Lake Stevens council approves ordinances, interlocal public-defense grant and other routine business

At its Sept. 9 meeting the Lake Stevens City Council completed routine business and several votes across administrative and intergovernmental matters.

Key actions approved by the council: - Ordinance 12-11 (Phase 1 process code amendments) was adopted to make permanent interim ordinance 11-92 and align review timelines with Senate Bill 5290; the motion passed by voice vote. (Staff presentation: David Levitan.) - Ordinance 12-10 repealed the city—s 1986 petty-cash revolving fund and directed staff to close the account and deposit the final balance into the city—s main account. (Presenter: Barb, finance.) - The council authorized the mayor to execute an interlocal agreement with the City of Arlington to jointly administer an Office of Public Defense grant that funds a social advocate position and additional attorneys. The grant covers Jan. 2026 through June 2027 and totals $54,000; Lake Stevens' local match share and payment schedule were described in the staff presentation. - Council authorized the city to enter the grant agreement with the Washington Office of Public Defense (grant no. 1AlphaAlpha26059) and approved Amendment No. 5 to the professional services agreement with Feldman & Lee for social advocacy services under the grant.

Why it matters: These actions secure grant funding for legal and social-advocacy services for indigent defense, update process-code timelines required by state law, and close an obsolete petty-cash mechanism. Council members noted appreciation for the social-advocacy work and asked staff to return with details on the timing and budget impacts where applicable.

Next steps: Staff will execute the interlocal and grant agreements, implement the code changes, and close the petty-cash account as directed.