Tacoma City Council Meeting Summary - November 12, 2025
Tacoma City Council Meeting Summary - November 12, 2025
The City Council convened on November 12, 2025, following a land acknowledgement and a moment of silence. The Council adopted the Consent Agenda unanimously and proceeded through Public Comments, where residents addressed the Tide Flat Sub-area Plan (Ordinance 29075), the EMS Property Tax Levy, and the Street Initiative. Regular agenda items, including resolutions regarding street vacation fees, vendor contracts, and labor agreements, were reviewed, with several items postponed for staff presentation before final voting. The meeting concluded with reports on the city's Vision Zero recognition and committee updates.
Consent Calendar
- Resolution 41792 and associated routine measures were adopted by unanimous vote (Aye).
Public Comments & Testimony
- Kathy Irwin expressed strong opposition to the Tide Flat Sub-area Plan (Ordinance 29075); she argued the pace of the plan has been too slow, resulting in significant changes before final approval, and criticized the proposed lack of green space and environmental amenities in the Port area.
- Michelle Reich expressed opposition to the EMS Property Tax Levy (Ordinance 29072); she described the $9 million annual tax as wasteful funding that exacerbates homelessness and argued that funds should be allocated to a veterans' center rather than a low-barrier drug use center.
- Kit Burns questioned the rationale behind reducing the valuation of a street vacation item (Item 25-1004) from $2.9 million to $600,000 without sufficient clarification in the agenda, implying a potential discrepancy in the funds.
- Kit Burns questioned the Council's decision not to run the Street Initiative 2 as a bond issue again, noting it failed by only 1,600 votes previously and was poorly presented.
- Kyle Jolly Boys expressed concern regarding Port of Tacoma expansion; he challenged the safety radius regarding a potential Lahar event, stating his position that the risk radius is 15 miles, not the previously cited 3.5 miles, and requested city meetings on earthquake and disaster preparedness.
- Barb Church explicitly stated a position in support of the Planning Commission's amendments to the Tide Flat Sub-area Plan; she thanked the Puola Tribe, community members, and advocacy groups for their long-term involvement and urged the Council to adopt the plan to honor the inclusive process.
Discussion Items
- Street Vacation Fees (Items 10 & 11 context): Mayor Woodards explained that reducing fees to $600,000 was a strategic move to foster a partnership with the University of Washington Tacoma (UWT) and support their capital projects, rather than collecting standard market fees due to current budget constraints.
- Collective Bargaining Agreements (Items 10, 11, 16): The presentation for Resolutions 41794 and 41795 and Ordinance 29074 was initially postponed because Mark Johnson (Labor Negotiator) was not present. Upon his arrival, he presented details regarding a three-year collective bargaining agreement with District Lodge No. 160/Lodge No. 297 of the IAM (Track Workers and General Units). The agreement includes wage increases (3% general + market adjustments), new classifications (Machine and Fabrication Welder Lead), and holiday additions (Juneteenth).
- Tide Flat Sub-area Plan (Items 17, 18, 19): Planner Stephen Atkinson presented Ordinance 29075 (adopting the plan), Ordinance 29076 (amending the Land Use Regulatory Code), and Ordinance 29077 (amending the Shoreline Master Program). Atkinson noted that while the City Council public hearing received 19 written and 20 oral comments, the overall feedback was supportive with some requests for amendments. Council members Walker, Woodards, and others reserved final comments for the December 2nd reading.
Key Outcomes
- Adopted: Resolution 41792 (Consent Agenda).
- Adopted: Resolution 41793 (Multicare Health Systems contract for $3.9 million).
- Passed: Ordinance 29069 (No increase in ad valorum general property tax for 2026).
- Passed: Ordinance 29070 (Fixing ad valorum tax levies for debt services).
- Passed: Ordinance 29071 (Clarifying EMS levy requirements per Proposition 1; clarifying it is an existing levy, not a new tax).
- Passed: Ordinance 29072 (Fixing the specific amount of EMS levy for 2026).
- Postponed: Resolution 41794 (Track Workers CBA), Resolution 41795 (General Unit Letter of Agreement), and Ordinance 29074 were voted upon and adopted after the presentation was completed (Items 10, 11, 16).
- Set Over: Ordinances 29075, 29076, and 29077 (Tide Flat Sub-area Plan) for final reading on December 2, 2025.
- Recognized: The City of Tacoma officially received Vision Zero Community recognition from the Vision Zero Network.
- Adjourned: The meeting was adjourned with a reference to the 150th Anniversary celebration.
Meeting Transcript
Now we're gonna gavel back in. I'd like to call to order the city council meeting of November 12th, 2025. Clerk, will you please call a roll? Councilmember Bushnell? Present. Deputy Mayor Daniels. Aye. Here Councilmember Diaz. Councilmember Hines. Councilmember Remba, absent. Councilmember Sidalgay? Here. Councilmember Scott? Here. Councilmember Walker? Here. Mayor Woodards? Here. Please join me in listening to the land of law land acknowledgement and flag salute led by Councilmember Bush now, followed by a moment of silence. We gratefully honor it, acknowledge that we rest on the traditional lands of the Puola 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. Are there any modifications to the agenda? Seeing none, we'll move on to the consent agenda. I move to adopt the consent agenda, including resolution number 41792. Second. Are there any council questions or comments? All right, seeing none, all those in favor of adopting the consent agenda, please signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed. Consent agenda is declared adopted. There are no proclamations, uh recognitions, or presentations this afternoon. Um now we're gonna move on to public comment. On tonight's agenda, there is one opportunity for people to comment. As a reminder, community reform was removed from the agenda by the council motion at last week's study session. The next regular community form is scheduled on December 9th, 2025. Under public comment, you can speak about motions, resolutions, or ordinances on tonight's agenda. This form is intended to give speakers the opportunity to share their viewpoints and feedback with the city council to aid in our decision making, and it is not meant to be a back and forth dialogue. Your remarks should be directed to the city council and not at individual staff members. If you wish to speak under the public comment period, please press the raise your hand button near the bottom of your Zoom window or star nine on your phone now, so we can see the number of people wishing to testify this afternoon. If you're speaking in person, please sign up at the back of the room if you have not done so already. Your name or the last four digits of your phone number will be called out when it is your turn to speak. Clerk, will you please read? This is a time set aside for public comment. Speakers are asked to identify the specific legislation they wish to address. All right, I would like to remind everyone to please keep your comments respectful, relevant, focused, and on topic. We strive to provide a comment period where people can feel respected while sharing a wide variety of viewpoints and acknowledge that we may hear comments that conflict with our values. To ensure all speakers can express their first amendment constitutional rights, we ask that you refrain from clapping, cheering, booing, or otherwise being disruptive. You will have 90 seconds to make your remarks. Please be mindful of the time frame. As always, you are not required to use all of your time to make your point.
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