City Council

MEETING MINUTES TUMWATER CITY COUNCIL January 6, 2026 CONVENE: 7:02 p.m. PRESENT: Mayor Leatta Dahlhoff and Councilmembers Peter Agabi, Joan Cathey, Angela Jefferson, Meghan Sullivan, Eileen Swarthout and Kelly Von Holtz. Staff: Acting City Administrator Kelly Adams, City Attorney Karen Kirkpatrick, Fire Chief Brian Hurley, Deputy Fire Chief Shawn Crimmins, Finance Director Troy Niemeyer, Information Technology Director Lance Inman, Parks and Recreation Director Chuck Denney, Recreation Manager Todd Anderson, Acting Police Chief Carlos Quiles, Water Resources and Sustainability Director Dan Smith, Communications Director Jason Wettstein, Executive Assistant Brittaney McClanahan, Deputy City Clerk Tracie Core and City Clerk Melody Valiant. Others: Sheryl Gordon McCloud, Washington State Supreme Court Justice SWEARING IN OF Mayor Dahlhoff introduced Supreme Court Justice Sheryl Gordon 2026 ELECTED McCloud. OFFICIALS BY SHERYL GORDON Court Justice McCloud administered the oath of office to Leatta MCCLOUD Dahlhoff, Eileen Swarthout, Meghan Sullivan and Peter Agabi. WASHINTON STATE SUPREME COURT JUSTICE: SPECIAL ITEMS: PROCLAMATION: Mayor Dahlhoff and Councilmembers Agabi, Cathey, Jefferson, Sullivan, Swarthout and Von Holtz read a proclamation declaring TUMWATER CITY COUNCIL– JANUARY 6, 2026 1 MARTIN LUTHER KING January 19, 2026, Martin Luther King Junior Day. The JR. DAY, JANUARY 19, proclamation urges people to take the opportunity to reflect 2026 upon Dr. King’s vision and rededicate themselves to continuing to advance the principles of justice and equality for all. Mayor Dahlhoff presented the proclamation to Dr. Thelma Jackson and invited Councilmembers to speak to the proclamation. Dr. Jackson thanked everyone for all their comments and invited everyone to attend their celebration on January 19, 2026, at the New Life Baptist Church. PUBLIC COMMENT: Public comment was given by residents Partlow, Reynolds, Hays, McInnis, Brewer, Nicandri, Sanders, Hanson, Ruiz, Crawford and Ftiz-Hugh. CONSENT a. Approval of Minutes: City Council Work Session Joint Planning CALENDAR: Commission, December 9, 2025 b. Approval of Minutes: City Council Meeting, December 16, 2025 c. Payment of Vouchers d. 2026 Sustainability Division Work Plan e. Employment Agreement for Assistant City Administrator MOTION: Councilmember Von Holtz, moved, seconded by Councilmember Jefferson, to approve the Consent Calendar as published. A voice vote approved the motion unanimously. COUNCIL CONSIDERATIONS: ELECTION OF MAYOR Acting City Administrator Adams reported every two years, the PRO TEM: Council elects its Mayor Pro Tem to serve as the Deputy Mayor. The Mayor Pro Tem assumes the responsibility of the Mayor during periods of absence. Mayor Dahlhoff invited nominations for Mayor Pro Tem. NOMINATION: Councilmember Agabi nominated Councilmember Swarthout to serve as Mayor Pro Tem. Mayor Dahlhoff invited other nominations. TUMWATER CITY COUNCIL– JANUARY 6, 2026 2 NOMINATION: Councilmember Cathey nominated Councilmember Von Holtz to serve as Mayor Pro Tem. As there were no other nominations Mayor Dahlhoff closed the nominations and gave each candidate an opportunity to accept and speak to their nomination. Councilmember Swarthout and Councilmember Von Hotlz accepted their nominations and thanked everyone and said it would be a great honor to be the Mayor Pro Tem. Attorney Kirkpatrick suggested a roll call vote. MOTION: A roll call vote for Councilmember Swarthout as Mayor Pro Tem was done: Councilmember Von Holtz - Nay Councilmember Jefferson - Yay Councilmember Agabi - Yay Councilmember Sullivan - Nay Councilmember Swarthout - Yay Councilmember Cathey - Nay MOTION: A roll call vote for Councilmember Von Holtz as Mayor Pro Tem was done: Councilmember Von Holtz - Yay Councilmember Jefferson - Yay Councilmember Agabi - Nay Councilmember Sullivan - Yay Councilmember Swarthout - Nay Councilmember Cathey - Yay VOTE OF After the two roll call votes, Councilmember Von Holz has the AFFIRMATION: majority and will serve as the Mayor Pro Tem for the next two years. COUNCIL POSITION Attorney Kirkpatrick stated that seven applications had been NO. 1 SELECTION received for Council Position No. 1. The next step will be PROCESS: scheduling the interviews for January 10th. She offered up an opportunity to narrow the selection for interviews and confirm the date of the interviews still worked for everyone. One candidate requested accommodation to have an interview by Zoom due to a scheduling conflict. Council asked questions about the schedule and confirmed that they would like to interview all seven applicants on January 10, TUMWATER CITY COUNCIL– JANUARY 6, 2026 3  2026, and would accommodate the applicant requesting a zoom interview. CONFIRMATION OF Director Sutherland presented an employment agreement with APPOINTMENT AND Paul Simmons as the City Administrator. She went over his APPROVAL OF lengthy municipal experience and long track record of leadership EMPLOYMENT in local and regional government. He currently works at Metro AGREEMENT WITH Parks Tacoma as the Director of Business Administration and PAUL SIMMONS AS Planning. CITY ADMINISTRATOR: Council discussed the contract and appointment process. Councilmember Agabi asked several questions regarding the RCW authority related to hiring and signing contracts with the City Administrator and Management team. RECESS: Mayor Dahlhoff adjourned the meeting for a 10-minute recess at 8:32 p.m. RECONVENE: Mayor Dahlhoff reconvened the meeting at 8:43 p.m. Mayor Dahlhoff invited any other comments regarding the contract. MOTION Councilmember Von Holtz, moved, seconded by Councilmember Swarthout, to confirm the appointment and approval of the Employment Agreement with Paul Simmons as City Administrator. A voice vote approved the motion unanimously. COMMITTEE REPORTS: PUBLIC HEALTH & The committee has not met. The next meeting is scheduled for SAFETY: January 13, 2026, and they will be discussing the following items: Peter Agabi • Challenges/Opportunities for People Experiencing Homelessness in Tumwater • Tacoma Community College Affiliation Agreement GENERAL The committee has not met. The next meeting is scheduled for GOVERNMENT: January 14, 2026, and they will be discussing the following item: • Service Provider Agreement with ICF for the Habitat Conservation Plan ‐ Phase 3 Amendment 1 TUMWATER CITY COUNCIL– JANUARY 6, 2026 4 PUBLIC WORKS: The next meeting is scheduled for January 8, 2026, and they will Eileen Swarthout be discussing the following item: • Service Provider Agreement with HDR Engineering for the Tumwater Boulevard Northbound I-5 On/Off Ramp Intersection Amendment No. 1 BUDGET & FINANCE: The next meeting is scheduled for January 23, 2026, and they will Leatta Dahlhoff be discussing the following item: • Monthly Financial Update MAYOR/CITY Acting City Administrator Adams shared that City Hall will be ADMINISTRATOR’s closed on January 19, 2026, for Martin Luther King Junior Day and REPORT: additionally application submissions for the new Equity commission will open on the same day. Also, City Hall will open later on January 27, 2026, to accommodate an all staff meeting. Lastly, she shared an event that occurred the day before where City staff were out on a site visit in the community having a conversation with two community members. While they were talking, one of the community members had a medical event that required lifesaving interventions. She thanked several staff for their efforts and the Fire Department for their fast response. Mayor Dahlhoff had nothing to report. COUNCILMEMBER Councilmembers Jefferson, Swarthout and Von Holtz gave REPORTS: reports. Councilmembers Agabi, Cathey and Sullivan had nothing to report. ADJOURNMENT: With there being no further business, Mayor Dahlhoff adjourned the meeting at 9:03 p.m. Prepared by Melody Valiant, City Clerk TUMWATER CITY COUNCIL– JANUARY 6, 2026 5