I am supporting the election of Ed Fitch for the Mayor of Redmond.

My husband Jon and I moved to Redmond eight years ago when the population was about 15,000 people. Redmond’s population has doubled in that time. Exorbitant growth for any city. Jon and I saw this firsthand in Tigard. Many of the same issues and concerns are in Redmond today.

Planning has been done on many issues. Council, mayor and staff need to implement solutions. We are not a city of 15,000 anymore. I have seen Fitch connect with the council to open up their meetings for actual citizen input and he has pledged he will be more transparent on this issue.

With his experience as mayor, I am confident that Fitch can and will bring this transparency to the city and the council to navigate current and future issues of growth, quality of life, and all of the things we citizens talk about every day.

Fitch knows and has been at the table with decision makers in the past. He was there for the first bypass of Redmond. Now he is working with the council to plan and secure right-of-way and funding for a reroute not only Redmond, but to move the high volume of regional traffic that passes through our city. This won’t happen tomorrow or the next day, but securing the future right-of-way is huge as it will lock in a route.

We need Ed Fitch for the way he has navigated those issues and many other issues both noted and unforeseen. But I am confident that he can lead, listen and empower the council, as well as all citizens of Redmond. We need a leader to deal with the complexities of our city for 2022 and beyond.

Judy Fessler

Past chair of the Redmond Landmarks Commission, past president of Greater Redmond Historical Society