Bonney Lake needs a new mayor. There’s conflict on the council about who it should be
If you have a dream of becoming a mayor, the city of Bonney Lake is looking for one.
The city posted on its website Wednesday that it is accepting applications from residents who want to serve as mayor. The applicant must be a registered voter in the city and must have resided within the city limits for at least the past year.
Applications are due 5 p.m. Monday, March 18. Candidate speeches and interviews will happen 6 p.m. March 19 during the City Council meeting. Council members will pick the mayor through a majority vote that evening.
The salary is $2,100 per month. The term will expire after results have been certified for the November 2025 general election, according to the city’s website.
Applications can be submitted virtually at bonneylakewa.seamlessdocs.com/f/MayorApplication. Applications can also be mailed to 9002 Main St. E., Suite 200, Bonney Lake, WA 98391.
Former Bonney Lake Mayor Michael McCullough announced his resignation during the March 5 City Council workshop. The News Tribune reported earlier this week that he has accepted a job with the Puyallup Tribe of Indians.
McCullough was sworn into office in 2022. The News Tribune reported in November 2021 that he worked as a public defender at the King County Department of Public Defense.
‘Carter was appointed’
At the March 12 City Council meeting the council voted 5-1 to send out an application for residents interested in becoming mayor.
It wasn’t a quick decision. They discussed different proposals for more than an hour before they voted.
Council members Kerri Hubler, Dan Swatman, J. Kelly McClimans, Angela Baldwin and Dan Roach ultimately voted in favor of it. Council member Gwendolyn Fullerton voted against it. Deputy Mayor Terry Carter is the mayor pro tempore, which means he’s serving as the mayor in the interim.
Fullerton said during the meeting that the city does not have a policy that outlines what happens when a mayor steps down. That means the city must rely on state law, she said, which states that an incumbent council member can be appointed to fill the vacancy.
Fullerton also said she does not see the point in letting residents apply for the mayoral seat if the public already elected its council members. She argued that they should appoint Carter as the new mayor, without taking applications.
“Carter was appointed,” Fullerton said. “We gave him our faith and trust.”
Baldwin said during the meeting that the mayor should be someone who residents voted for, but she agreed to consider applications from the public.
McClimans said during the meeting that he was concerned about not having a mayor or a full council in time for the City Council’s retreat. He tried to make a motion that evening to appoint Carter as mayor. Ultimately, they postponed the upcoming retreat and McClimans agreed to consider applications from the public.
Roach said during the meeting that the vacant seat should be open to anyone interested. It would allow council members to ask candidates about their vision for the city, among other things, he said.
“This is not open government,” Roach said about the idea of appointing a council member as mayor without giving residents a chance to apply.
Swatman said during the meeting that he supports transparency within the City Council, and that it is good not to rush the process.
Hubler said during the meeting that she recently received “concerns” from residents about Carter becoming the mayor. She said she was shocked to see public records about his time as a police officer in Bonney Lake and in Pacific, and that she was not OK with him becoming the mayor.
“How do we know that the rest of our Bonney Lake community members knew all of these details?” Hubler said.
Crosscut reported in September 2021 that the Pacific Police Department suspended Carter earlier that year after failing to properly report child abuse allegations in a timely manner.
Carter is legally required to report child abuse or neglect allegations to Child Protective Services immediately. Crosscut reported that he failed to do that, and that he notified the state only after investigations were done.
Carter told Crosscut at the time that he was not properly trained on how to manage such cases, and that he did not receive the help that he needed from previous police chiefs.
Carter was also “pushed out” of the Bonney Lake Police Department in 2013 for policy violations such as conduct unbecoming and deceiving his supervisors, according to the Crosscut article. Prosecutors put him on the Brady list — a list of officers with credibility issues — because of that, Crosscut reported.
Carter said during the March 12 meeting that he has made mistakes, that he is open to speaking with people about what happened, and that he has been “very public” about what happened.
Carter told The News Tribune on Thursday that he still works with Pacific Police as a detective sergeant. He has been with the police department for about 20 years. He also said his relationship with Bonney Lake police is good.
“They’re the reason that I ran for council,” Carter said about the Bonney Lake Police Department.
Carter has been on the Bonney Lake City Council for about six years. When asked if he plans to apply for the vacant mayor seat, he said, “I plan on sending an application.”
This story was originally published March 15, 2024 at 10:21 AM.
