||| FROM LEITH TEMPLIN |||
As I sat and listened to our County Council meeting this week and watched how professionally and respectfully Rick Hughes chaired the meeting I was so appreciative of all that he has brought to the council and has accomplished for San Juan County and most especially the projects that have been accomplished on Orcas.
I was so saddened when he announced that he had resigned from the Opportunity Council, NACO Rural broadband, NW Regional Council, WA State Assoc of Counties JEDI and transportation committee as well as the legislative steering committee and the Ferry Advisory and the NACO Transportation Subcommittee.
President-Elect Biden just announced his proposed Transportation Plan and it does not mention any funding for ferries. With Rick’s absence and connections in Washington DC and Olympia especially in these last two committees I can see the hope of the new hydro-electric ferry fading into the sunset and possibly the hope of a new regular ferry as well.
His guidance through COVID was remarkable and will be sorely missed. We are headed into possibly again more restrictive shutdowns as the number of cases soar across the state. We have lost some of our small business already and I am hoping that the others will be able to hold on. Our budget is tight and we have been so lucky that our county employees rose to the occasion this year to take on additional work loads when jobs were cut in the courts and public works to name a couple. This is not sustainable.
The council and staff have been working hard for at least three years on the Comprehensive Plan update and making sure that we are compliant with the Growth Management Act as mandated. It will be quite a burden on Staff and the remaining council person to be able to finish the Comprehensive Plan with not one but two new council members that have not been involved in the process at all. The learning curve will be incredible and then you throw in understanding the funding and budget process for the whole county plus COVID plus our economic down turn. I hope you have your seat belt on because we are in for the ride of our life and our community.
Thank you again, Rick, for all your dedication to try to do the right thing for our community. I for one will miss your leadership and guidance through the days ahead. I am sure your family will enjoy being able to have an uninterrupted dinner with you now. Take care my friend.
I, too, want to acknowledge Rick Hughes’ many years of service and commitment to our Island and San Juan County. He has built deep connections across the State and Nation and our communities have benefited from his networks and resourcing.
Our ferry service, local businesses and affordable housing need constant tending and I hope there will be a transfer of knowledge to keep our San Juan Islands solvent.
Leith, Gretchen, and Others….
I too will add to the expressions of GRATITUDE we share for Rick’s tireless service. We lost Kevin Ranker (State Senator) and now Rick Hughes…..
Hopefully Cindy and Christine will apply themselves as diligently as did Rick Hughes, Patty Miller, and Richard Fralick. We have been blessed with superb representatives from Orcas.
High expectations for Cindy.
Those of us who have worked closely with Rick know that his absence on the County Council will be a huge loss for the people of San Juan County. Gratitude for all you’ve done Rick!
I too share thanks and appreciation to Rick for his years of service. But, shucks, Leith, did you really think President-elect Biden was going to remember us in his yet-undrafted Transportation Plan? Or did you mean current-Gov. Inslee’s $44 billion plan funding highways, ferries and rail through the year 2035, including many millions for electric ferry planning, charging infrastructure, and hybrid-electric vessels.
Thank you Rick for your role in that too.
Hopefully there will be, unlike the current presidential “transition,” an ample opportunity for Rick to share his invaluable institutional knowledge and experience with Cindy and Chris. Thank you agin, Rick, for your service and dedication.
I join those who want to honor Rick Hughes for his services through the years to our county and its citizens. so many meetings and conversations showing how he researched the history and the issues in every effort to help those who came before him and the county government with an issue revealed his intellect and his heart to do the right thing. Yes, enjoy a break now, and hopefully we’ll be smart enough to seek your help in moving ahead.
Thanks for your service Rick. Now, man up and help Cindy with the transistion so the next four years are not as rough as Leith fears they will be.
I echo all these comments.
I also know you will go overboard, Rick with your ‘transition help” to Cindy. Because of so many difficult and on-going issues on the table right now, how about voting in a “double occupancy” for District 2 for a year…at least 6 months so as to.give months, not days to successfully pass the baton?
One vote during council meetings, but 4 hands and two heads for working through the issues.
When a person runs for a political position, it is incumbent upon them to spend the requisite time necessary to understand what they are getting into. It is my hope that Cindy has been engaged in committee work, attending corresponding agency meetings and communicating with critical county and state organizations and acquainting herself with the comp-plan review for the last 1-2 years in order to be properly equipped to accomplish the work required. She campaigned as prepared to take office and was voted in with that understanding.
While I am sure that Rick will pass along necessary information for a smooth transition, but if we are counting on him to act as a “tutor” on local government then we better heed Leith’s warning. That’s not his job, and frankly it’s not a job that should be required.
I’m sure there are many who will disagree with me so let me say that this is just my opinion. The reason Rick didn’t win is because he didn’t have “prefers democratic party” by his name and he wasn’t endorsed by San Juan County Democrats. Our county council is no longer non partisan.
I know at least 15-20 people that vote straight Democrat. They feel they are doing their civic duty by voting but they are uninformed, ignorant voters.
San Juan County is probably one of the most, if not the most, democratic county in our state. Right up there with King County. If you look at the election results by county you will see this. As a comparison, all democratic candidates received less than 60% of the vote in Skagit County and over 70% of the vote in San Juan County.
If we really want our local elections to be non partisan we need to stop the endorsements from political parties. And our voters guide and ballots should not say “prefers Democratic/Republican party”.