Following the announcement that she will be seeking a fourth term in office, the North Kitsap Herald virtually chatted with Mayor Becky Erickson about her decision as well as other topics that have shaped the last year and half in Poulsbo.

Q: What made you decide to run for a fourth term?

Erickson: “As the time approached (to register) and I realized what was going on in Poulsbo it became more and more apparent to me that this is not a good time to leave city government. The upheaval caused by COVID and the whole picture of the last 18 months has really stressed local government, in these kinds of times you don’t really want to add more stress to that mix. A new executive coming into the city at this point would be very difficult as we wind our way through COVID and addressing the pandemic and the fallout from it.

“I thought about it for a long time, the budget crisis, what’s happening with our citizens the whole mode of how we are dealing with change in this setting, the last thing we need is more change on the change. So I decided I’m going to run again.”

Erickson is unopposed, but the filing period is months away.

Q: What would you like to see happen should you win a fourth term?

BE: “There’s a list, and that’s part of the problem that people don’t understand about COVID and the pandemic. We went to all hands on deck for the pandemic. I mean we were absolutely focused on all of these pieces for a very long time, which meant that other things became delayed. There’s so many things going on in the city that are in a very tender stage, Johnson Parkway roundabout for instance.”

Q: You established “Summer Fair” to help local restaurants make it through the pandemic. What lessons have you learned?

BE: “I do see a future for outdoor dining in Poulsbo if the businesses choose to do it and if the City Council approves it. I think it has really helped our local businesses survive and be able to spill out into the streets and take those outdoor spaces and make their footprint a bit bigger. I also think people love it, especially as our weather gets nicer. I think they really enjoy being outdoors.”

“Summer Fair” has been approved to run through the end of the year.

Q: How has the impact of the pandemic shaped your thinking on the housing crisis?

BE: “What we need to do is figure out how to build more affordability. A lot of the developments that are going in, in Poulsbo, aren’t particularly affordable by my book and certainly not by HUD (Housing and Urban Development) standards, which is 30, 60 and 80 percent of median income.

“We do have one project, Oslo Bay, a large apartment complex, that should break ground this summer, that will provide a lot more what I call missing middle income housing, so apartments that will rent for $1,200-$1,400 a month. If they are two to three bedrooms that really affords the capability of the middle, which is not technically affordable, but certainly more affordable than our single family houses are selling for.”

Q: What is your day to day schedule like and how did COVID change it?

BE: “It made it longer. It used to be that I could go home at night and have time to just kind of be home. Now with the advent of Zoom I’m taking Zoom meetings at some really interesting hours. It added a whole other layer of responsibility on to local government. But I’m not complaining, I signed up for this, and I want to sign up for it again but the pandemic has really increased work loads and made us change our work dynamic. Now I’m accessible 24/7.”

Q: What have you learned from the fallout of the shooting death of Stonechild Chiefstick?

BE: “I think that I have learned, and I think that we all have learned how to listen better, and how to listen critically to what other people are saying. To absorb it and understand it and not be so caught up in our own sleeves but really try to be empathetic towards the people that are talking about what their grievances are. The piece that I think is missing from this whole conversation is, what are we going to do about it? How do we put action steps together in a small town in order to address those grievances? What are we going to do to make ourselves more opening to others and how are we going to incorporate that into our day to day lives? Not just in city government but in all of our institutions in this area … Those are the conversations I want to have.”