Snoqualmie Councilmember Rob Wotton announced his intention to keep his seat up for election this year. The Snoqualmie City Council appointed him in January 2022 to fill the vacancy created when Katherine Ross was elected mayor.
Wotton had served as the city’s Economic Development Commissioner since 2014.
A Snoqualmie Valley resident since 1999, Wotton and his wife Julie moved to Snoqualmie in 2005, where they have raised two sons. He has volunteered in numerous nonprofits, including the boards of Encompass, Trail Youth, The Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind Foundation, Chief Seattle Council, and as an advisor to the Pacific Lutheran University’s School of Business.
According to Wotton, since joining the council, he has focused on public safety, economic vibrancy, and finding new approaches to how government operates locally.
“At the top of my list is public safety. We need to keep our neighborhoods safe. We need to preserve our infrastructure from parks and open spaces to the streets and sidewalks,” Wotton asserts.
Wotton believes that citizens can make a difference in local government, something he learned from his time on the EDC. That experience carries forward to his time on the council.
When the COVID pandemic hit, he was on the frontline helping local businesses apply for financial relief. That brought more than $3 million in direct aid to companies and organizations in Snoqualmie Valley. When businesses needed to hire workers, and in-person job fairs were off the table, he created SnoValleyJobs.com, a hyper-local jobs board.
He was recently appointed to the King County Regional Law, Safety, and Justice Committee, where he is learning about approaches other cities take to make their communities safer.
Additionally, he serves as the alternate to the King County Affordable Housing and locally on the Snoqualmie Public Safety and Finance committees.
Wotton is a Dean’s Scholar of the University of Puget Sound in Business Administration and Political Science. He also holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Pacific Lutheran University. He is the vice president and local manager of Umpqua Bank in North Bend.
