After nearly a decade, Lakewood names new mayor
Lakewood City Council voted for the longtime deputy to become the city’s new mayor.
The council unanimously voted on Tuesday to appoint Jason Whalen to the post.
Whalen has been former mayor Don Anderson’s deputy for eight years, with 12 years on the City Council. Whalen is an attorney at a firm in downtown Tacoma. He is an Army veteran and a president-elect of the Lakewood Rotary Club.
He is the city’s fifth mayor since its 1996 incorporation.
He told The News Tribune his priorities include public safety, civic engagement, economic development and park beautification. He wants to focus on complying with state legislation on use-of-force techniques and implementation at the Lakewood Police Department and integrating body and dash cameras for officers. He also wants to add quarterly town halls on bigger issues and continue work on public parks, like improving the ballparks at Fort Steilacoom Park. Whalen also wants to continue economic development of projects like Lakewood Landing and to encourage industries other than warehouses.
“We have been blessed with the industrial park warehouses, but we also want to enhance the opportunities for professional business and other services,” Whalen said.
He would like to see more housing units to prepare for the city’s estimations of 12,000 additional residents by 2030, and continued work on roads, sidewalks and lighting.
The council also appointed Mary Moss as deputy mayor. Moss was elected to the Lakewood City Council in 2009. She is president of the Lakewood Multicultural Coalition and secretary of the State Air Force Association and retired after 36 years as a community development consultant for a credit union, a Lakewood press release said.
The council elects one of its members as mayor and another as deputy mayor every two years. Whalen and Moss will serve two-year terms in their new roles.
Anderson announced last month he would not seek re-election after the longest reign as city mayor. He will keep his seat on council for two more years. He prioritized infrastructure, zoning regulations, and the city’s relationship with the neighboring military base, Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
This story was originally published January 6, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
