Paine Field passenger flights resound with Mukilteo voters

When Mukilteo City Council member Emily Vanderwielen decided not to seek re-election, there was no lack of interest by people seeking to take her place with three candidates seeking the job.

Jon Boyce is a real estate broker. Max Chen is an Edmonds Community College student. And Richard Emery is one of the founding members of the Japanese Gulch Group.

The decades-long debate over whether to allow passenger flights at nearby Paine Field is one of the most talked-about issues the candidates say they hear about from voters.

Boyce said that he would like to see a step taken at Paine Field similar to that at some European airports — a curfew on late evening and early morning flights, perhaps from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. “We don’t want any flights at night,” he said. “Paine Field’s got a long way to go to being a better neighbor before we can say, ‘OK maybe we should talk about this.’”

Emery said that an estimated 80 percent of the voters he’s talked with are opposed to opening up passenger flights at Paine Field. “I don’t see any benefit to Mukilteo,” Emery said.

“A lot of people think it will bring jobs to the area,” he said. But Emery said he thinks they primarily would be service-level jobs. He said he would like to see a coordinated effort to attract more family-wage jobs.

Chen said there are options to put air passenger service elsewhere in Snohomish County, although he said he didn’t have a specific suggestion as to where.

“Right now, with the noise pollution it’s not something the city wants,” Chen said. The city’s current court fight, even if doesn’t succeed, allows the city time to plan for what might happen if more flights ultimately are approved, he said.

All three candidates said they generally support the new fee-for-parking plan at Lighthouse Park for non-city residents, but acknowledged that there are still issues to resolve.

One of the unintended problems it’s created is people seeking free parking in other parts of the city, such as Old Town, Emery said. While city residents can get one free parking pass, which hangs on the rear view mirror in cars, there’s no way that pass will work for people who ride motorcycles, he said, or for two-car families who want to meet up at the park.

Chen noted that the parking fees help pay for clean-up of the park and for two park rangers. Chen said he’s interested in examining the idea of a parking garage in the waterfront area.

Boyce said the parking plan isn’t perfect but is an improvement. “In the world we live in, you don’t get to park for free,” he said.

Boyce is a 22-year resident of Mukilteo. If elected, Boyce said he would move to immediately halt any future annexation plans. He questioned the selection process for the committee working on plans for Japanese Gulch, a 144-acre park with trails. He said plans for the park are “decidedly unpopular” in Mukilteo. People who live near the 76th Street trailhead weren’t involved enough in planning, he said.

Emery is a founding member of the Japanese Gulch Group, which worked for years to preserve the land which is now a city park. He said he thinks some BMX activities could occur on property near the 76th Street trailhead. A citizens committee is working with the city to write a master plan for the park.

Chen is a graduate of Kamiak High School. This is the first time he’s has run for elected office. One of the reasons he hopes to be elected is he said he thinks that the work would be exciting. “It covers so many different fields: engineering, science and business,” he said.

Chen has helped lead EdCC’s project to help fellow homeless students with housing and other needs. He is working on an associate degree in science, studying bioengineering, chemistry, physics and computer science.

The two candidates who garner the most votes in the Aug. 4 primary will face off in the November general election.

Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486 or salyer@heraldnet.com

Members of the Mukilteo City Council serve for four-year terms. Council members are paid $6,000 a year.

Name: Jon Boyce

Age: 66

Experience: Real estate broker, involved with parent-teacher organizations, long-term interest in the Japanese Gulch project.

Website: JonBoyce.com

Name: Max Chen

Age: 26

Experience: Works for At Your Service, an event services company; Edmonds Community College student

Website: maxchenmukilteo.com

Name:Richard Emery