Edmonds mayor talks budget, collaboration, service in annual address

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, March 17, 2026

EVERETT — Edmonds Mayor Mike Rosen discussed the city’s accomplishments in 2025 and goals for 2026 in his annual State of the City address Monday.

The city’s top priority for the next year, Rosen said, is long-term financial sustainability. While the city has a balanced budget for 2026, Rosen said it could face a nearly $9 million gap by 2031 if the city doesn’t make any changes to its finances.

In addition, the city has less than one month of expenses in its reserves, far below its policy of two months of expenses. In November, voters rejected a $14.5 million property tax levy lid lift.

“I don’t think we should just be looking at how we can endure, and I think we’re living in that place right now,” Rosen said. “We’ve got to be able to create the future that we want.”

The city is currently working on developing a long-range financial forecast and strategic plan. Rosen said the city will emphasize public engagement in all steps of the process, starting with a survey the city will send out in the next couple of months, Rosen said.

Another priority for the city is disaster preparedness, Rosen said. In 2024, the city completed a new draft of its emergency management plan through 2029. The city is working on moving its emergency operations center, which is currently at the police department, to a new location, Rosen said. One priority for the next year, Rosen said, is ensuring vehicles can get to and from the waterfront, even if the railroad crossing is closed.

“A couple months ago, both crossings were blocked for a while, and that was just a reminder that — it could be a heart attack or a stroke — seconds matter,” Rosen said. “It could be an active shooter — seconds matter.”

The city is also in preliminary discussions regarding annexing Esperance, an unincorporated neighborhood surrounded by Edmonds, Rosen said. This year, the city plans to conduct a feasibility study on what annexation would mean for the city. If it moves forward with annexation, the process would take about 16 months, Rosen said.

Rosen said he wants to explore further collaboration opportunities with south Snohomish County cities and local organizations. Combining resources could be beneficial for other cities, including Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace, that are also facing budget challenges, Rosen said.

“We’re looking at all sorts of opportunities to collaborate and leverage our resources,” Rosen said. “I think this is way more where the future is going, is looking at these kinds of regional collaborations and sharing resources.”

Other priorities for the city include updating the development code, planning for facility repairs and improving internal systems, Rosen said.

Rosen also shared some data points from the past year.

This year, the police department has about 60 officers, down from 71 in 2021 and 84 in 2024. The Edmonds Police Department traffic unit reported that there were fewer collisions in 2025 than in each of the past four years. The most common crimes in 2025 were larceny and theft, assault, and destruction and vandalism.

The public works department completed 24 facility capital projects last year and is targeting 40 projects in 2026, Rosen said. Last year, the department cleaned out more than 3,000 of the city’s catch basins out of 7,000.

“Recently, we went through this monster flooding, and we missed a big part of that,” Rosen said. “We also could have had bigger damage than we did because our crew is out there maintaining our system to move all of that water appropriately.”

The planning and development department issued nearly 1,700 building permits last year, including 39 new housing permits. Fifteen of those were for detached accessory dwelling units, which the city started accepting last year to comply with new state laws. About 80% of the city was rezoned last year through new city laws regarding middle housing and neighborhood hubs.

The parks department reduced its expenses by $250,000 and reduced its water usage by 7% in 2025. The department also planted 430 trees and shrubs. The city’s recreation programs generated $1.2 million in revenue, Rosen said.

The economic development department focused on promoting local businesses last year on social media, Rosen said. The department has continued working on the Highway 99 revitalization project, which is currently in pre-design. Two new apartment projects should receive permits soon, Rosen said, at the former Edmonds Family Fun Center and Apollo Apartments.

With the World Cup coming to Seattle in the summer, the city secured $40,000 for marketing funding, Rosen said. Two businesses have received funding for watch parties, and the city is looking to collaborate with other cities in the region for the event, Rosen said.

In April, Rosen plans to meet with local organizations to discuss a community service initiative launched by former U.S. Rep. Brian Baird, who lives in Edmonds. The program could include creating a local museum exhibit that showcases service opportunities in Edmonds.

“Imagine the collaboration that can happen among these organizations and unleash that potential that is Edmonds,” Rosen said. “That’s who we are.”

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