Mattawa City Council appoints new member

MATTAWA — Vicente Acosta was appointed to the Mattawa City Council during a virtual council meeting on Feb. 18.

Over the course of the month, three interested applicants were interviewed by the city council. During the Feb. 4 meeting, Amanda Perez and Vicente Acosta were asked a variety of questions about their vision for the city and what they could bring to council.

At the end of that meeting, the council voted 4-2 to defer appointing anyone to allow more residents to express interest in the council position. Minelia Cervantez, a mother of four, expressed her interest and had a chance to answer questions during the Feb. 18 meeting.

After going into executive session for 45 minutes, the council decided to appoint Acosta. Council members Brian Berghout and Sun Hwang voted against Acosta’s appointment.

Acosta’s swearing in was at city hall and not at a council meeting. The city’s code states that a council member is not required to publicly swear, but is required to sign the oath of office.

Acosta has lived in Mattawa since 2006 and is a school psychologist. He has also done some private practice work in violence, anger management and drugs.

At the Feb. 4 meeting, Acosta said graffiti is one thing he would like to see the city address. He said that if graffiti is not taken care of, it can encourage more graffiti.