Washougal City Council Workshop Summary — February 9, 2026

The Washougal City Council held a workshop on Monday, February 9, 2026, from 5:00 PM to 6:39 PM. Mayor David Stuebe presided. Present were Mayor Pro Tem Fritz, Councilmembers Wagner, Swofford, Szyplinski, Robertson, and Suggs (via Zoom); Student Representative Jake Larzalere also attended. Staff reports covered the 2nd Street right-of-way vacation, the 2025 Finance/IT and HR annual reports, the 2026 Community Survey, and reports from the City Manager, Mayor, and Council.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Port Commissioner Larry Keister congratulated the City on securing federal funding for the 32nd Street project. He emphasized the ongoing importance of lower Columbia River channel maintenance for continuity with the Ports of Vancouver and Ridgefield and other regional partners, and thanked Mayor Stuebe for his support in Olympia. He also referenced the Port's priorities, including 41st Street funding and opening about 10 parcels or 30 acres for job creation.
• No other public comments were offered.

Public Works: 2nd Street Right-of-Way Vacation

• The agenda listed this item as presented by “Trever Evers”; the minutes and transcript use “Trevor Evers.” Trevor Evers, Director of Public Works, presented the proposal.
• The proposal would vacate approximately 25,000 square feet (a little more than half an acre) of South 2nd Street right-of-way that will no longer be needed after the street is realigned to better serve waterfront development. The new street would be dedicated to the City, and the vacated right-of-way would become Port of Camas-Washougal property.
• Benefits cited included improved transportation efficiency, new public benefits, elimination of stranded right-of-way, and an exchange of replacement roadways equal to or greater in value.
• Next steps: a public hearing on February 23, 2026, with notice published in The Columbian, notice to affected parcel owners, and two signs within 300 feet. No objections from parcel owners had been received.

Finance & IT: 2025 Annual Report

• Finance Director/City Clerk Daniel Layer presented; IT Manager Theo Gomez was available for IT questions.
• 2025 Finance and IT actual expenditures were $1.475 million, reflecting the department's first full year with nine full-time equivalents, a 4% cost-of-living adjustment, and new software contracts for Civic Plus agenda software and UKG performance-management software.
• Utility billing: 6,306 active accounts as of December 31, 2025, up 1.38% from 2024; more than 37,000 bills generated; $13.7 million in utility payments processed. Outsourcing printing, mailing, and stuffing of utility bills reduced postage costs by approximately 15 cents per envelope and freed about one staff-day per month.
• Approximately 89% of utility accounts are residential, with the remainder commercial, multifamily, municipal, stormwater-only, hydrant, and fire-line accounts.
• Emergency utility assistance grants increased from 35 in 2024 to 55 in 2025; the average grant was about $230, with a $500 annual maximum funded by late-fee transfers.
• The City received its 15th consecutive clean audit and zero exit comments. Because 2025 federal expenditures will exceed $750,000, a single audit will be required for the 2025 financial year. Bond ratings were renewed at AA for general obligation bonds, and water/sewer bonds improved from A+ to AA-.
• IT metrics: help desk requests declined 13.6% to 477, with 87% handled within one business day; inbound email rose from 455,000 to 532,000, about a 17% increase; phishing-test click rates improved.
• 2026 goals include a clean single audit, enhanced financial forecasting, accounts payable automation, public-records request tracking, IT security upgrades including MFA, and cloud migration of email archives.
• During discussion, Council asked about account composition, the emergency grant program, and public records requests. Finance alone received 91 public records requests in 2025; police requests were reported to be double or triple that number. Staff noted that public records responses are mandated and that the current state scheme could benefit from reform.

Human Resources: 2025 Annual Report

• Teresa Stedman presented the HR annual report.
• In 2025, nine employees left the City: three retired, two resigned in lieu of termination, three resigned for outside opportunities, and one left to start a business. The City onboarded eight new employees: two in police, one in animal control, two in Community Services & Strategy, and three in Public Works.
• HR activities included reviewing job descriptions and salary ranges, creating new job descriptions, conducting exit interviews, and providing ongoing training. A new HRIS platform has been purchased and is expected to be fully implemented by the end of March 2026.
• The City maintained Well City status, saving just over $29,000 in premiums through a 2% reduction; 35 employees are trained in CPR and first aid. Recognition activities included service awards, quarterly recognition, and team events.
• 2025 highlights included a two-year agreement with 307W, updated personnel policies, an HRIS selection, and a new well-being/safety committee.
• 2026 goals include recruiting a city engineer, completing a classification and compensation study by May, negotiating a new agreement with 307W, fully implementing the HRIS, and reapplying for Well City status in 2027. Staff noted the city engineer recruitment has been difficult, with the posting reaching about 40,000 people but not producing the desired talent pool.

Community Services & Strategy: 2026 Community Survey

• Community Services & Strategy Director Joe Walsh presented. The City has conducted a community survey every other year since 2014.
• Staff recommended five supplemental questions for the 2026 survey: one on a metropolitan parks district; three tied to the Civic Brand community identity/branding project; and one open-ended positive question suggested by the Mayor, “What do you like most about the City of Washougal?” Three other proposed questions were deferred to 2028, including transportation benefit districts and two economic-development questions, based on timing.
• ETC Institute will field the survey using a random sample of 3,000 households, with a target of at least 400 completed responses; recent surveys have received just over 500 responses. Results will be statistically weighted to match census demographics and presented to Council.
• Council discussion raised concerns about a countywide metropolitan parks district, including the potential for Washougal voters to be outvoted by Clark County/Vancouver voters, funding distribution, and local control. Staff noted future workshops on the topic.

Reports & Communications

• City Manager David Scott reported success in the federal appropriations cycle: $1.3 million in congressionally directed spending sponsored by U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell for PFAS remediation design, and $2 million sponsored by U.S. Senator Patty Murray for the 32nd Street rail crossing project. He also discussed dates for the Annual Council Planning Session; Council selected May 2, 2026.
• Mayor Stuebe reported ongoing engagement with regional partners and ports, including discussions with large ports such as the Port of Seattle. He noted frequent questions about the 32nd Street project groundbreaking, with the current plan pointing to Q1/early Q2 2027, likely Q2, and thanked City employees.
• Student Representative Jake Larzalere reported FBLA's regional results, with eight students advancing to state and first place in Social Media Strategy for a second consecutive year; state competition will be in Spokane April 21–25. He also reported on wrestling, swimming, basketball postseason, the Ambassador Program's trip to Washington, D.C., and a recent Capitol visit with the Mayor.
• Councilmember Wagner thanked the City's federal delegation, staff, and advocates for securing 32nd Street funding; announced a Parks meeting on February 19 at 4:00 PM, a Regional Parks Board meeting at 4:30 PM, and the Second Saturday in the Park event on February 14 at 10:00 AM at Mabel Kerr Park; and recognized Doomsday's 14 years of service as it closes.
• Councilmember Szyplinski noted the value of strong working relationships among community partners.
• Mayor Pro Tem Fritz reported a LEOFF Committee meeting and Regional Parks funding call on Thursday, and an interview on Friday as a candidate for the State Building Code Council.
• Councilmember Swofford will attend the Columbia River Economic Development Council Executive & Investor Annual Meeting on Friday, February 27, 2026, at 10:00 AM at Tapani Headquarters.
• Councilmember Robertson will attend a CTRAN Board meeting the next day.
• Councilmember Suggs planned to attend the Washougal Family Resource Night on Wednesday, the Washougal School Foundation meeting, and the Washougal School District School Board meeting on Tuesday.

Key Outcomes

• No formal votes were taken; this was a workshop.
• Council set the Annual Council Planning Session for May 2, 2026.
• Council gave consensus to proceed with the recommended five supplemental Community Survey questions, subject to final fine-tuning.
• The 2nd Street right-of-way vacation public hearing was scheduled for February 23, 2026.
• Next meeting: Monday, February 23, 2026, with a workshop at 5:00 PM and a council meeting at 7:00 PM. The meeting adjourned at 6:39 PM.

Note on Source Discrepancies

• The agenda lists Public Works item presenter as “Trever Evers”; the minutes and transcript use “Trevor Evers.”
• The minutes describe the federal funding as “PFAS remediation design”; the transcript uses “PFOS remediation design.”
• Councilmember Wagner’s announcements differ slightly between the minutes and the transcript: the minutes refer to a Regional Parks Board meeting “tomorrow” at 4:00 PM, while the transcript states the regional parks board meeting is at 4:30 PM.