Soap Lake mayor resigns

SOAP LAKE — Soap Lake Mayor Alex Kovach announced his resignation at the Soap Lake City Council meeting on May 4.

In a press release dated April 22, but not made available to the public until the meeting, Kovach addressed his letter of resignation to the Soap Lake community. The letter states his resignation was effective at midnight Wednesday.

In the letter, Kovach writes: “In preparation for the coming changes and growth in the city, and with the goal of improving upon our city government services, I feel my talents will be better suited to serve the city in another capacity.”

Kovach went on to say in the release that he is stepping down from the mayoral position to make himself eligible for potential future contract or employment opportunities with the city of Soap Lake. More specifically, Kovach notes his background and interest in architecture.

“I want to be available to apply those professional skills to the City Planner and Building Code Official position,” Kovach said in the release.

The current city planner and building code official, Darryl Piercy gave his notice at the beginning of the year that he would be retiring in June.

In a subsequent interview, Kovach said that was when he started reconsidering the city planner and building code official job. Kovach noted it was the type of position he was interested in when he first became involved with the Soap Lake City Council. Kovach was elected mayor in November 2019, after he spent roughly 18 months on the council.

“Understanding that the city may choose to go a different route to provide city planning and building official services, my commitment to the city will not be lost, as I will continue my life of service and continue to volunteer for the benefit of this great community,” wrote Kovach.

Michelle Agliano, who held City Council Position 6, will serve as mayor pro-tem until the council can decide on whether to make her the mayor for the remainder of Kovach’s term or keep her in a pro-tem capacity. Discussions about this at the meeting brought up the point that Agliano would still have voting power on the council as mayor pro-tem but not if appointed mayor by the council.

According to the Soap Lake website, the council has seven members. Removing one member from voting would lead to a greater likelihood of tie votes. However, as mayor or as mayor pro-tem, Agliano would prevent the tie. As a mayor pro-tem, she would retain her current voting rights and as mayor, she would be able to vote in the event of a tie.

The current mayoral term is set to expire Dec. 31, 2023.

In the release, Kovach voiced his confidence in Agliano and the council to guide Soap Lake.

Kovach said this was also not a decision he made lightly. He said he wanted to make sure that he left the city with a strong leader, which he feels Agliano is. He also said he had spoken to her prior to giving his notice to council to see how she felt about being mayor pro-tem and was pleased that she said she was happy and excited to take on that responsibility.

In the meantime, Kovach said his main focus is helping with the transition and being a resource for the council. He even noted he may be volunteering to help onsite with the completion of the city hall building. His family runs an architecture firm that he plans to be a part of as well.

“Thank you for entrusting me with this responsibility for these last two years,” Kovach said in closing the letter of resignation.

Rebecca Pettingill can be reached via email at rpettingill@columbiabasinherald.com.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This article has updated with additional information since its original publication.