This is the first in a series of eight posts about the eight folks who want to take Doug Mah's old seat on the Olympia city council.

I decided to start out with an applicant of whom I knew nothing about. Karen Rogers is a former Department of Ecology employee. former state house staffer and current consultant.

Her application packet (embeded below) is impressive in terms of depth of the answers and experience, but I coudn't get past the fact that she's lived in Olympia for only two years. This isn't that much of a problem for me, I've voted for impressive public servants who've lived in an area for a short time, but this comment from her packet set me back:

I have lived in Olympia for only two years. However, this is my home and I know this community fairly well. Furthermore, I have an exuberance to learn more about this community. What better place to learn than the city council?

So, I'm not going to go much further in exploring Karen Rogers. She seems nice, but there are better places to learn than the Olympia City Council. Thanks.

She should look into the many advisory committees that the city council has set up. With her professional experience and education she would be a valuable member of the Utility Advisory Committee or the Planning Commission.