EVERETT – Outgoing Snohomish County Councilman Ken Klein has submitted the names of three nominees to the county Republican Party to fill his seat on the council.
His nominees are: Marysville City Councilman Michael Stevens, Stanwood Planning Commissioner Nate Nehring, son of the Marysville Mayor Jon Nehring, and Arlington City Councilwoman and Marysville-Tulalip Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jesica Stickles.
The names of five others in the running were unavailable. The seat became open when Klein, of Arlington, resigned to accept an executive position in County Executive Dave Somers’ cabinet. Klein’s last official day on the council is Dec. 31.
District 1 represents Arlington, Darrington, Granite Falls, Marysville, Stanwood and unincorporated north county areas.
Here is a look at the nominees so far:
* Michael Stevens has served on the Marysville City Council since 2011. He is a partner with Everett-based Dykeman Architects. He previously served on the City Planning Commission. Stevens earned his bachelor’s degree in Architecture from the University of Kentucky and master’s degree in Architecture from the University of Pennsylvania. Stevens serves on numerous boards and committees, including the city’s Government Affairs Committee, Economic Development Council, Marysville Fire District Board, Snohomish County Tomorrow Steering Committee and Puget Sound Regional Council Economic Development Board.
* Jesica Stickles has served on the Arlington City Council since January 2014. Stickles works as executive director of the Marysville Tulalip Chamber of Commerce, and co-owns Stickles Press in Arlington with her husband. Among her affiliations, she is past president of the Arlington Smokey Point Chamber of Commerce, State PTA regional legislative chair for Snohomish and Island counties, and an Arlington Planning Commissioner. Committees have included president of the Arlington School District 2011 Levy, Snohomish County Tourism branding steering committee, Arlington Lodging/Hotel tax grant committee. Joint Government Affairs committee and EMS levy committee.
* Nate Nehring serves on the Stanwood Planning Commission. Nehring graduated from Western Washington University and recently moved to Stanwood with his wife. Nehring teaches biology and earth sciences at Cedarcrest Middle School in Marysville. In addition to being a volunteer soccer coach, tutor, and youth group leader, Nehring also assists with various Miracle League Programs around the country that give children with disabilities the opportunity to play sports in partnership with the YMCA. More recently, Nehring has been involved with the Snohomish County Performance Audit Committee and Stanwood Camano Millennials group. Nehring is 10th District Chair for county Republicans.
Precinct committee officers at their mid-January meeting will hear brief presentations from each of the eight nominees, said Debbie Blodgett, new executive board chairwoman of the county Republican Party.
The top three vote-getters will be submitted to the council council, Blodgett said.
Under the county charter, the council fills a vacancy from a list of three candidates submitted by the county central committee of the party that the official in office immediately prior to the vacancy had represented.
Blodgett said the party hopes that the new county council member will be sworn in before Jan. 31.
In his new executive director role, Klein will oversee the departments of Information Technology, Finance, Facilities and Parks, working with the county’s assessor, auditor and treasurer.
Somers said in a news release that he appreciated Klein’s collaborative sensibility, hard work and creative policy-making.
“Ken has expertise in some of the most-pressing issues for Snohomish County, including the challenge of fiscal sustainability and the courthouse, homelessness and the heroin epidemic and public safety,” Somers said.
“I greatly appreciate Executive Somers extending this opportunity to me,” Klein said.
