Aaron Hoffman has won the office of Snohomish Mayor. We will continue to follow the progress of the new mayor with a focus on the following:
What does Aaron Hoffman, bring to the position of mayor from this past position?
Who is Hoffman indebted to, and on whose behalf will he be working? How can this be monitored?
How do we create a report card that is both objective in measure, and includes subjective elements?
Is Hoffman able to manage the Mayor’s job as the part time position it is scoped to be? Former mayor John Kartak periodically unsuccessfully requested raises, in escalating amounts, throughout his administration.
We start with the following writeup distilled from his campaign website:
What does Aaron Hoffman bring to the position of mayor?
Hoffman is Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Shelford businesses.
Aaron Hoffman began working for the Shelford businesses directly after graduating from the University of Washington with a degree in Economics. He started as the company controller, and was promoted to Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in 2019. This is a phenomenal work history until you know the Shelford businesses is family owned. Shelford Boat, established 1995, is owned by his in-laws and their children, including Alyssa, Aaron Hoffman’s wife. The Shelford group is apparently the only business he has professionally worked for since graduation. The Shelford businesses, altogether constitute a small organization of approximately 25 employees or fewer, especially in the off fishing season. It is unlikely Hoffman had more than 1 or 2 direct reports.
Hoffman says he is a business owner, specifically, he is co-owner of Sprig, a cosmetics store on First Street.
Looking at the business license filing, Alyssa Hoffman is listed as the sole owner.
Hoffman says he is a community leader.
Aaron Hoffman moved to Snohomish in 2020. We were unable to find a record of community involvement or volunteerism in Snohomish. He does say he volunteered as a PE coach at his children’s school in the 2023-24 school year; later he says he and his wife homeschool their children.
Hoffman says he does not have political experience.
No argument here. But we need to expand a bit.
There are several ways to gain political experience that would benefit a mayoral candidate, prior to filing to run. Volunteer for one of the city’s task forces. Volunteer for one of the city’s citizen commissions. Both these opportunities present the volunteer with the context of a civic issue, the differing approaches to solving or mitigating it, and the neighborly connections you need politically. Running for city council is the best way to get to know city staff, and the legal and regulatory environment in which they work. Finally volunteering for one of the many civic organizations: the Snohomish Food Bank, Kiwanis, Historic Downtown Snohomish. There are plenty of ways. Hoffman has chosen none of them.
A Very Concise Overview of Snohomish City Government
All of our city’s elected positions are considered non-partisan. Candidates don’t declare a political affiliation because city government is very limited in scope. Specifically, City of Snohomish government fulfills the following needs for its residents:
* Public Services: roads, utilities, sanitation, social, cultural, and recreational services. For Snohomish, a city with aging infrastructure, it means planning for repairs and changes, while maintaining business and recreational operations.
* Public safety and law enforcement.
* Legislation and policy making supports these assignments. Legislation and policy are the responsibility of Council. The Mayor implements their decisions, through city staff, who embody the expertise and provide continuity to government.
To elaborate a bit, legislation, ordinance and policy, all the responsibility of Council, are supported by the city’s budget, the development and implementation of which is the responsibility of the executive branch. The Council can adjust, amend or veto the budget if it fails to support Council objectives.
The list above are the remit and responsibilities of our city government.