Edmonds approves modified mid-biennial budget

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, December 17, 2025

EVERETT — Edmonds approved changes to its mid-biennial budget Tuesday, including some position eliminations and other reductions.

The city’s original 2026 budget — passed in December 2024 — included $6 million in revenue from a property tax levy lid lift. In November, voters rejected a $14.5 million levy with only 41% of votes in favor. Without the extra revenue, the city had to find $6 million elsewhere.

In addition to the missing levy revenue, the city estimated a $1.3 million decrease in retail sales tax revenue for 2026, as sales tax revenue for 2025 has been lower than expected.

On Dec. 3, the council approved an 18-month utility tax increase, from 10% to 20%. The increase will amount to $3.3 million in additional revenue for 2026.

In August, the council approved a 0.1% public safety sales tax, which is expected to bring in about $1 million for 2026.

In June, the council passed a resolution stating the anticipated cuts if the levy failed. With the two additional taxes, the council did not have to make as many cuts as outlined in the resolution.

The approved budget includes an $819,5000 reduction in the police department budget for 2026, which includes two patrol positions and other service reductions. The cuts will impact the department’s ability to participate in regional task forces and availability for public events, Police Chief Loi Dawkins said. Dawkins also expects an increase in overtime pay.

“It’s quite painful to see the impact to safety, knowing that I trust the chief and the department fully well that they would not put us in jeopardy, but we could be going after things that we will not be able to do with this budget,” council member Chris Eck said.

The police budget passed by a vote of 6-1. Council member Vivian Olson voted against the budget after proposing the city allocate some parks maintenance funding to keep the two patrol positions.

For the parks department, the new budget includes a 13% cut in parks maintenance staffing levels and hours. The parks budget passed unanimously.

Council member Jenna Nand expressed her concern for cutting parks maintenance at a time when historic weather is compromising outdoor safety in the region.

“If these aren’t being maintained over the next year … what’s that going to mean for whether we can keep parks open safely in Edmonds in 2026 and beyond?” Nand said. “I hope that this does not become the new normal, that we can work with the state somehow to fix our revenue problems and be able to maintain a safe outdoor environment in the city of Edmonds.”

The parks budget also includes an additional $83,500 annual payment from Cascade Swim Club for the operations of Yost Pool. The figure is half of what the city currently pays for operations. Cascade currently pays $102,000 per year. Cascade Swim Club is a nonprofit that provides swim programs, Red Cross training and staffing, allowing the pool to stay open year-round.

At the council’s Dec. 9 meeting, many community members urged the council to find other funding for the pool, as the change could affect Cascade Swim Club’s ability to provide services.

“Frankly, this ask is an 82% increase that’s outside of our contract that it is likely … we are not going to be able to absorb,” said Max Effgen, vice president of Cascade Swim Club, at the Dec. 9 meeting. “Cascade was the only partner who offered to run the pool in 2022, and our results since then speak for themselves. Our partnership is working, there’s life lessons, skills, confidence and teamwork being learned by hundreds of children and swimmers of all ages.”

On Monday, Cascade Swim Club leadership sent a funding proposal to the city that asked for the city to fund $30,000 of the $83,500, parks director Angie Feser said.

“The proposal that came in from Cascade was very robust, very detailed, but it came to staff for the first time at 4:30 yesterday, so we have been unable to have a conversation with Cascade, talk about the elements of it, the conditions, and work through that with them,” Feser said.

Council member Michelle Dotsch proposed a motion to include the extra $30,000 in the city budget, but it failed by a vote of 3-4.

Council members have said they are willing to work with Cascade Swim Club to explore additional funding options, including community fundraising.

The approved budget also includes supporting the city’s the arts and culture program through the municipal arts fund — which does not have a renewable funding source — rather than the general fund.

“Ultimately, this puts the program on a completely unsustainable trajectory,” City Administrator Todd Tatum said.

The arts and culture program includes public art installations, arts economy planning and the city’s annual Write on the Sound conference.

The municipal court saw a $350,000 increase in its budget for additional staff to support automated enforcement, including red-light cameras speed cameras in school zones. The city expects increased enforcement to bring in additional revenue in 2026.

Other changes in the budget include reallocating public works funding and the addition of interest from the interfund loan the city took out last year.

The council also discussed a transportation benefit district sales tax. In 2008, the city established Edmonds as a transportation benefit district. The distinction allows the city to collect an additional 0.1% sales tax without voter approval. The city may also increase motor vehicle license fees from $40 to $50. The changes could generate an additional $660,000 in 2026, Tatum said.

The budget proposed to the council Tuesday included a $400,000 revenue assumption that the transportation benefit sales tax would be implemented in 2026. The council removed the tax from the budget by a vote of 4-3, causing the city to use $400,000 from its reserves.

“We have (made assumptions) before, and I think we also learned from that, that by making this kind of assumption, we end up doing double, triple the amount of work,” council member Will Chen said. “So I think it’s wise to remove it, and once we pass it, we can always come back with a budget amendment to add it.”

The council plans to hold a public hearing on the sales tax on Jan. 6, the first meeting of 2026.

Jenna Peterson: 425-339-3486; jenna.peterson@heraldnet.com; X: @jennarpetersonn.