Large field is vying for water district post

With incumbent Phillip Lay moving outside the area served by the Alderwood Water District, the race to fill his spot on the district’s Board of Commissioners has drawn the largest field of any South Snohomish County race.

Three men and one woman are running for the spot, which will appear on the Sept. 20 primary election ballot. The top two vote-getters will advance to November’s general election. Three of the four candidates are first-time public office seekers.

This year’s candidates are Steve Aaby, Carol Gilbert, John Malone and Larey McLaren.

Steve Aaby

Aaby, 57, is making his first run at public office. He previously served on school PTAs and as vice president of the Northshore Public Education Foundation.

“I’ve watched how the district has grown the last five years and we’re not talking about a water district, it’s a big business,” Aaby said.

Aaby said he was thinking about running for a seat on the commission for a while, but the recent visit by several staff members and three commissioners to Europe to look at sewage treatment technology convinced him that the district needs greater financial oversight.

“They took a lot of people,” he said. “Sending three commissioners sounded excessive.”

Aaby, a 23-year Bothell resident, is married with two grown daughters. He is a former corporate accountant and works in management consulting.

Carol Gilbert

Gilbert, of Mountlake Terrace, has worked for the city of Lynnwood as an engineering technician in the public works department for seven years. She is making her first run at elected office, but serves on the Civil Service Board in Mountlake Terrace and has served on the board of the Snohomish County Center for Battered Women for seven years. She is currently president of that board.

“I believe in community service,” she said. “I believe in giving back.”

The former owner of a plumbing business, Gilbert cited Brightwater and the Picnic Point wastewater treatment plant as issues of concern.

“Just keeping an eye on them, avoiding cost overruns and making sure neighborhood safety is protected,” she said.

Gilbert, 55, has three grown sons and five grandsons.

John Malone

Malone, 60, is making his first run at elected office.

He has been active in his church, North Creek Presbyterian in Mill Creek, for a number of years, having served as an elder and deacon. He is also a former treasurer with the Martha Lake Community Club.

“I really think the district is run pretty well,” Malone said. “My primary concern is to try and maintain the rates the best we can for families, provide a good service at a good price.”

A longtime small business owner, Malone currently works for Everett-based SeaDog Corporation, a marine hardware distributor, as a comptroller.

“I see my financial background as a benefit to the district,” said Malone, who is married with three adult children and eight grandchildren. He lives in the Mays Pond area between Mill Creek and Bothell.

Larey McLaren

McLaren, 53, is looking to return to the board after a three-and-half year absence. He served on the board from January of 1999 to December 2001, after being appointed to start a new position when the board expanded from three to five members.

“My perspectives and experience will serve the district ratepayers well as we move forward and face challenges of increased growth and wastewater treatment,” McLaren said. “It’s important that ratepayers be served by a board that is not all industry insiders.”

A resident of the Mays Pond area between Mill Creek and Bothell, McLaren also says he wants the district to take a long-term view when it renegotiates its contracts with cities it serves, such as Mill Creek, Lynnwood, Mountlake Terrace and Edmonds.

He also says he wants to ensure that when the expansion of the Picnic Point wastewater treatment facility is complete, that it includes expansion capability and technology that will last.

McLaren, 53, spent 25 years working in manufacturing material management and recently graduated from Edmonds Community College with a degree in construction management. He is married and a former state party chair.