Edmonds Council President Zippets and members of the Committee of the Whole on Sept. 16 reviewed recommendations from the Edmonds Business Improvement District and the Edmonds Downtown Alliance and said they are generally willing to accept the board’s work to date and ask staff to return a resolution and supporting documentation. "The council on April 2, 2024 adopted resolution 15 43, which established a timeline, and some requirements for, reestablishment of the bid no later than, the summer of this year," city staff said during the discussion.

Why it matters: The discussion determines whether the BID will be treated as reestablished under Resolution 15 43 or whether the council will require a new petition or membership affirmation. Council members said they do not want to force a costly petition process that the BID lacks capacity to complete, but they want documentation of governance, membership processes and the city attorney’s legal opinion before formal reestablishment is placed on a future council agenda.

Council and staff framed next steps as guidance rather than a final decision. Sheila, who presented the BID board’s recommendations, said the board requests that the council accept the board’s August recommendations and allow the BID to complete a 3–5 year work plan. "There is approximately $8,000 that could be put towards this work," Sheila said when asked about funding, referring to BID reserves to support a program manager and implementation hours. Staff told the committee that any additional spending authority would be processed through the mid‑biennium budget update and come from BID reserves, not the city general fund.

Council members pressed for three items before final action: (1) the city attorney’s written opinion or memorandum explaining why the BID was legally established in 2023, (2) the BID’s organizational and governance documents (bylaws, meeting quorum rules, election processes), and (3) a clear 3–5 year work plan that includes metrics, a proposed sunset clause, and a collections policy for unpaid assessments. Councilmember Jenna asked for the organization documents to be included in the next packet to provide “more than enough comfort” for council and the public.

On the question of reinitiation method, the BID’s presenter said the city attorney previously confirmed the BID was legally established and that a petition method (described in Uncommon Bridges' proposal) would be costly and lack the volunteer capacity required to collect signatures. She proposed that the work completed since 02/2023 be accepted as satisfying the requirements of Resolution 15 43 and that the council consider a sunset clause or other metrics in the 3–5 year plan.

Funding and timing: Council and staff said there is no current general‑fund support for the BID; the approximately $8,000 under discussion would come from BID reserves. Staff noted earlier city budget contributions to the reinitiation consultant totalled about $10,000 (the city’s contribution was described as approximately $8,000 in the discussion). Any required increase in spending authority would be included in the mid‑biennium budget modification for 2026.

What was decided and what comes next: The Committee of the Whole provided guidance and requested staff return a draft resolution for council consideration incorporating: acceptance of work to date, the BID’s proposed 3–5 year work plan, the city attorney’s legal memorandum, the BID’s organizational documents, and a reporting cadence (annual or biannual reports). No formal council action was taken at this meeting because the Committee of the Whole is not authorized to adopt final resolutions; staff will place a draft resolution on a future council agenda for final decision.

Quote: "If we take up the sunset clause in the 3 to 5 year work plan ... my suggestion, if we move forward on this, is that I would be in favor of, you know, calling a lot of the BIDs that are in Washington State already and finding out what metrics they use," Sheila said.

Ending: Staff and the BID agreed to assemble the requested legal opinion, organizational documents and a draft work plan for presentation to the full council in a future regular meeting. The Committee of the Whole did not vote on a reestablishment; it advised staff on materials and a timeline for a future resolution.