Lynnwood council waives three‑candidate rule for public works director; pauses WUTC solid‑waste transition

The Lynnwood City Council on Feb. 10 approved a resolution allowing the mayor to refer a single candidate for appointment as Lynnwood public works director and separately voted to pause a transition under the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (WUTC) solid‑waste tariff.

The council passed Resolution No. 2025‑04 (waiving the Linwood Municipal Code LMC 2.06.0.03 requirement to refer three candidates) by roll call vote after heated debate over whether the mayor had followed the municipal code when candidate withdrawals left only one interviewee. The resolution passed 5–1; Council member Hurst voted no.

Why it matters: The public works director is a senior, high‑paying position responsible for maintaining roads, parks maintenance, facilities, and utility projects across roughly 300 lane miles of Lynnwood roads. Council members and the mayor said the city is facing a strained hiring market and repeated last‑minute candidate withdrawals, which they said left the administration with only a single qualified candidate to bring forward.

What the council decided

- Resolution 2025‑04: The council approved a process that waives the usual requirement to refer three candidates and authorized referral of one candidate for appointment as Lynnwood Public Works Director. The resolution passed on roll call, with the following recorded votes: Council member Bridal — yes; Council member Parcel — yes; Council member Hurst — no; Council member Coelho — yes; Council member Decker — yes; Council member Escamilla — yes (5 yes, 1 no). The motion was moved by Council member Coelho.

- Pause of WUTC solid‑waste tariff transition: The council voted by voice to “pause transition from the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission solid waste tariff ordinance number 3436.” The motion was moved and seconded during the meeting and passed by voice vote.

Council discussion: Mayor Frizzell explained the recruitment timeline, noting thousands clicked the job posting but only a few met minimum qualifications and several finalists dropped out at the last minute. “I provided 3 candidates and 1 messed up their schedule,” the mayor told council members, describing multiple late withdrawals that left just one candidate available for interviews.

Opposition on the dais came chiefly from Council member Hurst, who said the municipal code exists to protect the integrity of appointments and should not be overridden after the fact: “I will not support this request to vote after the fact to approve a process that only brought forward 1 candidate,” she said. Council member Parcel and others said the mayor had made a good‑faith effort and that the finalist recommended by staff was “head and shoulders above” the others.

City attorney’s view: The city attorney advised the council that the LMC’s timing provisions are not explicit and that the city’s actions did not, in her view, violate the municipal code. “I don't see any violation of the LMC. In fact, I think it was followed here,” she said.

Other approvals on consent agenda: By unanimous consent the council approved claims of $2,368,902.86 for the period Jan. 20–Feb. 2, 2025; payroll in the amount of $1,800,949.59 (paid Jan. 24, 2025); and authorized a mayoral contract with KBA Incorporated for wastewater treatment plant owner advisor services not to exceed $400,000.

Meeting context and next steps: Council members said they wanted to avoid a prolonged vacancy in public works amid the winter maintenance season. The city clerk, Luke Launay, announced that 19 applicants had applied for council vacancy No. 5 and read the top eight names chosen by council ranking; interview dates for council vacancy applicants were set for Feb. 18 and Feb. 24. The council’s waiver applies only to the public works director referral described in Resolution 2025‑04.