The Roy City Council voted against filling its position No. 1 vacancy that has been open since January.
The lone candidate and interviewee, Edmund Dunn, interviewed on Feb. 13 in front of the council, but the vote was postponed until the March meeting, which was canceled.
With the vote back on the agenda for the Monday, April 8 meeting, none of the councilors seconded Councilor Harvey Gilchrist’s motion to appoint Dunn. As a result, the motion failed, and the vacancy will now be filled by Pierce County instead. The position was last held by Rachel Chavez, who departed in January after just two months on the council.
The council also did not vote to appoint two new members, Matt Ivy and Megan Dunn, to the Roy City Planning Commission. Following Gilchrist’s motion to approve their appointments, the remaining three councilors did not proceed with a second. Because of this, the city’s comprehensive plan will not be reviewed by the Planning Commission and will instead go straight to the council for review. If Roy does not meet its June deadline for the comprehensive plan, it will lose grant money used to pay for it.
In other council news:
After Mayor Kimber Ivy suggested accepting Yelm Mayor Joe DePinto’s proposal to be a lobbyist for Roy, the council members voiced their displeasure at the idea of bringing in a city official from another city. Roy Councilor William Starks questioned paying someone for work the council and city staff already do, such as writing grants. He added that DePinto would naturally prioritize the needs of his city first and said Roy has no need for a lobbyist.
The council unanimously voted to enter into an agreement with FCS Group to move forward with a water rate study for Roy within estimated cost of proposal and budgetary parameters. Councilor Yvonne Starks made a motion to approve the agreement with FCS Group because it was the less expensive option.
Nominations for Roy’s Hometown Heroes are open until 5 p.m. on Monday, April 22. Residents can nominate a person who “keeps an eye out for others and does good deeds or good efforts for his or her community” in four different categories: military, fire, police and community member. Nominations can be made on the city’s Facebook post, emailed to RoyCityHall@CityofRoyWA.US or submitted at Roy City Hall. Winners will be notified and presented at the Hometown Heroes Community Day Event at noon, Saturday, May 4, at Roy City Park.
