Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Appointments topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Seattle committee recommends confirmation of 29 commission appointments, forwards them to full council
Summary
The Housing and Human Services Committee voted unanimously Dec. 10 to recommend confirmation of 29 appointments across seven city commissions and authorities; nominees were presented by Office for Civil Rights and Office of Housing staff and will be considered by full City Council Dec. 16.
The Seattle City Council’s Housing and Human Services Committee unanimously recommended confirmation of 29 appointments to city commissions and governing councils on Dec. 10 and will forward its recommendations to the full City Council for consideration at the Dec. 16 meeting.
Chair Deborah Juarez opened the meeting and said the appointments were grouped by commission so one presenter could introduce each block of nominees. Janet Stafford, a commission liaison with the Seattle Office for Civil Rights, presented 20 candidates from four advisory groups — the Seattle Disability Commission, the Seattle LGBTQ Commission, the Seattle Women’s Commission and the Seattle Human Rights Commission — saying staff and commissioners "reviewed each candidate, held interviews, and feel strongly that each candidate will bring valuable experience, skills, and passion to the work."
Scott Nelson, a District 2 resident and recent appointee to the Seattle Disability Commission, urged the committee to confirm the nominations, saying the confirmations ‘‘more than double’’ the commission’s confirmed membership and will increase capacity to advise the city on accessibility and inclusion.
The committee then took a series of grouped votes. Chair Juarez moved that the committee recommend confirmation of appointments 1–8 (Disability Commission); following a second the clerk called the roll. Council members Saka, Ring, Nelson, Lynn and Chair Juarez voted in favor; the clerk recorded five votes in favor and zero opposed. The committee recorded identical 5–0 recommendations for items 9–13 (LGBTQ Commission), 14–18 (Women’s Commission), 19–20 (Human Rights Commission), 21–22 (Community Roots Housing Public Development Authority), 23–27 (Housing Levy Oversight Committee) and 28–29 (Pacific Hospital Preservation & Development Authority). Each recommendation will be transmitted to the full City Council on Dec. 16 for final action.
The clerks’ reading of the agenda included appointment names and term end dates for each block. Examples include Belvina Cortez, Naomi Snow, Sawyer Stearns and Julia Thompson for terms to April 30, 2026, on the Disability Commission; and appointments to the Housing Levy Oversight Committee that will start in 2026 for full three‑year terms.
The confirmations represent a staffing and membership boost for advisory bodies that advise the council and city departments on equity, human rights, disability access and housing. The committee’s recommendation is advisory; final confirmations will occur at the Dec. 16 City Council meeting.
The committee adjourned at 10:17 a.m.
