PORT TOWNSEND — Laurie Medlicott has become the first person to announce her candidacy for City Council.
Medlicott, 58, is a former nurse who said Tuesday she will provide a moderate voice on the council.
Medlicott lives at Admiralty Inlet with her husband, Bill, and volunteers her time organizing 428 other volunteers at Fort Worden State Park.
Earlier this year, the Port Townsend Chamber of Commerce named her 2002 Citizen of the Year.
She said she”ll file for Position 3, currently filled by Al Youse, who is not seeking re-election.
It’s a nonpartisan race, and that’s how Medlicott said she likes it.
“The Republicans think I’m a Democrat, and the Democrats think I’m a Republican, and that’s how it’s going to stay,” she said.
Besides Position 3, three other spots on the council are up for re-election and are held by Catherine Robinson, Geoff Masci and Joe Finnie.
Finnie said he’s out, Masci is watching who announces their candidacy before firming up his position and Robinson has yet to decide, they said.
Medlicott’s platform will emphasize protecting the community she loves and serving as a bridge between council members with opposing viewpoints.
Different ideas don’t scare her, and she embraces diversity as a part of Port Townsend life, she said.
“I believe that now is the time for me to serve my community this way,” she said during an interview at her home.
She said she’ll run a minimalistic campaign, buying newspaper ads but not planting yard signs.
She announced her candidacy Tuesday — well ahead of the July 28-Aug. 1 filing period — to show that she has no hidden agendas, she said.
“I abhor dissension and divisiveness,” she said. This will be her first election.
Her husband is a Washington native and retired orthopedic surgeon. They moved to Port Townsend from Kansas City, Mo. on Jan. 25, 1988, and opened a bed and breakfast in an old Victorian home.
Immediately they became involved in community activities.
“Bill took the Chamber (of Commerce), and I took the Main Street organization,” Medlicott said.
It was around 1994 that they realized being innkeepers wasn’t really retirement, so they retired again, she said.
If elected, Medlicott said she’ll hang on to her duties at the state park and will disclose her non-paying position whenever appropriate.
Her husband is Rotary president and serves on the city’s Lodging Tax Advisory Committee, a position he will relinquish if Medlicott is elected.
