OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Tacoma City Council Meeting Summary - September 30, 2025

City Council — Tuesday, September 30, 2025
BodyTacoma, Washington
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, September 30, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:05:10

Transcript — Verbatim
0:03

I'd like to call to order the city council meeting of September 30th, 2020 2025.

0:09

Clerk, will you please call the roll?

0:11

Councilmember Bushnell.

0:12

Present.

0:13

Councilmember Daniels.

0:14

Here.

0:14

Councilmember Diaz.

0:15

Here.

0:16

Councilmember Heinz.

0:17

Here.

0:17

Councilmember Rumba.

0:18

Here.

0:18

Councilmember Sidalgay?

0:20

Here.

0:20

Councilmember Scott?

0:21

Here.

0:22

Councilmember Walker.

0:23

Here.

0:23

And Mayor Woodards.

0:24

Here.

0:25

Please join me listening to the land acknowledgement and flag salute led by Councilmember Hines, followed by a moment of silence.

0:31

We gratefully honor and acknowledge that we rest on the traditional lands of the Piala people where they make their home and speak the Lashutsi language.

0:38

Please stand for the flag salute and remain standing for a moment of silence.

0:48

My pleasure to flag the United States of America and the Republic for which it stands under God and Division with liberty and justice for all.

1:41

Agenda modifications.

1:43

Are there any modifications to the agenda this evening?

1:46

Seeing none, we'll move on to the consent agenda.

1:58

Second.

1:58

All right, are there any council comments, questions, or corrections?

2:01

Seeing none, all those in favor of adopting the consent agenda, please signify by saying aye.

2:06

Aye.

2:06

All those opposed, the consent agenda is declared adopted.

2:10

Moving on to proclamations, recognitions, presentations, and announcements.

2:14

We have two ceremonials tonight.

2:17

For the October for the October 2025 as Tacoma Arts Month proclamation, I would like to invite Heidi Fernandez to whose chair, Heidi, I was looking at the last name, and you're gonna have to help me.

2:33

Um chair of the Tacoma Arts Commission to the podium as I read this proclamation.

2:36

Thank you so much for being here this evening.

2:40

Whereas this October, we celebrate the 24th anniversary of the Tacoma Arts Month, an event that celebrates and showcases Tacoma's arts and cultural community.

2:51

And whereas arts and culture are woven throughout our city, providing a diversity of experiences created by and for our community.

3:00

And whereas we want to express our gratitude to the cultural bearers, artists, creators, and organizations for the care they exhibit in serving our community.

3:11

And whereas these programs create active, accessible, and welcoming public places, provide opportunities to explore personal creativity, strengthen community connections, promote a sense of shared purpose, and cultivate pride among residents.

3:27

And whereas the art community helps grow and sustain our creative economy while enriching people's lives, connecting communities and providing meaningful educational and emotional experiences.

3:40

And whereas we celebrate the first seven years of Tacoma Creates, Washington's first cultural access program, and look forward to the future as Tacoma Creates expands across the arts, culture, heritage, and science experiences throughout our community while supporting the sustainability of our local cultural organizations.

4:02

And whereas the programming highlighted in October is exemplary of the arts and cultural programming presented year-round and showcases the unique talents of our artist organizations and local businesses.

4:18

Now, therefore, I, Victoria R.

4:20

Woodards, mayor of the City of Tacoma, on behalf of the City Council, do hereby proclaim October 2025 as Tacoma Arts Month in the City of Tacoma and encourage everyone to celebrate the arts, experience culture, embrace community, connect with creativity, and share joy this October.

4:44

Please join me in a round of applause.

5:00

Now, before I call on the chair of this committee, I would like to ask everyone who is in this or in this audience who either represents an arts organization, is an artist, provides cultural experiences.

5:14

If you are in the in the audience, I would like you all to stand.

5:53

So as we go into celebrating this month as Tacoma Arts Month, let's keep that spirit in mind.

6:03

Let's remember that we all are here to serve residents of Tacoma with the best.

6:14

And I will be honest and say I think we have the absolute best arts, culture, heritage, and science, nonprofits and individuals who lead this work in this city, which I also happen to think is the greatest city in the universe.

6:34

So I think that our arts community matches that.

6:40

So I just want to say thank you to all of you and how grateful I am for the service that you provide.

6:45

And on behalf of this council are excited about Tacoma Arts Month and what we're gonna get to see and experience and why we only focus on it one month a year.

6:55

We know that it happens every day, every week, every month throughout the year.

7:01

With that, I will turn the comments over to our chair.

7:05

Thank you, Mayor Woodards, Deputy Mayor Daniels, and members of the council.

7:11

On behalf of the Tacoma Arts Commission, I want to express our gratitude for this proclamation and for your continued support of Tacoma Arts Month and Arts and Culture in Tacoma.

7:21

Creativity is at the heart of what makes Tacoma a vibrant and compassionate city.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Arts And Culture█████████████████████████████████████37%
Procedural██████████████14%
Public Comment██████████████14%
Affordable Housing██████████████14%
Public Engagement█████████9%
Youth Programs███3%
Technology and Innovation███3%
Active Transportation██2%
Personnel Matters██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Tacoma City Council Meeting Summary - September 30, 2025

The Tacoma City Council met on September 30, 2025, at 5:00 PM in Council Chambers. The meeting included proclamations, public comment, approval of consent items, settlement of a lawsuit, appointments, purchase resolutions, and first readings of multiple ordinances, including the reauthorization of the Tacoma Creates cultural access program. No final votes were taken on ordinances requiring second readings.

Consent Calendar

  • Resolution No. 41762: Awarded a $745,220 contract to Construction Group International LLC for on-call abatement services, with a potential one-year renewal. Approved unanimously.
  • Resolution No. 41763: Awarded a $784,418 contract to Dobbs Peterbilt, LLC for three solid waste trucks, with a 10% contingency, projected total $862,860. Approved unanimously.
  • Payments: Approved payroll and payments totaling $55,646,117.68 for the period August 25 to September 7, 2025.

Proclamations & Recognitions

  • Tacoma Arts Month (October 2025): Proclaimed by Mayor Woodards, recognizing the 24th anniversary and the AMOCAT Arts Awardees. Awardees included Sira Rafe, Irina Resputeness, Remakery, Mi Centro, and Tacoma Public Library. Councilmember Scott highlighted youth art from Tacoma Rescue Mission.
  • Walk and Roll to School Month (October 2025): Proclaimed by Councilmember Walker, with Chandra Royd, the new Safe Routes to School Coordinator, outlining her vision for pedestrian and bicycle safety.

Public Comments & Testimony

Public comment focused overwhelmingly on Tacoma Creates ordinances (29057 and 29058). Key positions:

  • Support for Tacoma Creates reauthorization: Many speakers (Chelsea McElroy, Matthew Wilson, Beverly Bowen Bennett, Gloria Carpincha, Katie Matrian, Lacey Fry, Michael Lang, JD Davis, Zev Cook, Kim Keith, Joy, Isaiah Hunt, Danielle Ata, Manny Kowalin) expressed strong support for the program, citing its impact on arts access, youth development, and community cohesion.
  • Support for capital funding amendment (6% set-aside): Several speakers (Chelsea McElroy, Jasmine Brown, Catherine Raz, Zev Cook, Joy, Isaiah Hunt, Lori Arnold, Danielle Ata) urged the council to allow capital expenditures for organizations to acquire or upgrade spaces, arguing that rising rents threaten small arts groups.
  • Opposition to capital funding: Karen Chu and Debbie Lang (Museum of Glass) argued that capital funding would divert money from programming and violate voter intent. They requested either no capital allocation or flexible use without a set-aside.
  • Other comments: Michelle Reich opposed the property tax exemption amendment for multi-family housing (Ordinance 29059), calling it a misuse of public funds. Austin Christofferson (Ezee Fiber) spoke in support of the telecommunications franchise agreement (Ordinance 29055).

Discussion Items

  • Settlement – Day Island Yacht Club (Item 7): Council approved a motion to settle claims against the City and crossclaims against University Place for $130,000, as part of a consent decree. Approved unanimously.
  • Appointments: Resolution 41764 reappointed Christy Coyne and Nikki Singh to the Human Services Commission. Resolution 41765 appointed Felicity Waldron to the Transportation Commission. Both approved unanimously.
  • Purchase Resolutions for IT Services: Resolution 41766 awarded contracts to five vendors (22nd Century Technologies, Infojini, Compu-Vision, Zensa, TEKsystems) each up to $1,800,000 for temporary staffing, projected total $9,000,000. Resolution 41767 increased and extended contracts with Sage Group Technologies ($187,000) and Stergion Group ($245,000) for IT support. Both approved.
  • First Reading – Water Usage Amendment (Ordinance 29054): Christina Curran explained that the ordinance establishes January 1, 2026 as the effective date for updated assumed water usage rates for customers without winter flow records. Set over for final reading October 7.
  • First Reading – Ezee Fiber Franchise (Ordinance 29055): Jeff Lueders presented a 10-year non-exclusive franchise agreement for fiber optic telecommunications. Set over for final reading October 21.
  • First Reading – Emerging Leader Program (Ordinance 29056): Councilmember Rumbaugh introduced the ordinance to rename and repurpose youth/student positions on boards and commissions, aiming to increase youth participation. Set over for final reading.
  • First Reading – Tacoma Creates Reauthorization (Ordinance 29057): Mayor Woodards presented the ordinance to reimpose the 0.1% sales tax for seven years, noting 94.8% resident support in surveys. No vote taken; final reading scheduled for October 7.
  • First Reading – Tacoma Creates Amendments (Ordinance 29058): Mayor Woodards outlined changes to funding categories, including a proposed 6% capital set-aside. Council acknowledged public testimony and will consider amendments before final vote.
  • First Reading – Multi-Family Tax Exemption Updates (Ordinance 29059): Councilmember Hines presented six updates, including raising the minimum units for 8-year MFTE from 4 to 20, adjusting income thresholds to 90% AMI, requiring rent-restricted units be at least 10% below market for extensions, and discontinuing 8-year MFTE in two downtown census tracts to reduce displacement. Councilmember Sidalgay offered a substitute motion to allow 8-year MFTE only for owner-occupied projects with no affordability requirement; he withdrew the motion after discussion to allow further refinement. The original ordinance was set over for final reading.

Community Forum

  • Kathy Irwin: Raised concerns about a food desert after Fred Meyer's closure on Pacific Avenue and the upcoming British Industrial Warehouse in South Tacoma, requesting updates on truck routes and street changes.
  • Teresa Evans: Discussed the potential for a food cooperative to address the food desert.
  • Michelle Reich: Criticized the council for Tacoma's #1 ranking in violent crime in Washington, blaming under-resourcing of police.
  • Kenya Shakur: Called for an audit of the MFTE program, stating that some property owners receiving tax breaks were unaware of the program when she inquired as a low-income renter.

Key Outcomes

  • Consent agenda, settlement, appointments, and purchase resolutions all approved unanimously.
  • All ordinances on first reading (Items 12-17) were set over for final readings on future dates, with no votes taken.
  • The substitute motion to Ordinance 29059 was withdrawn; further discussion on the MFTE homeownership proposal is expected before the next meeting.
  • Public testimony on Tacoma Creates will inform potential amendments before the final vote on October 7, 2025.

Meeting Transcript

I'd like to call to order the city council meeting of September 30th, 2020 2025. Clerk, will you please call the roll? Councilmember Bushnell. Present. Councilmember Daniels. Here. Councilmember Diaz. Here. Councilmember Heinz. Here. Councilmember Rumba. Here. Councilmember Sidalgay? Here. Councilmember Scott? Here. Councilmember Walker. Here. And Mayor Woodards. Here. Please join me listening to the land acknowledgement and flag salute led by Councilmember Hines, followed by a moment of silence. We gratefully honor and acknowledge that we rest on the traditional lands of the Piala people where they make their home and speak the Lashutsi language. Please stand for the flag salute and remain standing for a moment of silence. My pleasure to flag the United States of America and the Republic for which it stands under God and Division with liberty and justice for all. Agenda modifications. Are there any modifications to the agenda this evening? Seeing none, we'll move on to the consent agenda. Second. All right, are there any council comments, questions, or corrections? Seeing none, all those in favor of adopting the consent agenda, please signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed, the consent agenda is declared adopted. Moving on to proclamations, recognitions, presentations, and announcements. We have two ceremonials tonight. For the October for the October 2025 as Tacoma Arts Month proclamation, I would like to invite Heidi Fernandez to whose chair, Heidi, I was looking at the last name, and you're gonna have to help me. Um chair of the Tacoma Arts Commission to the podium as I read this proclamation. Thank you so much for being here this evening. Whereas this October, we celebrate the 24th anniversary of the Tacoma Arts Month, an event that celebrates and showcases Tacoma's arts and cultural community. And whereas arts and culture are woven throughout our city, providing a diversity of experiences created by and for our community. And whereas we want to express our gratitude to the cultural bearers, artists, creators, and organizations for the care they exhibit in serving our community. And whereas these programs create active, accessible, and welcoming public places, provide opportunities to explore personal creativity, strengthen community connections, promote a sense of shared purpose, and cultivate pride among residents. And whereas the art community helps grow and sustain our creative economy while enriching people's lives, connecting communities and providing meaningful educational and emotional experiences. And whereas we celebrate the first seven years of Tacoma Creates, Washington's first cultural access program, and look forward to the future as Tacoma Creates expands across the arts, culture, heritage, and science experiences throughout our community while supporting the sustainability of our local cultural organizations. And whereas the programming highlighted in October is exemplary of the arts and cultural programming presented year-round and showcases the unique talents of our artist organizations and local businesses. Now, therefore, I, Victoria R. Woodards, mayor of the City of Tacoma, on behalf of the City Council, do hereby proclaim October 2025 as Tacoma Arts Month in the City of Tacoma and encourage everyone to celebrate the arts, experience culture, embrace community, connect with creativity, and share joy this October. Please join me in a round of applause. Now, before I call on the chair of this committee, I would like to ask everyone who is in this or in this audience who either represents an arts organization, is an artist, provides cultural experiences. If you are in the in the audience, I would like you all to stand. So as we go into celebrating this month as Tacoma Arts Month, let's keep that spirit in mind.

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