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Record of Proceedings

Washougal City Council Workshop on Budget, Transportation, and Parks – August 10, 2026

City Council — Monday, August 10, 2026
BodyWashougal, Washington
SessionCity Council
DateMonday, August 10, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:18:16

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording. Names come from transcript evidence. “Possibly” marks uncertain attribution.

Speaker 1

0:12

So welcome to uh the watch people.

0:19

Um I was like called the supporter.

Unassigned speaker

0:22

I

Speaker 1

0:22

don't know which place.

0:26

I'm here.

0:29

Here's

Speaker 2

0:30

the member.

0:41

Council membership link.

Speaker 3

0:43

Here,

Speaker 2

0:44

student representative Laura.

Speaker 1

0:49

Alright, we're good to go.

0:51

So welcome to our uh workshop.

0:54

We're open for public comments.

0:56

You have three minutes.

0:57

Please state your name.

0:59

Where you live.

1:00

Tell us what you want to say.

1:02

Well, you

Speaker 4

1:03

can start speaking here.

Speaker 1

1:05

No, come on.

1:09

Yeah.

1:09

Thanks for coming.

Speaker 4

1:10

Yeah.

1:11

Thanks for having the opportunity to speak.

Speaker 1

1:14

For being a solution, helping us out with our students.

Speaker 4

1:17

So my name is Heidi Burkhard.

1:20

I live down the street, 1028 C Street in Washical.

1:23

Have lived there since October of 2012, before that I lived on Bear Prairie.

1:28

So I live right in town.

1:30

And I work at the state of Washington, helping schools.

1:38

And I was walking my dog on July 23rd, 2026 at dusk.

1:44

It was a warm night.

1:46

So I waited to walk the dog until it was a little bit cooler.

Unassigned speaker

1:51

At

Speaker 4

1:51

a chihuahua in a lab.

1:55

And so we were down on the dock, which is right through the tunnel at Pendleton Woolen Mills.

2:02

And we

Unassigned speaker

2:05

did

Speaker 4

2:06

our little loop and we sat down and then we got up to leave.

2:09

And then a gentleman was walking um the other direction.

2:14

He was drunk.

2:16

Um might have been

Speaker 5

2:18

on the pier.

Speaker 4

2:19

Yeah.

2:19

On the pier, and my dog kind of barked at him a little bit, little growled, and he threatened my dog.

2:27

I did a report number.

2:28

It was actually police notes, number two six, two seven, three one seven.

2:35

And um I felt very unsafe down there.

2:40

I won't say for the room what he said to me, but it was disturbing.

2:48

Um he said that he was going to rip out the throat of my dog with his bare hands.

Speaker 1

3:04

Okay, and

Speaker 4

3:06

so I call I waited until I got to the edge of the other dock, you know, till the end, it loops around, and then I called 911 and I said, Hey, I need to walk home, and I explained what happened, and so I headed that direction, and when I got to the other side, I noticed that he didn't walk the loop.

3:26

He had gone, I think, to that little park that's really overgrown.

3:31

So the point of my story today is that um the public, the community members, you know, kids that go down there very often should feel safe, and there should not be anyone camping out, making fires, living, um, cooking, any any of that, camping or sleeping over shouldn't be allowed, and that area to the east of the dock is so overgrown now that I did not feel safe to go down there with my dog, throw the ball.

Unassigned speaker

4:08

I

Speaker 4

4:08

mean, I thought, you know, I could ask my brother to help go down there and clear some brush, but I thought I would put in a request to ask for the brush to be cleared so that community members can go down there.

4:23

Any questions?

Unassigned speaker

4:24

Oh,

Speaker 1

4:25

we'll check it out and uh when you dial 911 that our cops

Speaker 4

4:29

come.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Parks and Recreation█████████████████████████████29%
Transportation Safety██████████████████████████26%
Procedural███████████████15%
Community Engagement██████████10%
Budget Equity Analysis███████7%
Public Safety████4%
Economic Development████4%
Personnel Matters███3%
Public Engagement██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Washougal City Council Workshop on Budget, Transportation, and Parks – August 10, 2026

The Washougal City Council held a workshop on August 10, 2026, at 5:00 PM, presided over by Mayor David Stuebe. Councilmembers David Fritz, Tia Robertson, Michelle Wagner (via Zoom), David Szyplinski (via Zoom), and Ernie Suggs (joined at 5:14 PM) were present. Councilmember Marty Swofford and Student Representative Jake Larzalere were absent. The meeting featured discussions on the 2027-2028 budget process, the Transportation Capital Facilities Plan (TCFP) update, and the Comprehensive Parks, Recreation & Open Space Plan update. The meeting adjourned at 6:18 PM.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Heidi Burkhart expressed safety concerns near the waterfront dock following a threatening encounter on July 23, 2026, in which an intoxicated individual threatened her dog. She spoke about camping, fires, and overnight activity in the area and requested that overgrown vegetation east of the dock be cleared to improve visibility and public safety.
  • Port Commissioner Larry Keister announced that the Wings and Wheels event at Grove Field Airport will be held Thursday, August 27, from 4:00 to 9:00 PM, noting the schedule was adjusted from Saturday due to the event's growing popularity.

Discussion Items

  • Finance: 2027-2028 Budget Process: Finance Director Daniel Layer presented the budget process and calendar. The presentation covered the Strategic Plan Implementation Fund (SPIF), its use for ongoing programs, and the timeline for department reviews, public hearings, and adoption. Councilmember Ernie Suggs asked about department head budget request guidelines.
  • Community Development: Transportation Capital Facilities Plan (TCFP): Mitch Kneipp and DOWL consultants presented the TCFP update, covering vision and goals, multimodal level of service (including new pedestrian and bicycle metrics), and climate resiliency. Councilmember Suggs raised safety concerns regarding e-bikes and scooters. City Manager David Scott responded that existing laws are in place and enforcement is the primary mechanism. The team confirmed the Crown Road crossing for school children is included in the plan. Funding and impact fees will be addressed at a future meeting.
  • Community Development: Comprehensive Parks, Recreation & Open Space Plan: Mitch Kneipp and consultants from DOWL and MIG presented the plan update, which responds to state requirements (HB 1181) and includes a tree canopy analysis and access gap analysis. Key themes include maintenance and reinvestment. Councilmember Tia Robertson stressed connectivity and park integration in new developments. The plan recommends two new neighborhood parks, one community park, and new trail corridors.
  • Miscellaneous Council Discussions: Councilmember Robertson requested a discussion on codifying stricter blasting regulations, which was referred to the Community Development Committee. Councilmember David Fritz expressed concerns about individuals sleeping in the park under development near City Hall and urged the city to develop a maintenance and safety plan.

Reports and Communications

  • City Manager: David Scott reported that he will attend the Washington City Management Association meeting and announced that National Night Out has been rescheduled for Tuesday, August 18. Jonathan Boehme was introduced as the new Deputy Public Works Director/City Engineer.
  • Mayor: Mayor Stuebe commended Mitch Kneipp for his work on a comment letter to Skamania County regarding the mine quarry project and suggested further discussion on next steps.
  • City Council: Councilmember Robertson thanked the Fire Department for its assistance with the Rain in the Park event. Councilmember Suggs requested a future discussion with state transportation leaders. Councilmembers Wagner and Szyplinski deferred.

Key Outcomes

  • No formal votes were taken, consistent with the workshop format.
  • The 2027-2028 budget process calendar is established, with department reviews and public hearings leading to anticipated adoption in November 2026.
  • The TCFP and Parks plans will proceed to Planning Commission hearings before returning to the City Council for adoption, expected in December 2026.
  • The discussion on blasting regulations will be explored by the Community Development Committee.
  • National Night Out is rescheduled for August 18, 2026.
  • The next meeting is scheduled for Monday, August 24, 2026 (Workshop at 5:00 PM and Council at 7:00 PM).

Meeting Transcript

So welcome to uh the watch people. Um I was like called the supporter. I don't know which place. I'm here. Here's the member. Council membership link. Here, student representative Laura. Alright, we're good to go. So welcome to our uh workshop. We're open for public comments. You have three minutes. Please state your name. Where you live. Tell us what you want to say. Well, you can start speaking here. No, come on. Yeah. Thanks for coming. Yeah. Thanks for having the opportunity to speak. For being a solution, helping us out with our students. So my name is Heidi Burkhard. I live down the street, 1028 C Street in Washical. Have lived there since October of 2012, before that I lived on Bear Prairie. So I live right in town. And I work at the state of Washington, helping schools. And I was walking my dog on July 23rd, 2026 at dusk. It was a warm night. So I waited to walk the dog until it was a little bit cooler. At a chihuahua in a lab. And so we were down on the dock, which is right through the tunnel at Pendleton Woolen Mills. And we did our little loop and we sat down and then we got up to leave. And then a gentleman was walking um the other direction. He was drunk. Um might have been on the pier. Yeah. On the pier, and my dog kind of barked at him a little bit, little growled, and he threatened my dog. I did a report number. It was actually police notes, number two six, two seven, three one seven. And um I felt very unsafe down there. I won't say for the room what he said to me, but it was disturbing. Um he said that he was going to rip out the throat of my dog with his bare hands.

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