Swartz chosen for second term as Moses Lake mayor

MOSES LAKE — Dustin Swartz will be serving as Moses Lake mayor for the next two years. Swartz was reelected by Moses Lake City Council members on a 5-1 vote Tuesday. 

Council member Victor Lombardi voted no, after nominating Mark Fancher for the mayor’s job. Fancher, however, declined. 

“I would like to decline the nomination – a lot on my plate,” Fancher said. “This, plus family and some other things – I just can’t give (the mayor’s job) 100%.” 

Council member Don Myers was elected as deputy mayor. Council member Jeremy Davis was also nominated for deputy mayor; council members split 3-3 on their choice, with Davis, Fancher and Lombardi voting for Davis. Council members Joel Graves, David Skaug and Myers voted for Myers. Swartz broke the tie in favor of Myers. 

The deputy mayor’s job is also a two-year term.  

In other business, council members reviewed city priorities for 2026, which City Manager Rob Karlinsey said will mean a lot of discussion about city operation, some serious decisions and possibly changes in city operation. 

“With the budget adopted, the city council's goals established, we have our work cut out for us in 2026,” Karlinsey said. 

The first goal is financial stability, and Karlinsey said part of the Feb. 10 meeting will be a discussion of what financial stability means. City officials will be creating a separate website with information about the city’s income, what it’s spending and what city officials plan to do to put the city on a more sustainable path.  

Karlinsey said the financial sustainability discussion will focus on the general fund and street fund, since other city operations are funded through fees for services provided.  

City services will be split into three categories, ranging from services the city is required to provide to things that the city can provide but doesn’t have to. Each of the city’s services will be evaluated on its cost, and whether it’s a core, a basic or an enhanced service, Karlinsey said.  

Moses Lake residents will be surveyed to determine their budget priorities. Residents will have a chance to try their own hand at allocating funds and balancing spending. An online program will let people build a simulated budget with the city’s real income and expenses. A community workshop on the city’s finances is scheduled for March, with the date to be announced.  

“We have a fee study that’s also going to be part of this,” Karlinsey said. 

The information gathered from city residents will be presented to the city council in April to establish a financial stability plan framework by May. That timetable, however, is subject to change, he said.  

The council also plans to complete a study of the Moses Lake Fire Department and what changes, if any, can be made to improve its finances. A third fire station will be part of that discussion. Council members also want to look at the possibility of a new facility for the Moses Lake Police Department. Karlinsey said the fate of the new buildings may depend on finances. 

“Those two items are very dependent, in my mind, on the outcome of the financial sustainability plan,” he said. 

City officials will look at the possibility of a second bridge across Moses Lake; for 2026, the goal is to come up with the three most promising options. 

“What we’d like to do is narrow it to a preferred alternative by summertime,” Karlinsey said. 

    The fate of a new Moses Lake Police Department facility will be determined, in part, by the results of a city financial sustainability study.