“TRANSPARENCY IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT”
Yelm City Council candidate’s residency

In previous elections here, we have seen the local newspaper and city officials raise residency questions of candidates they did not like, those who stepped forward to run for public office. This garnered several front-page stories and on September 16, 2005 about that year’s election, the local newspaper wrote:
“Residency requirements state that a candidate must live in his stated home at least 12 months prior to an election. The rules also stipulate that “intending” to live someplace is not the same as actually living there, according to the Thurston County Auditor’s Office.”

Well, what does “live in his stated home” mean?

I commend anyone stepping forward to run for public office to serve. However, when the newspaper and/or local officials condemn individuals running they don’t like for what they consider a violation of residency requirements in one election and will not bring up this issue in other elections with candidates they support,
THAT IS A DOUBLE STANDARD.

The newspaper made this an issue in 2005, yet is silent on the same issue in the 2011 election.

As the ballots go out this week, City of Yelm voters will note unopposed candidate Ken Garmann filed for Yelm City Council Position 6, yet works full-time for the City of Bothell, some 70+ miles away. While Garmann has owned a home in Yelm for 20 years, he “lives” here only a couple of nights a week, spending the work week in Bothell.

In his September 23, 2011 newspaper column, Mayor Harding spoke of Mr. Garmann being a long time resident of Yelm, yet Garmann has worked and lived most work-weeks in Bothell for 12 years, according to his statement in the voters pamphlet. While I am sure Mr. Garmann has alot of experience to run for Yelm City Council, how can Mayor Harding support a candidate who admittedly has lived in Bothell most of the last 12 years, and most recently serving as that city’s as Capital Programs Manager, requiring his full attention. Garmann certainly has not commuted 140 miles roundtrip five days a week to Bothell for 12 years and yet, “live” in Yelm.

Garmann told me in a phone call on July 14th he lives near his office during the week and returns to Yelm on weekends. Is this the meaning of to “live in his stated home”?
Has he been involved in the fabric of Yelm life for the last 12 years to be able to serve?
Garmann said he intends to live here full-time after he retires from Bothell at the end of the years.

“Residency requirements state that a candidate must live in his stated home at least 12 months prior to an election. The rules also stipulate that “intending” to live someplace is not the same as actually living there, according to the Thurston County Auditor’s Office.”

Why does “live in his stated home” mean something different for candidates in 2005 and not 2011?
Why the silence on this issue by the newspaper in the 2011 election?
And, why the silence by Mayor Harding, whose campaign so vigorously opposed a local candidate they thought did not live locally in 2005, yet he supports this man in 2011?

If the newspaper, local officials and the public approve someone living in the city 2-3 nights a week and running for office, fine.Then that should be acceptable across the board for any candidate, in any election!
The time has come to end the double-standard here on a candidate’s residency and be consistent!

In closing:
Keven Graves is quoted from his November 25, 2005 editorial in the local newspaper:
“We (he & then Mayor-elect Harding) agree that a transparent government is better government.”

The double standard from the local newspaper and Yelm’s City Hall on the subject of a candidate’s residency is far from an environment of being “a transparent government”.

– An unaware and uninvolved public are Yelm City Council’s greatest allies in carrying forth their agenda.

YOU, THE YELM VOTER WILL DECIDE!
HOWEVER, WITH NO ONE OPPOSING GARMANN, HE IS THE NEXT POSITION 6 CITY OUNCIL MEMBER!
YOU HAVE NO OPTIONS!
THE YELM CABAL WINS AGAIN!