SEQUIM — Sequim City Council member Bill Huizinga is recovering from a heart attack he suffered Tuesday night.
He is expected to make a full recovery.
The 69-year-old county right of way agent was listed in satisfactory condition at Swedish Medical Center in Seattle on Wednesday.
“He did have a heart attack, and it was considered a minor heart attack,” said Walt Schubert, a Sequim City Council member who is also one of Huizinga’s closest friends.
“He’s going to be alright. That’s the main thing.”
Huizinga is unopposed in the Nov. 3 election for another four-year term on the Sequim City Council in Position 1.
He was first elected in 2001.
Release due Friday
Schubert said Huizinga was due to be released from the hospital on Friday.
Schubert and Sequim City Attorney Bill Ritchie both said Huizinga had a stent implanted on Wednesday.
A stent is a short hollow tube placed in the artery where a blockage occurs.
“The latest I have heard is that he’s at Swedish, he had a stent put in this morning, and he is recovering well,” said Ritchie, who was Sequim’s acting city manager until Steve Burkett stepped in Monday.
Ritchie said word of Huizinga’s heart attack spread quickly among the City Council.
“We were very shocked,” Sequim Mayor Laura Dubois said.
“I guess Bill was at the Planning Commission meeting Tuesday night. He’s at Swedish hospital, he’s recovering well and I hear that he’s due to be released on Friday.”
Council meeting
Dubois said she would wait a few days before trying to reach Huizinga.
“I’m not sure that he’ll be up for a [City Council] meeting Monday night, but I’ll check with him later this week,” Dubois said.
Huizinga owned Landmark Realty for 20 years.
“He’s got a lot of history in the area,” Schubert said.
Schubert — who is also on the Nov 3 ballot in a race against Ted Miller for council Position 2 — has known Huizinga for more than 20 years. They meet for coffee and breakfast on Saturday mornings.
Schubert hopes the heart attack will convince Huizinga to kick his smoking habit.
“I’d like to see him stick around for a while,” Schubert said.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-417-3537 or at rob.ollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
