Washougal leaders pick new councilor

The Washougal City Council has appointed a man who identifies himself as a conservative and wants “whatever is good for the community” to succeed Dan Coursey on the council. Ernie Suggs, 70, was chosen from eight candidates who were interviewed during the council’s regular meeting Monday, April 23, to succeed Dan Coursey in Position 7.

There had been 10 applicants, but Marvin Toelupe and Karen Susac had family emergencies and were not available.

In addition to Suggs, Janice Ferguson, Lori Rose, Donald Lowe Jr., David Szyplinski, Paul Godin, Adam Philbin and Roxy Cate were the other council applicants who were interviewed.

“After seeing all the other possible candidates, I was very humbled to be chosen and very excited,” Suggs said Tuesday morning.

He served 35 years as director of the Camas Community Education program and assisted with organizing Washougal Community Education and Recreation. He is a co-founder, board member and former two-time president of the Washougal Schools Foundation.

After the initial interviews, Suggs and Ferguson — a 20-year member of the Washougal Parks Board, chairperson of the Washougal Arts and Culture Alliance and member of the Clark County Arts Commission — were named as finalists and addressed questions regarding positive and negative changes they have noticed in Washougal and the potential of a Camas-Washougal community center.

Some of the changes Suggs referred to include the expansion of the city, the city and churches helping local homeless individuals and a continuation of creating better schools in Washougal. Regarding a community center, Suggs said it will involve money and commitment from the cities of Camas and Washougal, as well as Camas and Washougal school districts, and potentially Clark County.

Ferguson talked about the optimism of Washougal residents and their willingness to share ideas for the city’s future through organizations such as the citizen-led Washougal Round Table.

Regarding a community center, Ferguson mentioned that Camas, Washougal and Port leaders could work together to replace the closed Crown Park pool — possibly along the Washougal waterfront on land owned by the Port of Camas-Washougal.

After the final interviews, Council members Julie Russell, Ray Kutch, Paul Greenlee and Michelle Wagner voted to appoint Suggs, while Joyce Lindsay and Brent Boger listed Ferguson as their top choice.