Libraries, Education, and Neighborhoods Committee 5/13/2026

All right.

Good morning, everyone.

The May 13th, 2026 meeting of the Library's Education and Neighborhoods Committee will come to order.

It's 931. I'm Maritza Rivera, chair of the committee.

Will the clerk please call the roll?

Council member Foster?

Here.

Council member Lynn?

Present.

Council member Rink?

Present.

Chair Rivera?

Present.

There are four council members present.

Please note for the record that Council President and Vice Chair Hollingsworth is excused from today's meeting.

Good morning colleagues and those of you in chambers and watching on the Seattle Channel.

Today we'll have our second hearing in the confirmation process for the Department of Neighborhoods Acting Director Quinn Pham.

Acting Director Pham's written responses to the questions were sent after our last committee meeting and they were shared with you I believe yesterday or today.

and then today we'll have an opportunity to discuss her responses or any questions, additional questions you might have.

We also have the Department of Neighborhoods here today to present a piece of legislation regarding the historic landmarking of the wooden house in Seattle's Georgetown neighborhood.

Before we get into Director Pham's confirmation, we'll begin with public comment.

On to today's agenda.

If there's no objection, the agenda will be adopted.

Hearing no objection, the agenda is adopted.

We'll now open the public hybrid comment period.

Public comment should relate to items on the agenda or within the purview of this committee.

Clerk, how many speakers are signed up today?

Currently, we have four in-person speakers and two remote speakers.

Thank you, clerk.

Each speaker will have two minutes.

Clerk, can you please read the public comment instructions?

The public comment period will be moderated in the following manner.

The public comment period is up to 60 minutes.

Each speaker will have two minutes.

Speakers will be called in the order in which they are registered.

We will start with in-person speakers first, then remote speakers until the public comment period has ended.

Speakers will hear a chime when 10 seconds are left of their time.

The public comment period is now open.

We will begin with the first speaker on the list.

All right, we will have- all the mics are operational, so please feel free when your name is called to just step up to any one of the mics.

John Bennett, then followed by Scott Boone, Sarah Martin, and Eugenia Wu.

Welcome.

Welcome, John.

Thank you.

Hello, my name is John Bennett.

I've spent the last 30 years of my life in Georgetown preserving and restoring it.

And I'm going to just be short and quick here and sweet, but I'll give part of my Georgetown historic walking tour to you to start with.

And so most people, if you ask them who were the first non-native settlers in our area, everyone would say, oh, I went to elementary school.

I know that's the Denny party.

That's incorrect.

The very first non-native settlers in this area was the Luther Collins family.

They got a donation land grant, and they settled in the Duwamish Valley because they were farmers.

After they got their donation, their land grant, they went back towards Olympia, picked up everyone.

On the way back, they saw the Denny party and freezing to death on alkyne.

And because of the Collins party, they were able to give them food to help the Denny party survive.

But let's just get it clear.

The Collins, the first settlement in the Seattle area was in Georgetown.

So Georgetown is really important.

It's kind of an underserved neighborhood.

And I think it's very, very important to preserve Georgetown.

It's the most important area of our city for preservation.

Thank you.

Thank you, John.

Scott Boone, then Sarah Martin.

My name is Scott Boone, and I'm currently the owner and the residence in the house built by my grandfather.

Sorry, Scott, would you please speak into the mic so we can hear you?

Thank you very much.

We can restart his time, please.

I'd like that.

Okay, thank you.

Okay, I'm Scott Boone, currently owner and a residence in the house.

My grandfather built 122 years ago.

I thought I'd share with you some of the background on how the house happens to be there in the first place.

My grandfather grew up back east.

Graduated from medical school in the 1890s.

He took the train out here.

I think he had some relatives here.

Got a job as a ship's doctor on the ships going from Seattle to Alaska for the 1898 Alaska Gold Rush.

A few years later, he obtained jobs at the King County Hospital as a physician and stayed there for the rest of his career until he passed away in 1929. Well, when he was a doctor at the King County Hospital, which in those days was located in the Georgetown area, there are nurses there, and he met a nurse.

Well, one of them got married, and they, of course, at this point, they have to have a house, don't you see?

So they built this house, a rather nice house, two-story.

And lo and behold, after a little while, two become three, and there was a baby girl.

Well, years later, she inherited the house when he passed away in 1929. And she kept the house, got married, and I came along.

And I'm the third generation now to live in the house.

It's been the policy of my mother and myself to maintain the house as original as possible, and we have done so.

and even still have some of the antique medical stuff that my grandfather left behind.

Well, I want to thank you for listening and considering having the house designated as historical landmark.

I appreciate it very much.

Thank you.

Thank you, Scott.

Sarah Martin followed by Eugenia Wu.

Good morning.

Good morning.

My name is Sarah Martin.

I'm a public historian.

I authored the landmark nomination for the Wooden House, and I urge you to support this legislation today.

Anyone who's taken the Corson Avenue exit off of I-5 will recognize this house.

You practically trip over it.

It's right off the exit.

You can't help but wondering how it survived amid so much change.

It's witnessed 122 years of Georgetown history, thanks largely to stewardship of three generations of the same family, Scott, his mother, and his grandparents.

Today's rapid redevelopment of our city is exciting.

It's necessary.

It's important that amid all this change, though, that we take note of places like this.

They add value and meaning to our neighborhoods, providing opportunities for sustainable redevelopment and continuity with our collective past.

I want to thank the property owner, Scott Boone, for his initiative in seeking this designation.

And I want to thank Erin Doherty of the Landmarks staff for her collaboration.

We're fortunate to have great staff in our Landmarks program.

Thank you.

Thank you, Sarah.

Eugenia Wu.

Thank you.

Good morning, I'm Eugenia Wu with Historic Seattle.

Today I'm here to ask this committee to recommend to full council approval of the designating ordinance with controls for the Wooden House in Georgetown.

The property was designated a landmark by the Landmarks Board under four of six designation standards, demonstrating strong support and acknowledgement of the house's significance in Seattle history.

It's important to note that the owner and steward, Scott Boone, who you just heard from, voluntarily sought nomination for his family home, so landmarking has full owner consent.

The Wooden House and how the nomination came to be show us all how historic preservation works best when the community, the property owner, preservation advocates, the board, and city staff come together to support the designation process.

City Council approval is the final step in this process, and it's a very important step.

For more than 50 years, Seattle Landmarks Preservation Ordinance has enabled the protection and enhancement of our city's historic and cultural resources.

In 1973, your predecessors on this council understood why historic preservation matters when they adopted the ordinance, and we appreciate council's continued support of preservation today.

I'd like to note that Seattle has around 500 designated landmarks and eight historic districts, but this amounts to only one half of 1% of parcels in the city.

This is a minuscule amount.

This means that 99.5% of the city is not protected by ordinance and can be developed.

Landmarking is a positive tool that helps the city manage change, not serve as a barrier.

We'd like to thank the property owner, Mr. Boone, the Landmarks Preservation Board, Erin Doherty, Sarah Martin, and John Bennett, who you heard from today, for their guidance and support.

We're big fans of the city's historic preservation program at DON.

And lastly, big shout out to Quinn Pham, and we support her appointment as director of DON.

Thank you.

Thank you, Eugenia.

All right, we'll go to online commenters.

We have Dr. Breck followed by Joshua Park.

Dr. Breck, please press star six and you may begin.

Dr. Breck, are you able to press star six?

Let's go to Joshua Park then.

Joshua, please press star six and you may begin.

Okay.

Hello.

Good morning.

Good morning.

Everyone hear me?

Yes, hello.

Hi, my name is Joshua Park, and I'm submitting comments today on behalf of the Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation Development Authority, or SCIPTA, and I am here today to voice our organization's support for Quinn Pham's appointment to the Director of the Department of Neighborhoods.

I personally had the privilege of working with Quinn over the past few years on the Little Saigon Landmark Project, which we hope to great ground on this year.

And it's been nothing short of inspiring to see her lead that project from media conception into reality.

Her ability to advocate with a vast diversity of stakeholders, ranging from small business owners, service providers, both public and private funders, makes her uniquely qualified for this role.

Her ability to elevate the most marginalized voices has been particularly impactful for the Little Saigon neighborhood, which is, I think, as we all know, in very much need of public investment and love, quite frankly.

During her time at Friends of Little Saigon, we've all had the privilege of watching Quinn grow that idea into a fully functioning organization.

I think most of the council could also agree that small businesses are really one of the key backbones of our communities.

and her entrepreneurial spirit is just yet another quality that makes her qualified to lead the department.

I guess, finally, I'd say that Quinn has demonstrated an ability to be a strong and supporting partner.

And we think these are traits that our communities need to see more of from our city.

And for all these reasons, Skitta strongly supports Quinn's appointment to the director role and we very much look forward to continue working with her in this new capacity.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, Joshua.

Dr. Breck, you are next.

If you're online, press star six and you may begin your public comment.

Go ahead, Dr. Brick, I think you're on now.

Dr. Brick, I think you're on if you want to start speaking.

I think we're having some tech issues.

Apologies if you want to- Can you hear me now?

Yes, we can hear you.

All right, go ahead.

Yes, I'm on my phone.

Yes, it's a series of buttons.

I finally found them.

Thank you.

May I restart my time?

Yes, of course.

Go ahead.

Thank you, ma'am.

Yes, I'm Dr. Breck LeBeg with Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility and the Airshow Climate Action Coalition, respectfully asking you to oppose a permit for the Blue Angels to fly over Genesee Park neighborhood during Seafair.

I'm a retired Air Force flight surgeon.

I love airplanes, but they can also hurt our health.

Some people call fighter jet noise the sound of freedom, but the roar harms hearing.

Most of the 6,000 people in our poll don't want them flying there.

Autistic kids, refugees, and others with PTSD are terrified of the sound of death from above.

Is this the way a sanctuary city welcomes war victims?

Super Hornets are very loud.

I recorded the Growlers, the same airframe the Blue Angels fly, at 110 decibels in Genesee Park.

OSHA requires earplugs and earmuffs for work sites at that level.

And although park rules regulate noise in parks, the Blue Angels defy your reasonable noise limits every year.

Seafair provides no air protection, so WPSR gave out hundreds of free earplugs.

And jet fuel exhaust harms lungs, hearts, and even brains.

The Department of Ecology identified the South Seattle neighborhood as a Washington health disparities community, highly impacted by air pollution.

Those planes fly right over them every year, causing more direct harm to people we're required by law to protect, but we don't.

We regulate health harms in public areas like smoking, drinking, drug use.

Why allow harmful jet smoke and noise?

We ask you to follow the law and the science.

Conduct a health risk assessment and a public poll of Blue Angels flying at Seafair.

Please stop the noise, terror and fossil fuel pollution.

Transform Seafair into a mental and physical wellness.

Thank them for their service.

Say goodbye and return to quiet, clean activities.

Thank you for the opportunity.

Thank you for your testimony today or for your public comment, rather.

All right.

There are no additional registered speakers, so the public comment period is now closed.

We'll proceed to our items of business.

Will the clerk please read item one into the record?

Agenda Item 1, appointment of Quinn Pham as Director of the Department of Neighborhoods for a term to December 31st, 2029 for briefing, discussion and possible vote.

Thank you, Clerk.

This item has been read into the record.

I see Acting Director Pham and Mark Ellibrook from the Mayor's Office is here at the table.

Please introduce your...

Well, let me say some things first and then I'll have you introduce yourself.

As we know, Acting Director Pham was previously the Executive Director of Friends of Little Saigon.

While there, she conducted meaningful work to raise awareness about her community's rich cultural history, priorities and challenges.

I've gotten to know Director Pham since she was appointed, and I appreciate the thoughtful and caring way she approaches her work.

The Department of Neighborhoods is the outreach arm of the city, and I look forward to seeing how Acting Director Pham will use her years of experience as a community organizer to build on and improve the way that Don conducts outreach to neighborhood and community groups.

It's so important that groups across the city are aware of and can participate in all the city's programs.

And I know that you care very much about that as well, Director Pham.

I appreciate your goals to conduct community engagement that is longer term and ongoing rather than piecemeal.

I look forward to hearing today about the ways you believe Don can improve on its role as the front porch of the city.

Acting Director Pham and Deputy Director Ellibrook, please state your name for the record.

Hi, good morning.

My name is Quinn Pham, she, her, Acting Director for DON.

Good morning, Mark Gellerbrook.

I am the Deputy Director for City Operations in the Mayor's Office.

And maybe I'll do a quick intro, and then I will just turn it over to Acting Director Pham.

So I'm excited to be here today.

We don't have quite the number of signs that we had the last time we did this, but...

One of the exciting parts of my job is to get to know those people who the mayor nominates to be the director of our departments.

It's been a pleasure getting to know Acting Director Pham.

I have no reservations at all about asking you to confirm her to be the next director of the Department of Neighborhoods.

She's a delight to work with, but also as you have heard multiple times, I think a force for good in the community.

And I think we are excited to have her expand that range throughout all of the city of Seattle.

So with that introduction, I will turn it over to Quinn Pham.

Great.

Thank you so much, Mark.

That's so nice.

Good morning, Councilmembers.

Thank you, Committee Chair Rivera, for the reintroduction to bringing me to the committee again.

And good to see you, Councilmember Rink and Foster.

So before I get started with the questions, I do wanna just reiterate some of the introduction that I did the last time I came here, just to talk about some of my key roles coming into this department, which really focus on advancing DON's current mission.

And it's really to deepen relationships with our community and across our departments making alignment of our resources and also aligning our goals because I believe we all are trying to achieve the same things.

And lastly, I'm also bringing a critical assessment of our impact in this work.

Sometimes that's really hard to demonstrate because it is so relational and I hope to be able to do that for our department and for all of you going forward.

So should I just read the question and then?

No, everyone's got the answers to the question, colleagues.

If there were like something that you want to highlight, please do so.

And then I'll ask colleagues if they have any additional questions and then we'll go to the vote.

Yeah, as someone who has worked in community for a long time, I think I would just like to highlight that government plays a big role and especially our department plays a big role in engaging with communities and bringing them closer into government and decision making.

But I think we also have to acknowledge that we are a government entity and it is really through our partnerships with community and our partnerships with other entities that we can fulfill our work and build that trust, the sense of belonging and the confidence in government.

So I'll just leave it at that and yeah.

Thank you, Director Pham.

And like I said earlier, I've just really appreciated and enjoyed getting to know you and talking about the work that Don's been doing.

We're all very familiar with Don's work and very much appreciate Don's work across the city in all the neighborhoods.

And I just look forward to the continued partnership and I very much enjoy that you have so much experience in community.

and I think you have so much to offer.

So, so happy you're here.

Colleagues, does anyone have any questions before we go to our vote?

Additional questions for Acting Director Pham?

I don't see any hands raised, so we're gonna go to the vote.

I move the committee recommends confirmation of appointment 3492. Is there a second?

Second.

It is moved and seconded to recommend confirmation of the appointment of Acting Director Pham.

as Director of the Department of Neighborhoods.

Are there any final comments?

Will the clerk please call the roll on the confirmation of appointment 3492?

Council Member Foster?

Yes.

Council Member Lin?

Yes.

Council Member Rink?

Yes.

Chair Rivera?

Aye.

There are four in favor, zero opposed.

The motion carries and the recommendation to confirm the appointment of Director FAM to the Department of Neighborhoods will be sent to the May 19th City Council meeting for final consideration.

Congratulations, Director FAM on your appointment.

Thank you so much.

Council Member Lynn, so thank you for being here.

Do you have anything final you'd like to say?

I'll just say thank you so much to my community and the DON staff who continue to show up and be present to support me and also the work and our ongoing partnership with between community and our local government.

So thank you.

Thank you, director.

And I see a number of Don folks here.

So thank you for being here to support your new director.

And I very much appreciate all of your work at the city on behalf of all of our constituents.

Thank you.

Thank you.

All right, we'll see you on the 19th.

Thank you, Mr. Ellerbroek, for being here from the mayor's office this morning.

All right, moving on to our next agenda item.

Will the clerk please read item two into the record?

Agenda Item 2, Council Bill 121197, an ordinance relating to historic preservation imposing controls upon the wooden house, a landmark designated by the Landmarks Preservation Board under Chapter 25.12, of the Seattle Municipal Code and adding it to the table of historical landmarks contained in chapter 25.32 of the Seattle Municipal Code for briefing, discussion, and possible vote.

All right, I see, Erin, you've joined us at the table, so please state your name for the record and you can begin your presentation.

Erin Doherty, I'm here from department.

No, you have to press the- Okay, let's try that again.

Erin Doherty, Department of Neighborhoods.

All right.

Okay, thank you very much.

Okay, we'll get started.

Just as a reminder, we've brought with us this image that we start each presentation and to just say that the Historic Preservation Program from the Department of Neighborhoods works in collaboration with communities to preserve places that are identified as important.

Keeping a tangible connection with the past helps foster community belonging in the present and in the future.

We always bring with us for reference the designation standards.

These are used by the landmarks board members when contemplating a new landmark.

They need to choose at least one of them, but many times they choose more than one.

So these are here for us to come back to if we'd like.

It's standards A through F.

And in addition to choosing one, they must also decide that the object, site, or improvement possesses integrity or ability to convey its significance.

So today we're going to talk about an ordinance to codify the controls and incentives agreement signed by the property owner and the city historic preservation officer.

Owner Scott Boone nominated the property and the application was authored by local architectural historian Sarah Martin.

You heard from both of them during public comment.

This is the Wooden House at 5801 Corson Avenue South in the Georgetown neighborhood.

It's indicated by a red box on the screen.

This property was designated by the Landmarks Board on November 6, 2024, under standards B, C, D, and F.

The features of the landmark selected by the board include the site, the exterior of the house, and portions of the interior that include the first floor, most of the first floor, and a portion of the second floor.

And those spaces were done in collaboration with Mr. Boone in identifying them.

The house was built in 1904, 1905, and the architect is unknown.

Mr. Boone in attendance today is the grandson of the original owners of the house, Dr. Scott and Mrs. Imogene Wooden.

Imogene Huntsman Wooden purchased the property prior to her marriage to Scott Wooden, and they began constructing their home shortly before marrying in November 1904. The Woodens met at the nearby King County Hospital in Georgetown, where they both worked.

and following her career as a nurse, Mrs. Wooden was a longtime community booster and helped create the Georgetown public play field that is located just north of their home.

You can see that here, indicated by a green area and also labeled.

In addition to working at the hospital, Dr. Wooden had a local medical practice and home office.

He was the city of Georgetown's first community health officer and was an advocate for statewide legislation to address preventable diseases.

This classical four square house, also known as a Seattle box, was built in 1904. This was the same year Georgetown was first incorporated.

The neighborhood was dramatically different than it is today.

At that time, it was a bustling little city along the Duwamish River with a booming beer brewing industry.

The area was annexed by the city of Seattle in 1910. And in 1913, the city began rechanneling the river to create the present day Duwamish Waterway.

Rezoning of residential areas for industrial growth in the 1950s fundamentally changed the trajectory of this community.

In the 1960s, construction of Interstate I-5 and the Corson Avenue South off-ramp landed right in front of the wooden house.

And you can see the Corson ramp coming down here past the site.

Due to that relationship of the new infrastructure and the existing home, they had to pick the house up and move it 20 feet to the west and put it on a new foundation.

This house is among the oldest remaining in the neighborhood.

and has become a visual landmark for many.

For drivers descending down the I-5 ramp into Georgetown, the wooden houses immediately are on their right with its recognizable green and yellow paint scheme.

This is the sixth designated landmark in Georgetown, joining Hat and Boots, the Seattle Brewing and Malting Company, the Georgetown Steam Plant, the Steam Plant Pump House that's on the Duwamish, and the old Georgetown City Hall.

All right, thank you, Erin, for that description.

Colleagues, do you have any questions?

I'm trying to look at...

Councilmember Foster, you're recognized.

Thank you so much, Chair.

No questions, actually.

I just wanted to say thank you and express how much I appreciated getting to hear from the homeowners today and the property stewards about your personal family history and connection to the site.

Thank you for that.

And thank you for your mention of Hat and Boots, which is one of my favorite places in the city as a historical landmark.

So I just want to express appreciation.

Thank you, Chair.

Thank you, Council Member Foster.

Let me make sure.

No, I don't see any other hands raised.

And I'll just say thank you for coming today to present your home.

Really appreciate hearing that the original owner, your grandmother started that, that play field is named after her because she helped start that.

That's really great.

We love play fields across our city.

So Really appreciate hearing about that and just the context and the history of this home.

So thank you for being here.

All right, colleagues, seeing no further questions, I move that the committee recommends passage of Council Bill 121197. Is there a second?

Second.

It is moved and seconded to recommend passage of the bill.

Are there any final comments?

Seeing none, will the clerk please call the roll on the adoption of Council Bill 121197?

Council Member Foster.

Yes.

Council Member Lynn.

Yes.

Council Member Rink.

Yes.

Chair Rivera.

Aye.

There are four in favor, zero opposed.

The motion carries and the committee recommendation to pass the bill will be sent to the May 19 City Council meeting for final consideration.

Thank you.

Thank you, Erin, for being here.

Thank you, Chair, and to the committee members.

I appreciate it.

Thank you.

Alright colleagues, we are at the end of our meeting.

Are there any final questions or comments for the good of the order?

Seeing none, this concludes the May 13th meeting of the Library's Education and Neighborhoods Committee.

Our next committee meeting is scheduled for May 27th at 9.30 a.m.

If there's no further business, this meeting will adjourn.

Hearing no further business, it's 10.04 AM and this meeting is adjourned.

Thank you all for being here and everyone in the audience.