Mayor hopes to leave Edmonds better than how he found it

Published 1:30 am Saturday, December 21, 2019

EDMONDS — Dave Earling started teaching music at Shoreline Community College in the 1960s. His first instrumental group had fewer than three dozen musicians.

When he left the school 11 years later, the instrumental department was the largest in the Northwest with more than 200 students.

Now as the 76-year-old Earling’s time as mayor comes to an end, he sees the city of Edmonds the same way he did the community college — better than how he found it.

“I happen to believe in ‘Leave it better than when you arrived,’” Earling said. “I decided in December (2018) that we’re there.”

Earling moved into the mayor’s office in 2011 after defeating an appointed incumbent, Mike Cooper. Controversies dogged Cooper’s campaign and opened the door for Earling to take nearly 65% of the vote.

But the city was in bad shape when Earling took over, he said. The recession had hit the city hard, forcing Earling to make sweeping cuts in his first budget. And staff morale was low.

“The town wasn’t feeling good about itself,” Earling said.

He came to City Hall fresh off a stint as the owner of a real estate firm.

Residents were worried that Edmonds, the oldest city in the county, would lose its small town charm to high-rise buildings downtown.

Change is hard for people, Earling said. And he’s no different.

He’s carried the same comb for 35 years.

His wife, Susan Earling, would like to do away with a leather chair they’ve owned for a decade. It’s frayed, he admits, but he wants to hold onto it.

“The only way we can generate the revenue that the city needs to meet the life expectations of the people that live here is admitting we don’t have any big-box stores and we don’t have any shopping malls,” Earling said. “We now have become a daytime destination. We need to stay on that track.”

Another priority for Earling was to establish Edmonds as a city for the arts.

He cited the Cascadia Art Museum, which showcases Northwest artists, and the Edmonds Center for the Arts as key amenities.

Previously, art lovers had to journey to Seattle for a show or installation. Now, Edmonds can have the same draw.

“That brings people to town,” he said.

Going forward, the issues for Edmonds are Highway 99 development, restoration of the Edmonds Marsh and east-west transportation lines, he said.

The development is inevitable, he said. So it’s important to find where new residents can fit.

Earling started his career in politics in 1991 when he was elected to the Edmonds City Council. He served on the dais for 12 years.

Politically, he’s often labeled as a moderate Republican.

That hasn’t stopped people on both sides of the aisle from praising and opposing him.

But that’s politics, Earling said. No matter the decision, you’re going to lose a voter here and a voter there.

“One of the delights about the 12 years I spent on the council, or even now at least on the dais, all of that stuff goes away,” Earling said. “The focus then becomes what’s the best decision for the body you’re representing. You’re there to do the business of the institution.”

But that’s changing, he said. Working across the aisle has become a lost art.

“People are choosing reasons they can’t get along with someone else, as opposed to asking, ‘Where’s the middle ground?’ ” he said.

That’s what drew Earling to his longtime friend and colleague, former Snohomish County Executive Bob Drewel.

While Drewel and current county Executive Dave Somers are both Democrats, they don’t always think politically, Earling said.

Drewel said the same of Earling.

“Dave took all of his principles and ethics, being a good husband, being a good father, and applied that to public service,” Drewel said. “We could use a whole heap of Dave Earlings in this day and age.”

Earling’s political career wasn’t tied to Edmonds. He previously served on the Community Transit and Sound Transit boards.

In 2006, Gov. Christine Gregoire appointed Earling to the Puget Sound Growth Management Hearing Board.

Currently he sits on the Sound Transit Board of Directors and Economic Alliance of Snohomish County Board of Trustees.

While on the boards and commissions, Earling stood out as a futurist, Drewel said.

“Dave is one of those folks that, during a time when the county was needing more regional leadership, stepped in and provided that,” Drewel said. “Dave was extraordinarily important to the citizens of Edmonds, but also understood that Edmonds would benefit as the region benefited.”

Although he’s stepping away for now, Earling says he isn’t retiring. There are some ideas of what he’ll do next but nothing is set, except for travel.

People have reached out with opportunities for boards and other positions, he said.

But Earling gives them all the same answer.

“At the end of the year, we’ll talk,” he said.

Joey Thompson: 425-339-3449; jthompson@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @byjoeythompson.