Exclusive Interview with Meta Hogan: Mayoral candidate explains what Olympia could be

author : Janet Blanding | Meta Hogan topic : Olympia City Council | Meta Hogan | Interview

Interview by Janet Blanding.

Janet Blanding: You have said that one of your top issues is making government more open. In what ways is the government of the City of Olympia currently “closed,” and what can be done to remedy that?

Meta Hogan: The yardstick that I use is whether people are able to get the information that they need, and to what extent citizens are invited to participate. The City of Olympia is very open in many ways, with public comment opportunities at council meetings and having the meetings televised.

In my experience, the city staff are very approachable and helpful, and that’s one facet of openness. I see a lot of room for improvement in terms of participation, though. I think we can be much more proactive in pulling citizens and community groups into our planning processes and decisions.

People need to know when their input is appropriate and welcome, and those opportunities need to be well-publicized and accessible. From what I’ve seen, the public comment time available at council meetings is not enough. It’s usually too little, too late in terms of participation. The most important part for me is seeing that people have an opportunity to engage with the city government. I would be willing to put in a lot of time and effort to make this happen, because it’s part of making sure our community is sustainable.

JB: What specific measures could be undertaken to make Olympia a more sustainable city?

MH: There are a lot of different aspects of a city that can be made sustainable. We do pretty well in many areas, and I see that it’s a priority for our citizens as well as for the city. We’re moving toward zero-waste, we’re using biodiesel, we’re funding bike paths and giving out street trees. That’s great. One thing that Olympia is behind on right now is long term planning and development. Are our land use policies sustainable? It doesn’t look that way to many people. Given the long term growth projections in Thurston County, we need to be on top of that. I would say we need to take an honest look at how we’re managing our resources as a community. There’s a lot of great stuff happening at the city level and by some individuals, but I don’t know if that gap has been effectively bridged. I would like to see more outreach and education on things that individuals can do and things that neighborhoods or groups can do, at the intermediate level. This is an issue that can really empower us as citizens.

JB: You have stated that improving downtown is one of your goals. What can be done to improve downtown?

MH: Downtown is going to change. There are a number of different ways that it can change.

MH: What I would like to do is look at what’s really working. When we talk about a safe and vibrant downtown, we should closely inspect places that we consider “safe,” places that are “vibrant,” and ask what makes them work. What I see is a theater district, some awesome local restaurants and coffeeshops, plenty of art happening, a great public waterfront potential. The places where people feel unsafe are often the most deserted. We need to bring more people downtown, by adding to the mix of things to do. Let’s figure out how to make our downtown 18 hours a day of lively, welcoming public space, with plenty of stuff for people of all ages to get involved in.

I see a need for more family activities, more late-night alternatives, safe places for youth and young adults to hang out, pocket parks, benches, public restrooms, things like that that would foster a sense of community and help make downtown truly great for everyone. I also think the parking issue needs to be addressed. Getting rid of free parking [downtown] is a real mistake in the short run because it will literally drive people away.

JB: Is downtown Olympia safe?

MH: The thing about city centers is that they tend to be very public neighborhoods, which means they’re full of strangers. That’s what makes them exciting, because you couldn’t have all the cultural and commercial diversity without a wide variety of people. But it’s also what sometimes makes them feel dangerous. You’re surrounded by strangers, and you just have to hope they’re well-intentioned. There are specific things that cities can do to create safety in neighborhoods, designing spaces to encourage appropriate use, cultivating community ownership so that citizens themselves are casually enforcing community norms. Olympia was recently voted the fifteenth safest mid-size city in the nation. There’s a perception that it’s unsafe. There are definitely people who don’t feel safe downtown, and the Farmers’ Insurance rating is not going to make them feel safer.

We need to ask what are those things that make people feel unsafe, and how do we make them feel safer. My suggestions would be more lighting, increased walking patrol with an emphasis on building relationships, and like I mentioned in the previous question, bring more people downtown. So part of it is helping to keep downtown a safe place to be, and the other part is making it so that people are thrilled to be there.

JB: Doug Mah has stated that he is the more qualified candidate because of his experience. Do you think that Doug Mah’s experience truly works to his advantage?

MH: Rhetoric like that ignores the fact that everybody has experience. The question isn’t whether you have experience or not, the question is what kind of experience do you have and how does that translate to the commitments that you’re making.

So, one could look at Doug Mah’s experience and come to conclusions about the things that he’ll be good at. One could also look at my experience and come to conclusions about things that I’ll be good at. I do think that it works against him, because he has a public record that a lot of people don’t agree with. As a public official who’s campaigned before, he’s made promises, and he’s had the opportunity to follow through on them. And what I’ve been hearing is that many of his former supporters are disappointed, because he hasn’t followed through. And then there are the people who just disagree with him.

Now he’s got the problem of “If that’s a priority for you, why hasn’t it happened in the last six years you were on council?” I think he’s going to have a tough go of it this time, because of his record.

JB: How has your experience prepared you for the role of mayor?

MH: I have a lot of experience working with really diverse groups of people. I have experience with consensus decision making. I have experience gracefully and helpfully taking input from the community. I have experience drawing people in to projects and processes, and inspiring them and getting results. I have been involved in a lot of issues that are vital to making this community work, like public transportation, community policing, downtown safety, housing and youth issues. I have a pretty clear picture of what this community needs, and I’m ready to get out and make that happen.

JB: How do you feel about warships at Lakefair?

MH: I am really disappointed in the lack of communication that happened around that incident, and I think that this is one of those instances where my approach to open government would make a difference because it’s important that people are educated about city decision making. I think the city council made a really difficult budget decision, and failed to adequately educate the public about that decision. The big issue, the one that no one’s talking about, is that the city can’t afford to do what it’s done in the past, and there are likely more cuts coming in the future.

JB: What role do you think The Olympian played in the public misperception of the Lakefair warships incident?

MH: I think that aside from the news section take on it, the opinion page, particularly the letters to the editor, the things that got through there, The Olympian provided a forum for people to spread misinformation about how that decision happened, and I think that was irresponsible.

JB: Do you support the City of Olympia taking positions on national and international issues, such as the illegal occupation of Iraq and the nuclear free zone?

MH: I think that there are plenty of local issues that we can find common ground on and get excited about and make a difference with, and I think that the City Council should be willing to look at national and international issues in terms of their impacts on Olympia and the difference that we as a city can make with those issues. Sustainability is a global issue, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t work to improve our practices as a community.