Poulsbo City Council: being mayor is a full-time job

POULSBO — During a recent meeting, the Poulsbo City Council refuted claims made by Mayor Becky Erickson to the Kitsap Sun, suggesting that the council had deemed her position as mayor to be a part-time job.

The claims were made after the council’s decision in April to delay giving the mayor a raise. Instead, the council opted to revisit the possibility during the 2019-20 budgeting process.

Reading from a prepared statement at the meeting, Council Member Ed Stern set the record straight.

“The Finance and Administration Committee this afternoon reviewed and discussed recent statements and quotes which appeared in county newspapers from Mayor Becky Erickson in regards to her filing for the candidacy of the 23rd district representative position. Without regard whatsoever thereof to that election and the candidacy; simply and briefly to say, that the council did not ‘green light’ by finding the mayor’s position in the City of Poulsbo to be part-time. The council has not taken any such action and further to clarify, that the mayor’s position has been a full-time position since 1985 by action of the then council.”

On May 18, the last filing day for candidates for the 23rd Legislative District, Erickson filed to run without a political affiliation for the Position 1 seat against eight-term incumbent Rep. Sherry Appleton. After filing, the mayor said if she were to win the seat, she would not be stepping down from her position as mayor of Poulsbo.

After the June 7 council meeting, Stern declined to offer any comments relating to the politics of the mayor’s decision to run, or whether he felt that she could execute the duties of mayor if she were to beat Appleton. The statements made during the meeting, Stern said, were only to clarify that the mayor’s comments made to the Kitsap Sun suggesting that Poulsbo City Council had determined her position as mayor to be a part-time job, were untrue.

The council, Stern added, did not wish to wade into the politics of the coming election.

—Nick Twietmeyer is a reporter with Kitsap News Group. Nick can be reached at ntwietmeyer@soundbpublishing.com.