Redistricting brings senate run for White Salmon Mayor; Goldendale, Lyle, WS now in Dist. 17.
Marla Keethler
By Ken Park
White Salmon, Wash., May 11, 2024 — Mayor Marla Keethler announced on April 24 her intention to run for Washington State Senate representing the newly formed 17th district.
In 2023, U.S. District Court Judge Robert Lasnik ruled that the 15th legislative district in Washington (Yakima) as drawn by the redistricting commission violated Latino voting rights and needed redrawn.
U.S. District Court Judge Robert Lasnik adopted the Washington map drawn with new boundaries for district 17 on March 15. Click to enlarge
New district boundaries impacted 13 other districts and moved the cities of White Salmon, Goldendale, and Lyle from the 14th legislative distinct served by Senator Curtis King (R) to the 17th legislative district served by Senator Lynda Wilson (R).
Wilson announced in March that she is stepping down from the position, according to a story in the Columbian.
Keethler was elected to White Salmon City Council in 2016 and won her bid for Mayor in 2019.
Before her civic endeavors, she worked in several communications roles in the sports and entertainment industry for companies such as CBS and ESPN.
She holds an undergraduate degree in Broadcasting and Political Science from Arizona State University.
Senate Bid
Keethler said that having a front-row seat to the redistricting process as Mayor, played a key role in inspiring her to run for state Senate.
“I think seeing that this new district was where White Salmon and the surrounding communities were falling was intriguing to me, especially in my role as mayor. As I got more of a front-row seat to… the inner workings between local government and state government… at times I felt like there was a missed opportunity or a lot of potential to see those levers of government working better,” Keethler said. “Seeing us in a new district, I think also showed me a path to getting involved in that way and seeing an opportunity to have new representation and bring forward concerns that I've heard in the community, that I've seen or grappled with the kind of frustrations with existing policies and actually be able to have a say, so that was really what kind of spurred me to think about jumping in.”
Keethler says her experience as mayor, implementing policies put out by the legislature, will inform her role as a legislator should she win the seat.
“Stepping back onto the legislative side is a huge part of the shift from being a mayor to a state senator,” Keethler said. “But I think that a lot of my policy, direction, or ability to legislate in that way would be informed by these years, having led a city and seeing on the ground, what it means when you're actually trying to implement some of these policies are trying to move forward and make progress and how maybe you're constrained.”
Keethler believes that her experience as mayor will make her a more balanced legislator and be able to come forward with policy from lived experience, from both the private and public sectors.
Policy
Keethler hopes to address key issues such as housing, local government power, and infrastructure if elected to the Senate seat.
Keethler expressed concern with how Olympia has tried to address the housing crisis with a one-size-fits-all approach, noting that what works for larger cities, does not work for small rural communities like White Salmon and the surrounding area.
“I think some of the direction that Olympia has tried to go on this issue alone has been kind of concerning, the idea that you take away some of the local control and centralize it through agencies or at the state level, I think is the wrong way to make sure that communities are being empowered and that you see community-led solutions,” Keethler said.
Keethler pointed out that the newly formed 17th district covers three counties, two of which do not fall under the Growth Management Act (GMA). Consequently, these counties are not mandated by the state to formulate growth plans. As a result, they have devised distinct approaches to manage growth and address housing needs without access to the resources available to GMA-affiliated counties.
“The 17th District spans across three counties, but two of those are non-GMA counties, and they're different ways that we have had to navigate or tools that have not been available to us and non-GMA counties and bringing forward that voice I think into these conversations is important,” Keethler said.
Keethler also honed in on the funding and the power of local government as an issue to focus on, especially when it comes to education and infrastructure.
“I think being able to reinforce and make sure that you allow local communities to make the decisions of how they're going to be funding a lot of those things is also essential,” she said. “You know, that's empowering school districts that want to be contributing to their local education at the ballot to be able to do so you see a lot of difficulties with smaller districts where being held to a higher majority often means that things that are passing with a simple majority still are not moving forward. I think there are still imbalances from McCleary on how a smaller district can fund versus larger and more populated, but also like a higher concentration of property values or the wealth of a community and so you're still seeing huge inequities there,” Keethler said.
Keethler provided an example of how powerful local government can be when in 2023 voters in White Salmon and Klickitat County Fire District 3 approved a Regional Fire Authority.
“So that is a lever that local communities are allowed to pull and take to the voters to decide and so I think making sure that we reinforce the importance of local control and decisions on a lot of these things sometimes get lost when they're looking at policies that are one size fit all and try to take some of those tools away from the local voters to decide,” Keethler said.
Keethler highlighted the over 30 years of work that has gone into securing funding for a new Hood River-White Salmon bridge when discussing infrastructure as a piece of legislature she would prioritize.
Current Hood River Bridge
“We've been very successful in seeing support from Washington so far, but we're not totally to our end goal. We really need $125 million from both Washington State and Oregon State and there's about $50 million there that we're still looking to have, and I think that project, singularly, has been one that I've found very motivating and inspiring and that it's had real bipartisan support,” Keethler said.
Again Keethler noted that the redistricting in Washington has moved the bridge project into new territory and wants to continue to help support that work.
“This redrawn map is also putting this project into an entirely new district, so in some ways, I also feel a responsibility to be that voice for that project and make sure we reach $125 million, knowing how critical it is,” Keethler said.
The question of focusing on policies in the Senate shifts to an examination of how those policies align with the needs and constituents of White Salmon.
“I think they directly align not just with White Salmon, but also a lot of the struggles that we are facing throughout this part of the Gorge, especially housing. We know that issue does not stop at our city limits, but all across the county and especially the western side of Klickitat and into Skamania County. They're feeling the same burden of struggling to provide more diverse housing options, and then taking on some of the needed infrastructure improvements that come along with that,” Keethler said. “So, I think that those two issues certainly transition from being top city priorities, but also to top state-level priorities.”
Keethler again weighed in on education and included the need for childcare.
“Obviously, at the city level, we're not overseeing our school district, they have their entire elected system and leadership. But I think as an active partner with our school district, we definitely feel likewise that obligation that a strong healthy community also means you have the support and proper resources for the next generation, which I would say is not just about education, but also childcare,” Keethler said.
Keethler said she is excited to bring attention to the need of affordable and accessible childcare as part of her senate campaign.
“I'm excited actually in this campaign to hopefully raise the attention around the issue of childcare. We've worked at White Salmon to make that acknowledged at the county level as an infrastructure priority, just making the case that creating those safe spaces and partnerships or support systems so that you see providers come into the region are essential also for your economic development,” Keethler said.
Keethler, a mother of two, views this campaign as a chance to address this issue from a legislative perspective.
“I think there is a responsibility for us to be more engaged on that issue at the state level,I think there are policy changes that are needed so that we don't make it overly burdensome while maintaining the safety of those spaces that families are entrusting to watch their kids but not lose providers in the process,” Keethler said. “Also, what are some of the other creative solutions that maybe are happening on the ground and could be better realized or scaled up if there was better support?“
Politics
Having served as both Mayor and a city councilor for the City of White Salmon, Keethler has rarely encountered party politics. Amidst an increasingly polarized political landscape, Keethler believes her experience in a non-partisan capacity will be a significant asset if she assumes the role of senator following her potential election.
“I think one of my strengths coming into this honestly, is that I'm coming from a non-partisan position,’ Keethler said.”
Keethler said that working in local government has been a renewing and rewarding experience as she has been able to work with colleagues in the city, county, and state to find common ground on solutions to shared problems without having to deal with the issues that seem designed to cause division.
“I think taking some of that perspective and approach to a place like the state capitol is needed and long overdue,” Keethler said.
Keethler highlighted the precedent of senators and congressional representatives transitioning from local government entities such as city councils, county commissions, ports, and school districts. She expressed a desire for more individuals with such backgrounds to enter higher office, believing that their experiences at the local level can effectively bridge the divides in party politics and foster tangible solutions to legislative challenges.
“There have been other elected officials at the state level that have come from local government, and I honestly would hope that we see more of that because when you have been tasked with dealing, at a very local level, through leadership at a port district or county or city or school board, you know what it means to try to get things done and make it happen,” Keethler said. “Having that type of perspective as a legislator, I think can make us land on policies that get us back to a place of finding common ground, shared solutions, compromise from both sides and hopefully away from staying in a place where it is a stronger division or seen as just a party identity or affiliation is where your vote lies.”
Leadership Experience
Keethler said that her experience as Mayor will transfer well to the role of Senator should she be elected because of the level of commitment that is required in both roles.
“I will say that being a mayor even in a small town is a 24/7 job, 365 days, and that level of commitment to my community and to being available and answering to people and continually and constantly working with my small team to find solutions or think outside the box with limited resources are all points that if I was hiring someone to be a state legislator, I would want to see those types of skill sets because I think it forces you again, to be finding solutions that bring different people to the table,” Keethler said.
Keethler also said that being on the other end of legislation, as a mayor and seeing the follow through of passed legislation and its challenges will also inform her leadership as a senator.
“ There are so many things where I think it's too easy to get conditioned into a place of just planning and thinking about the work or creating policies but not seeing the follow through, and I think one of the biggest strengths I have coming into the position as a state senator from being a mayor is understanding the follow through that's needed and making sure that we're crafting policies that empower the people on the ground that will actually make these results happen,” Keethler said.
Achievements/Failures
In terms of achievements, Keethler reflected on making the City of White Salmon as a governing body more accessible to the people, as well as her work with getting funding for the Hood River White Salmon Bridge, housing code changes, and bringing back projects that were delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“ A lot of what I spent the first term doing was really implementing a new approach to how we were governing our city, making it more accessible to everyone and more transparent in our processes, and for many people, I think more of an open door sense of getting involved than what had been there previously,” Keethler said.
Keethler is especially proud of the work that has been done over the last five years to procure funding for the Hood River White Salmon bridge project.
“The bridge definitely stands out to me,” Keethler said. “That has been pursued since the late 90s and so many people have touched that project and helped to move it one rung further up the ladder and I think the momentum that we've seen in the last five years, I feel very much a part of, but as part of a larger team and the other local elected leadership that's come forward on that project and the way that we have organized and stayed focus, and especially this year, seeing the $200 million infrastructure grant are huge successes to making sure that we meet that goal of a new bridge.”
“We passed a pretty extensive list of code changes, and it was just a phase one of those changes at the end of 2023 and seeing the way that throughout that process, we had constructive engagement from our community, with differing viewpoints and still were able to have a council move forward implementing some noticeable change to what can be built in our community,” Keethler said. “It's significant because a lot of the goal of housing work is to create more houses and I think we have now created the foundation where different types of housing can come online.”
“We were successful in getting WSDOT (Washington State Department of Transportation)and the state to bring the Jewett repaving project back online, it had been delayed indefinitely in 2020. So seeing that now move forward with complete streets work 2024 with WSDOT has been wonderful and that is an example of a project that quite likely will need more money from the state by the time it’s construction-ready in 2026,” Keethler said. “ So in some ways, that and other projects are also ones that I'm not leaving, but able to champion from a different seat, where some of those monetary funding decisions are being made.”
Regardless of whether or not she is elected to the senate seat Keethler has maintained that this will be her last term as Mayor of White Salmon and is ready to hand over the reins to someone new.
“We all, especially as elected officials, have a small window of time when we are affecting the change we want to see, but then we need to hand it on to the next person and I do feel good about the direction the city is going,” Keethler said. “ Even if it's in one year, I'm handing it over or three years because my plan was always that this would be my last term, I am handing over a system that runs more efficiently and effectively than when I came in. So I do see that as a success.”
Support Movers & Shakers
News available to all. Funded by readers.
