Redmond City Council Business Meeting – January 20, 2026

The Redmond City Council met Tuesday, January 20, 2026, at 7:07 PM in City Hall, with Council President Melissa Stewart presiding as Mayor Pro Tem and Mayor Angela Birney attending remotely. The council filled a vacant council seat, heard 20 in-person and 3 remote public commenters, approved the consent agenda, received a PFAS update, and held two executive sessions.

Special Orders – Council Vacancy Appointment

• Councilmember Kritzer nominated Sina Parsi to fill the vacant Council Position No. 1 after interviews with three finalists. Councilmembers praised all 35 applicants and the 11 semifinalists and highlighted Parsi's work on technology, environment, housing, equity, and community engagement.
• Parsi was appointed by unanimous roll-call vote and sworn in by Judge Finkel. She thanked the council and said she will represent every resident despite being appointed rather than elected.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Alex Zimmerman was given one warning and then had his remaining time terminated for not speaking to a city-business item.
• Several speakers associated with Interlake Sporting Association (Todd Cage, Manny Perez, Kira Marchevsky, Bradley Clymer, Jody Noland, Peter, Jason Rackley, Jeremy Tatros) urged the council not to reduce range hours or remove Sunday operations, and to delay or reconsider the proposed noise ordinance. They emphasized ISA's safety culture, role as a community third place, and ongoing sound-study and mitigation work. Peter recounted past city planning decisions and asked for collaborative, effective solutions.
• Meta dining workers (Juliet, Adam Cook, Johanna Bandler, Gio, Liz) asked the council to support their union-recognition effort. They said Meta and contractor Lavish Roots had refused to remain neutral or honor majority card counts, and described workplace injuries, retaliation, and fear of ICE enforcement. They cited Microsoft cafeteria workers as a precedent.
• Aaron Hamilton criticized the appointment and DEI processes, saying no conservative or LGBTQ person would likely be selected and that city job applications excluded non-binary people.
• Wolf Adriatico and Max Rollman described lost teen music/art programming at the former Firehouse and asked for more accessible policies and prices; Adriatico noted volunteer-run shows continue at Soul Food Coffee House.
• Nandita Gilroy and Johnson Isaac Joseph opposed connecting 157th Avenue through their neighborhood as part of a 16-unit subdivision proposal, citing traffic, safety, and prior city findings.
• Emma Rockenbeck asked the council to remove, not merely disable, Flock automatic license plate cameras, citing privacy and targeting of vulnerable communities.
• David Morton raised PFAS concerns, including regulatory uncertainty, unknown contamination sources, costs, and operational alternatives, and asked for cost scenarios and customer carbon-filter guidance.
• Remote: Joe Kunzler urged the council to enforce its rules and exclude Alex Zimmerman; Max Rollman spoke on arts and community space; Paul Quinn's written comments were distributed after he could not connect.

Consent Calendar

• Approved by roll-call vote: minutes of Jan 6, 8, and 13; payroll and claims registers; Fifth Amendment to Gallagher managed payroll backup services contract; correction of two Fire Support pay classifications; Lodging Tax Advisory Committee appointment; and Resolution No. 1619 completing the Redmond 2050 Comprehensive Plan periodic update.

Discussion Items – PFAS Regulations and Redmond's Drinking Water

• Public Works Director Aaron Burt, Water Operations Manager Ernie Fix, and scientist Jessica Adlikson presented. Redmond has sampled for PFAS since 2014; EPA set MCLs in 2024 with a 2029 compliance date; Washington State lowered state action levels to match EPA's MCLs in January 2026.
• Wells 1 and 2 (one source) exceed the MCL and SAL for PFOS at 4 parts per trillion. The contamination source is unknown. The city will continue quarterly sampling, send required notifications, and begin exploring treatment options through a consultant contract scheduled for council committee review on February 3.
• A preliminary placeholder of $25-30 million for treatment was mentioned for the 2027-28 CIP, with final costs and rate impacts still unknown.
• Councilmembers asked about state vs federal regulation, regional collaboration, local groundwater-table complications, and proactive public communication.

Ombudsperson & Committee Reports

• Councilmember Kritzer reported constituent contacts on ISA, Flock cameras, the 157th Avenue issue, e-bike policies, federal grants, and resuming drop-in office hours.
• Councilmember Forsythe noted the 157th and ISA processes are early, and mentioned community conversations on ICE presence, abandoned vehicles, the Velodrome, and Flock cameras.
• Council Vice President Nuevacamina reported on the disability board, a student-led school funding town hall, legislative session events, a memorial for former Councilmember Nancy McCormick, and ICE-affected community meetings.
• Council President Stewart announced a Feb 10 study session with commission and board chairs and summarized the council's legislative agenda for the state session.
• Committee reports included East Trail planning (Forsythe), salmon recovery and OneRedmond (Kritzer), parks and environment sustainability work plan (Soni), and regional water quality and Sound Cities Public Issues Committee (Stewart).

Key Outcomes

• Sina Parsi was appointed and sworn in as Councilmember, filling Position No. 1.
• Consent agenda, including Resolution 1619, passed on a roll-call vote.
• Staff will return Feb 3 with a PFAS consultant contract and continue quarterly monitoring and public notifications.
• A $25-30 million PFAS treatment placeholder is planned for the 2027-28 budget process.
• The council held a closed executive session at 10:06 PM regarding real estate acquisition; no action was taken, and the meeting adjourned at approximately 10:21 PM.