Tim Callison, Langley’s incoming mayor, is already preparing for the office.
Election results were certified Tuesday, Nov. 24. Callison led Sharon Emerson 297-262, a difference of 35 votes. Since gaining a lead in the Nov. 3 general election, Callison has taken preliminary steps to assume mayoral duties from Mayor Fred McCarthy, who did not seek re-election after serving for nearly three and a half years.
Recently, Callison began meeting with department leaders and the mayor to learn what projects, programs, and problems the city is facing and may face in his coming four-year term. He described the administrative transition process as “making sure the way forward is well charted.”
Entering the office in January, Callison said he will be a blank slate without an agenda for city hall. There will be no immediate changes to personnel or operations, he said.
“That would be imprudent on my part,” he said in response to being asked if there would be any staff changes.
“The first 50, 100 days it will be learning what’s there,” he added.
Continuing the economic development focus of the mayor’s office and council will be a goal for Callison, who said there were several businesses in town that benefited from the luncheons, forums and networking sparked by McCarthy.
McCarthy endorsed Callison in the general election. In his endorsement letter, published in the Oct. 1 issue of The Record, McCarthy cited Callison’s “skills, experience, maturity, attitude, intelligence, kindness, compassion and enthusiasm” as making him the best candidate.
“I’m very impressed with what I think Tim will bring to this work,” McCarthy said after the first of several planned meetings between now and the end of the year.
Callison retired to Langley a few years ago after a long career as an executive of an international manufacturing company. Councilman Robin Black, his wife, is from Whidbey Island. During the general election campaign, Black submitted a letter of resignation that will take effect Jan. 1 because her husband was elected as mayor. In her letter, she said she wanted to avoid any potential or perceived conflict of interest.
“She’ll have her hands full as first lady and the social side of me being mayor,” Callison said, with a laugh.
Taking from his experience as a head administrator, Callison said he would like to understand what the staff’s tasks and duties are, how they communicate and work, and what emerging projects or concerns are to better inform his vision for the city.
In Langley, the mayor is charged with running the daily operation of the city, has hiring/firing authority, oversees the budget, and acts as a liaison with other agencies, including the Island County Council of Governments.
A pair of personnel issues, however, may be inherited by Callison from McCarthy. The city is engaged in litigation over a former Langley Police Department officer who served the city for 10 months before being fired, and is in an unspecified administrative leave process with its director of Community Planning.
Callison said he expected both to be resolved. McCarthy said negotiations with the former officer may last until next year, while he hopes to have a resolution with the planning director next month.
Some major undertakings are underway in Langley. The city is in the midst of its comprehensive plan update, which is set to be finished by February. The document includes all projects and plans, as a sort of wish list from which the city can focus and prioritize its capital expenses. Seeing that to completion will be one of his first major tasks, Callison said, then overseeing its implementation.
One interagency collaboration he is interested in furthering is between the city and the Port of South Whidbey, which operates the marina in town. A recent Record story about a possible public/private partnership to finance a major expansion of South Whidbey Harbor at Langley piqued his interest.
“There are tremendous opportunities for change down at the marina, that’s intriguing to me,” he said.
Such a project would need to be included in the comprehensive plan for the city to financially assist it.
Another task at Langley City Hall is the formation of the 2016 budget. It was released in a draft form earlier this month, and Callison said he read it and believed it was balanced and reasonable.
“A lot of the elements of the budget are what I’d call fixed elements, things like the sewer and the water service,” Callison said.
When he takes office, he is likely to encounter little resistance from the city council. All of the sitting council members, of whom three will remain when he takes the office, endorsed Callison as mayor.
He said it was premature to say if he would seek a second term.
