EVERETT — Everett’s city council and mayor selected individuals on Wednesday to serve on a committee that will review the city’s charter and may propose amendments that could appear on the November ballot.
The Charter Review Committee is a group of volunteers that review Everett’s charter — the city’s constitution, originally written in 1968 — and make recommendations as to possible changes. A committee meets to review the charter regularly, usually every 10 years.
After multiple meetings, the committee of 15 volunteers sends a list of possible changes to the city council, along with the reasons for the proposed changes. The council can then decide whether or not to send the recommended changes to the voters in the November election.
The city council selects seven members of the committee while the mayor selects seven. The 14 members then select one additional individual to serve on the committee.
On Wednesday, the council voted to select Mason Rutledge, Zsofia Pasztor, Brady Begin, Tom Norcott, Grant Harrington, Shari Ireton and Deb Williams to serve on the committee. Mayor Cassie Franklin selected Rod Sniffen, Randy Bolerjack, Leland Dart, John Traynor, Eli Vazquez, Emily Hoke and Elizabeth Stenhouse to serve on the committee.
The city council will vote on a resolution laying out guidelines for the committee regarding meeting decorum at a future meeting.
The committee’s first meeting is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Feb. 12 in the Everett Municipal Building. The committee is required to hold at least two public hearings, but may hold more if they choose.
In 2016, voters approved three minor changes to the city charter recommended by the review commission. One removed a requirement for the city council to meet weekly. A second allowed the city to correct minor errors and remove archaic words like “hereof.” The third added language stating that appointments to city boards and commissions should consider factors like geography, gender, ethnicity and age to better reflect the city’s diversity.
Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.
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