Community Council is poised for full ‘reboot’

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, January 26, 2022

In this new year of 2022, many people are feeling like they need a new beginning — to update, clarify, and simplify — after a long bout of uncertainty, figuring it out as they go. And this is exactly what the Vashon-Maury Island Community Council, as an organization, intends to do for itself.

With recent changes to the Washington State laws regarding non-profits – which hadn’t been updated in more than fifty years – many non-profits in Washington are needing to make major changes to meet much more rigorous requirements. Vice President Diane Emerson, with the help of Councilmember Bill Lyell, has worked extensively on a plan for the VMICC to meet those requirements and better serve the Vashon community.

At its January general meeting, held Monday, Jan. 17, the Council seemed amenable to the idea of a full “reboot” —dissolving the current organization, and creating a new organization with a different federal tax designation, in addition to rewriting the bylaws.

“In recent meetings, there has been discussion about whether a 501c4 designation is actually what we need to have, rather than 501c3,” Emerson said. “After looking more deeply into it, it appears that this is indeed the case.”

According to the IRS, a 501c4 is “an organization…operated exclusively for the promotion of social welfare, if it is primarily engaged in promoting in some way the common good and general welfare of the people of the community. An organization embraced within this section is one which is operated primarily for the purpose of bringing about civic betterments and social improvements.”

Those present at the January meeting were in agreement that this seemed more in line with what the community wanted to do with their Council. Community members thought that the power to do some lobbying on non-partisan issues that affect the Island — which would be extremely restricted as a 501c3 — would empower the Council to make more tangible changes in the lives of islanders.

In addition to the discussion of a reboot, the Council also unanimously voted to appoint Councilmember Rachel Rome to serve as the third Vashon representative on the Ferry Advisory Committee, which liaises with Washington State Ferries to advocate for communities impacted by the ferry system.

“Rachel Rome is an urban planner and transportation planner with over ten years of professional experience in design development and review, including both private and public sector projects,” according to the Council’s website. “She also has experience with zoning and public outreach, among her many skills.”

The other two Vashon FAC representatives, Councilmembers Emily Scott and Justin Hirsch, were also in attendance, giving an update on ferry service and the future of the fleet in Puget Sound, as well as shedding some light on the workings of the system that Vashon is so critically dependent upon. Shortage of qualified crew was cited as a major reason for service disruptions, but Scott and Hirsch made it clear that this problem was not limited to WSF, but is actually impacting the entire maritime industry.

With the energy of the new year, the VMICC is building momentum and inspiration. Islanders who are interested in attending a meeting or receiving updates about the Council’s work should visit vmicc.net and sign up for the mailing list. General meetings are every third Monday of the month; the February meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 21, on Zoom.