Twenty minutes before the Vancouver City Council meeting started Monday, council chambers were already reaching capacity. As the seats filled, Mayor Anne McEnerny-Ogle made the rounds greeting those who turned out en masse to celebrate her oath of office and first meeting serving as Vancouver’s first female mayor. By 7 p.m., it was standing-room only.
New Councilor Linda Glover, incumbent Councilor Alishia Topper and McEnerny-Ogle were sworn in by City Attorney Bronson Potter minutes later and met with a standing ovation.
“Somebody ought to pinch me, I can’t believe I’m up here,” Glover said.
The meeting started with a few badge awards to Boy Scout troop 310 before the council dug in to the largest issue at hand that evening: the day center purchase agreement. The council approved the $4.3 million purchase of the former state Fish and Wildlife Building to relocate its day center.
As the meeting wrapped, Glover, Topper and McEnerny-Ogle took the opportunity to thank voters.
“I’m excited to join a council with a first woman mayor and this dedicated council that has worked so hard to keep Vancouver strong,” Glover said, adding that she plans to work to make Vancouver a city where citizens feel valued and have an opportunity to prosper.
Topper first pledged to the mayor that “I’m not going to call you madam mayor, I’m just going to call you mayor,” and invited the rest of the council to do the same.
“I know as I’ve had conversations, I don’t always agree with everyone and they don’t always agree with me, but they know I’m going to be open-minded, and I’m going to research every issue as best I can,” Topper added.
McEnerny-Ogle said simply, “I, too, am honored to serve the citizens and the council.”
Before the first meeting of 2018 concluded, the council appointed Councilor Bart Hansen Mayor Pro Tem. The Mayor Pro Tem will serve in place of the mayor in McEnerny-Ogle’s absence.
McEnerny-Ogle thanked the still nearly full council chamber for attending, noting that 8:30 p.m. wasn’t too late considering the evening’s full agenda. The time of adjournment was actually 8:50 p.m.
“Let’s get that clock fixed,” she added as one of her first orders as mayor.
