before opening the public hearing, I'll provide some information.