Maple Valley residents will see at least two new council members next year. Five of the seven council positions are expiring. Two of those members – Noel Gerken and Layne Barnes – announced earlier this month they would not be running for re-election.

The remaining three council members whose terms also expire at the end of this year – Dana Parnello, Position 6, Linda Johnson, Position 7, and Sean Kelly, Position 1 – have announced they will run to keep their chairs on the dais come 2016.

Covington

Covington has four seats on its council expiring this year, Jeff Wagner, Position 7, Sean Smith, Position 5, Marlla Mhoon, Position 1, and Mayor Margaret Harto, Position 3.

Black Diamond

Five of the six elected positions in Black Diamond are on the ballot this year. Those are Mayor Carol Benson, Tamie Deady, Position 1, Janie Edelman, Position 3, Craig Goodwin, Position 4, and Ron Taylor, Position 5.

As of the press deadline, the Reporter hadn’t received any official word from either the Covington or Black Diamond elected officials regarding their decision to run for office.

Maple Valley

Kelly, who was first elected to the council in 2011, wrote in a letter to the Reporter he wants to focus on traffic problems, among other things, within the city.

He said within the next two decades, 6,000 homes will be built in Black Diamond. This, he wrote, will cause an influx of 10,000 more cars and increased commute times for Maple Valley residents.

“I will continue to press for more funding from state and federal sources to widen roads, create bypasses, and reduce traffic congestion,” Kelly wrote.

Johnson, who has been on the council since January 2004, wrote in her announcement letter her desire to help the city dodge the fiscal cliff it faces.

“Our efforts to build a strong economy in Maple Valley will have huge pay-backs in avoiding the infamous ‘fiscal cliff,’” she wrote.

Dana Parnello, who was appointed to council last August after Victoria Laise Jonas resigned from her position, announced his bid for council in a letter to the Reporter Tuesday, April 21.

Prior to this appointment to council – his second appointment since moving here in 2003 – Parnello served on the planning commission and as a liaison to the Library Advisory Board.

His first stint on the council was from 2010 to 2011. Parnello was appointed to position 1 after Laure Iddings resigned in January 2010. When it came time to run for re-election for that position, Parnello decided against it.

Kelly won that race for that seat in 2011.

Part of Parnello’s focus, he wrote, is making Maple Valley a more “livable, walkable and bicycle friendly community.” He said, “… these aspects are strongly tied to public safety as well as physical well-being and economic health.”

With two empty seats, Maple Valley will see at least two new faces on the council after this election season.

As of the press deadline, only one resident had come forward declaring their bid for council.

Megan Sheridan, who currently serves on the Planning Commission announced her bid for council March 31. She will run for Gerken’s soon-to-be vacant seat, Position 5.

Sheridan, who has lived in Maple Valley for six years, said in an email to the Reporter she hopes to focus on economic development and preserving the history of the city.

Interested residents have from May 11 to 15 to officially put their names in the hat for one of the five positions up for re-election, including Barnes’ position which currently has no official bids as of the press deadline.

King County Elections is holding a free workshop for candidates and potential candidates from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday, April 25 at 919 SE Grady Way, Renton, WA 98057. The workshop will cover filing for office, submitting voters’ pamphlet information, voter lists and data management, campaign sign regulations and basic public disclosure information.