PORT TOWNSEND — John Sheehan is giving his petition to change city government another shot.
Sheehan, a 35-year resident of Port Townsend, contends that the current form of government is too expensive, and that the town does not need a city manager to run it.
In 2007, he collected signatures on a petition at his eatery, Dogs-A-Foot — which has been across the street from City Hall for 22 years — to call for an election to decide between keeping Port Townsend’s existing council-manager form of government or reverting to the city’s original mayor-council form.
The number of signatures was enough to call for an election, but it was found that many who signed the petition either did not live in the city limit or had signed the petition multiple times.
In the end, the petition was not approved, and the city did not vote on a change of city government.
Sheehan must collect 395 signatures — 10 percent of the city’s register voters — to get it on a ballot by the end of this year.
The council-manager form of government has been in place since voters approved it in 1998.
In this form of government, the council hires a city manager to run the city while the council formulates and adopts city policy and decides how to direct staff in their efforts to implement them.
In a mayor-council form of government, an elected mayor serves as the city’s chief administrative officer, and a council serves as the legislative body.
While the council has the power to formulate and adopt city policies, the mayor is responsible for carrying them out.
The mayor presides over council meetings, but does not vote on council business, except in the case of a tie.
