Committee confirms appointments to Central Waterfront Oversight Committee

The Parks, Public Utilities and Technology Committee on Feb. 12 voted 5-0 to confirm 12 appointments and reappointments to the Central Waterfront Oversight Committee and will send the committee recommendation to the full City Council for final confirmation.

The oversight committee, chartered to monitor waterfront maintenance, programming and public safety, was created by city legislation tied to waterfront redevelopment and the park boulevard designation. The appointees will serve terms through Dec. 31, 2025, and a thirteenth appointee will be considered at the Feb. 26 full Council meeting after a clerical correction was discovered.

The committee’s oversight role grew as Seattle Center became the operating department for the waterfront and Friends of Waterfront Park became the nonprofit partner; the waterfront’s operations are funded in part by a $160,000,000 local improvement district (LID). Marshall Foster, Seattle Center director, told the committee, “This group plays a really essential role in making our waterfront successful.”

Clerk-read materials identified the confirmed names as Eric Howard, Pamela Quadros, Michelle Rusk, Leslie Velos, Katie Garrow, Emily Huber George, Sean Jackson, Gary Johnson, Edward M. Lee, Jim Roe, Craig Schaeffer and Donnie Stevenson (terms to 12/31/2025). The committee noted three new appointments plus two members that shifted from mayoral to council appointment status.

Committee members praised the balance of stakeholders on the panel — nonprofit representatives, downtown property owners tied to the LID, tenant and residential property owner seats and the Port of Seattle — citing the panel’s role in developing the waterfront’s annual performance standards and oversight of the downtown property community obligations tied to the LID. Councilmember Strauss said the list represents “the key stakeholders to keep this work moving forward.”

Roll call on the committee recommendation to confirm the appointees recorded five votes in favor, none opposed. The committee’s recommendation will be transmitted to the full City Council for final action at the Feb. 18 council meeting; the thirteenth appointee will be transmitted separately on Feb. 26.

The oversight committee meets quarterly and provides an annual performance report to the mayor and council. Its duties include reviewing maintenance metrics, programming outcomes and public-safety coordination between Seattle Center, Friends of Waterfront Park and city maintenance teams. Tiffany Malachy, waterfront park operations manager, summarized the committee’s history and role, noting the committee’s work developing the performance standard in 2021 and its role in stewarding the park operations framework established by 2019 legislation.

By confirming these appointments, the committee seeks continuity for oversight as the waterfront transitions from construction to full operations and ongoing programming.