Exclusive: Tacoma council candidate was banned from city parks for a year
Tacoma City Council candidate Ben Lackey was banned from Parks Tacoma facilities and events for a year for what the agency described as “disruptive and counterproductive” behavior, according to documents obtained by The News Tribune.
The expulsion was in effect as Lackey was campaigning for a council District 2 seat, promising that if elected he would reopen the Bayside Trails – a partially-closed trail system that runs through north Tacoma. In a Sept. 20, 2024 letter to Lackey, Parks Tacoma’s risk safety and human resources administrator Melissa Johnson stated that Lackey’s actions and advocacy work regarding the Bayside Trails had “caused confusion amongst both entities as well as with the community.”
“We have staff testimony that support your comments and actions during work parties have been disruptive and counterproductive to our values and goals,” Johnson wrote in the letter, which was obtained by The News Tribune through a public-records request.
Lackey is running for the District 2 seat — which covers parts of downtown, Stadium, Old Town and the Port of Tacoma — against incumbent Sarah Rumbaugh. If elected, Lackey would serve a four-year term. The election is Nov. 4.
In a phone call with The News Tribune, Lackey criticized the claims that Johnson made and said he was “pretty good” about following the expulsion.
“I guess what I feel happened is I did a whole bunch of volunteer work, I got public land back into a place that the public can actually use it, and Parks has fought against that,” he said. “It’s really disappointing.”
In her letter, Johnson also wrote that content that Lackey has posted on social media as a volunteer for Parks Tacoma violated its social media policies – specifically a policy that requires people to “exercise discretion and good judgment when commenting upon colleagues or coworkers.”
The letter cited “physical and video evidence” of Lackey working on Parks Tacoma property and running power equipment like chainsaws and brush trimmers.
“One of the core values in Metro Parks Tacoma’s mission and vision is safety,” the letter reads. “Not only does this activity violate several policies, but it also puts the public in danger and cannot be allowed to continue.
The letter stated that Lackey was banned from all Parks Tacoma parks, facilities, activities and events as of the day the letter was sent for one year – meaning the expulsion ended on Sept. 20, 2025.
Lackey, 44, told The News Tribune that the letter came after work he had done to “sort of forcibly reopen Gulch without any buy-in from parks.” Lackey said he cut fallen logs, ivy and blackberries that were blocking the trail in the North End. After residents started using the trail, Parks Tacoma would send out volunteers to continue trail maintenance in an official capacity, he said.
Lackey said that after he had a few disagreements with Parks Tacoma staff over how to conduct the maintenance and which tools to use to do so, he walked out of a volunteer event.
“And then a week or two later, I get that letter,” he told The News Tribune.
Lackey said Parks Tacoma’s claim that he used power equipment on Parks Tacoma property was a lie. He criticized the organization for applying its social-media policy to him as a volunteer and said the letter was likely referencing his posts on the Bayside Trails Facebook group, in which he often posts emails he exchanges with Parks Tacoma staff about his frustration with the maintenance and operation of trails like Garfield Gulch.
“I find this very problematic, that we have a city organization that claims harassment when you point out that they’re not doing their job,” he said.
This story was originally published October 15, 2025 at 3:19 PM.
