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Residents thank council for supportive housing vote and raise pool access, ALPR/privacy and planning‑fee concerns
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Summary
Multiple public commenters marked the two‑year anniversary of the council vote enabling Plymouth Housing and thanked council leadership; other speakers urged PFAS testing at DTG, asked the city to revisit pool access for youth, criticized Flock/ALPR surveillance, and urged fee relief for comprehensive plan amendments to preserve seniors' housing.
Public comment at the Redmond City Council meeting on Feb. 17 included sustained praise for the council's 2‑year‑old vote enabling the Plymouth Housing permanent supportive housing project and a series of community requests and complaints on other matters.
Kira Madden, external engagement coordinator for Plymouth Housing, opened comments by thanking the council for the vote that created the opportunity for "100 new units of permanent supportive housing" and described the project's community outreach, a 10‑member advisory group and planned completion next year. Multiple other public commenters—Pat Vache, Axton Burton and Austin Aschenbrenner among them—echoed thanks and said the project has provided hope for people facing homelessness.
Other public commenters raised distinct concerns. Rachel King, a longtime resident and parent of competitive swimmers, said pool lane access since the remodel is limited because teams and a private club (Wave Aquatics) control lanes in late afternoon hours, and asked Parks & Recreation to explore options to preserve lap‑lane access for youth. Linda Seltzer, who lives in a senior apartment complex, said staff told her pre‑application fees for comprehensive‑plan amendments can total "more than $25,000," which she described as prohibitive for renters seeking to propose amendments to preserve existing housing; she asked the council to allow free amendments with assistance or to repeal the current incentive/demolition provisions.
Jacqueline Kimsey asked the council to cover and remove Flock mass‑surveillance cameras, arguing the devices had "collected a mass amount of data on innocent residents before it was disabled" and citing outside reporting on data sharing concerns. David Morton urged comprehensive PFAS testing at the DTG site before the Evans Creek project proceeds; that PFAS exchange is summarized in the Evans Creek article.
Items from the audience were closed by council leadership and staff proceeded to the consent agenda and staff reports.
