Richard Larsen, longtime public servant, dies at 73

ARLINGTON -- Richard "Dick" Noel Larsen, an Arlington Airport commissioner and a former member of the City Council and the planning commission, died Saturday following a lengthy illness. He was 73.

Larsen, a native of Arlington, is the father of U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen and former Arlington City Councilman Ryan Larsen.

For 20 years, from the 1970s through the early '90s, Larsen served first as a planning commissioner an then as an elected member of the City Council.

In his tenure, the city developed roads and installed many of the key pieces of the sewer and water system used by residents today.

"I point to he and my mom as a reason that I'm involved and ran for the County Council and Congress and why my brothers and sisters have chosen public service as a vocation," Rick Larsen said Sunday.

Dick Larsen worked as a lineman and a foreman for the Snohomish County Public Utility District, retiring in 1999.

He was a longtime member of Local 77 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union.

Larsen is survived by his wife, Yolanda; three sons; five daughters; and 14 grandchildren.

Funeral services for Larsen are pending.