Council hears more staff budget cut proposals; recognizes Edmonds woman serving as Miss Washington

Technology

Hermona Girmay, center, with her family after receiving a proclamation from Edmonds Mayor Mike Rosen. Pictured L-R: mother Aster Miner and brothers Eyasu and Nathaniel Girmay.
In a meeting lasting more than four hours, city department heads finished their 2025 budget presentations to the Edmonds City Council, again highlighting the difficult choices ahead for addressing the city’s budget woes.
The council also honored Edmonds native Hermona Girmay, who was crowned Miss Washington 2024 in July and will compete in the Miss America event in Orlando, Florida Dec. 31-Jan. 5. Girmay, who attended Holy Rosary School and graduated from Edmonds-Woodway High School, is a 2023 cum laude and departmental honors graduate of the University of Washington. Her Community Service Initiative, “SHECAN: Support Her Education, Change A Nation,” encompasses her 10-plus years of girls’ education equality activism inspired by her family’s journey to the U.S. as refugees.
And the council unanimously approved a 1% increase in both a property tax and emergency medical services (EMS) levy, the maximum allowed annually under state law.
Girmay’s appearance was a bright spot during an evening of detailed budget discussions. In his Oct. 1 budget address, Mayor Mike Rosen proposed a combination of staff reductions, job furloughs and revenue-generating ideas to close the city’s projected $13 million budget gap in 2025. Rosen has asked city staff to address half that gap with $7 million in budget cuts.
Tuesday night’s presentations were from information technology, municipal court, planning and development and public works departments. Other city departments had shared their proposed budgets to the council during earlier meetings. All of the budgets included proposals for essentially doing more with less — including not filling vacant positions and laying off some existing employees. The cuts combined with proposed job furloughs for nonrepresented staff will mean increased workloads for those remaining — but councilmembers and department directors also acknowledged the human cost of the budget cuts.
“It’s very hard to hear that again, one of our staff members is up for elimination,” Councilmember Jenna Nand said after Information Technology Manager Brian Tuley proposed cutting the part-time position of Jerry Bevington — a familiar face in the council chambers who operates the video cameras for Edmonds City Council meetings. Tuley proposed that Bevington’s work could be replaced by selecting pre-programmed camera positions that would be operated by the city clerk during meetings.
Other money-saving ideas from the IT Department: eliminating Microsoft Outlook licenses for boards and commissions and extending the life cycle of existing hardware. Tuley also pointed to the increasing costs of software and licensing, calling it an “era of extreme greed by technology companies.” For example, the city spent $67,000 on Microsoft licensing in 2020; that same licensing cost $169,000 in 2024 — a 152% increase. Adobe’s price went from $4,000 to $21,000 during that same time frame — a 675% jump. By comparison, food costs have increased 25% since 2020, he said.
The Edmonds Municipal Court budget was presented by Judge Neil Weiss and Court Administrator Uneek Maylor. Weiss noted the unique role of the court in city government, with a mission of “providing community access to justice with trust and integrity.” The court represents just 3% of the city’s general fund budget, he added.
As part of its proposed budget reductions, the court will be laying off one of its two probation officers, which led Councilmember Chris Eck to ask how that position will be backfilled in case of illness or vacation. Maylor said that the assistant court administrator is a former probation officer who can fill in, and added she also has been trained as probation officer. However, Maylor expressed concern about overall court staffing and how those remaining employees will absorb the work, especially when staff will also be taking furlough days. Another unknown for the court next year is how the introduction of red light cameras at two Edmonds intersections — which the Edmonds City Council approved earlier this year — will impact their workload. Weiss has proposed additional staffing of 2.76 full-time equivalent employees — funded through the red light camera revenue — to cover the added work the cameras will bring.

Councilmember Michelle Dotsch asked what impact the city’s new school zone cameras have had on the court and Maylor replied that it was a staffing strain to process the citations generated. To address that extra work, the court has cut its passport services to one day a week — and may need to eliminate them altogether, she added.
Weiss also spoke to the possible elimination of the Highway 99 Neighborhood Office, which has hosted community court for those who may find it difficult to access the municipal court building in downtown Edmonds. “The loss of that space does not mean the loss of our community court,” Weiss said. “If that space does not continue to have funding…our community court will continue. We’re still looking at other alternatives about where that could go and what that would look like.”
Shane Hope, acting director of planning and development, spoke to her department’s planned budget cuts of 4.5%, which include not filling an existing planner position and moving a full time administrative assistant to part time. The department would also cut its professional services budget, eliminating $50,000 allocated for waterfront visioning and reducing the $100,000 allocated  for neighborhood action planning by $62,000.

Hope reminded the council that the department does generate significant revenues from permits, with approximately $1.4 million collected annually from 2020 to 2023.
The presentations concluded with the city’s largest department: public works and utilities. Acting Director Phil Williams said that the department has a $72 million budget with 95.25 FTEs. Much of its funding comes from ratepayers, so just $5.82 million — or about 8% — is in the general fund. Among the budget savings mentioned:
Photo courtesy City of Edmonds
The facilities maintenance division, which maintains city-owned buildings, plans to lay off one of its custodial staff. The division also cited range of other cost-saving efforts that include:
– Increasing use of energy conservation devices 
– Using energy auditing to identify savings measures
– Centralized waste pick-up
– Reducing cleaning and sanitation intervals at city buildings
– Reducing custodial operational hours by 28% at many locations
– Eliminating deskside trash and recycling pick up at all city buildings
– Increasing lighting and electrical conservation devices to minimize utility consumption and comply with new energy codes.
Engineering will eliminate its student intern program, the ORCA commute trip reduction program and partially reduce overtime, along with other cuts.
Photo courtesy City of Edmonds
The street/storm division: Street maintains and improves 133 miles of rights-of-way, including streets, roadways and alleys, while storm staff conduct system maintenance, street sweeping, emergency flooding response, creek maintenance, and minor capital improvement projects. Street/storm had several vacancies this year, due to both long-term medical and retirements, Williams said. There is also a vacancy in operations that has not been filled, he added. Such staffing shortages, while beneficial for budget savings, are likely to impact the city once winter weather arrives — resulting in slower response times and more selective road plowing.
Supported by ratepayers, the water division includes operation, maintenance and delivery of potable water to customers. The sewer operations division is responsible for the repair, maintenance and operation of 14 pump stations, 3,200 sewer manholes, and over 186 miles of sewer mains. The sewer division’s treatment plant operations provides wastewater treatment to 80% of Edmonds residents, all of Mountlake Terrace, all of Olympic View Water and Wastewater District, and much of Shoreline.
Fleet provides vehicles and equipment to support city operations, and includes the following proposed budget savings:
– Extend replacement intervals
– Reduce outsourced labor costs
– Reduce overall fleet assets
– Minimize material costs
– Maximize efficiencies to increase turnaround time
– Extend maintenance intervals
In addition, the division has identified $77,000 in expense cuts.
In other business, the council also held a public hearing on the city’s 2025-2030 Capital Facilities Plan and Capital Improvement Program. Just one person testified: Edmonds resident Joe Scordino suggested that the city consider having employees scheduled for layoffs due to general fund challenges to instead work on capital projects, “and keep some of the great people we have in this city.”
Due to the lateness of the hour, a council discussion on a 2024 budget amendment ordinance was postponed to next week’s meeting.
— By Teresa Wippel

‘Classified’ Movie Ending Explained & Summary: Is Kevin Angler Dead Or Alive?

Arts & Culture, Film & TV

Directed by Roel Reine, Classified is the story of an undercover agent who, through some unprecedented events, realized that he was not working for his nation but as a private player. The revelation made Evan Shaw realize that the truth was not what he had perceived it to be. Evan felt betrayed, as he had been made to believe that whatever he was doing was for the welfare of his nation. So, let’s find out what happened in the film and if Evan Shaw was able to find out the truth about the matter.

Spoiler Alert

How did Evan meet Casey? 

Evan believed that he worked for the CIA, and his handler, Kevin Angler, ordered him to kill people who were a threat to the nation. Evan had no clue that he was, in fact, working for a private party that had nothing to do with the CIA or the nation. Kevin was on a mission when he noticed that he was being followed. He didn’t do anything at that moment, though he made the woman following him realize that he saw her. He gave some cash to the bartender and asked him to send a drink for her. That same lady came after him during his mission in Italy. This time, she came into his room and attacked him as soon as he went inside. She told him that she knew that he worked for the US tourism division, a branch of the CIA that didn’t exist. She said that she was from MI6 and that she had been tracking his movements for a very long time. She also told him that she knew about Monica Walker, who was from her unit itself. That was the moment Evan decided to hear out what Kacey had to say. Monica and Evan were quite close to each other, and they had decided to get married to each other. But then things didn’t turn out the way Evan would have wanted, and his partner ended up losing her life. 

Kacey believed that the division he worked for did not exist in real life and that he had been deceived. It was a shocking revelation for Evan, and he couldn’t believe whatever Kacey told him without proper evidence. While finding evidence in Malta, Evan got a call from his employer, who first asked him to return to Rome and finish the job that he was given, and secondly he informed her that the girl with whom he was roaming was not from MI6. Evan had to confront Kacey eventually, as he wanted to know what could be the motive behind Kacey’s action. It didn’t take Evan long to figure out that the MI6 safe house that Kacey took him to was not actually a government property. It was all a sham, and Evan demanded answers. That’s when Kacey revealed to him that Monica Walker was her mother, and that made Evan her father. Evan took a few moments to gulp down the information. He wasn’t aware of Kacey’s existence. He felt very strange at that moment in Classified, as being a father was definitely not something that was part of his future plan. He could see himself as a father, but he knew that now he had a responsibility at hand and needed to find the mastermind of the entire circus that he had earlier believed to be orchestrated by the CIA. 

Was Kevin Angler dead or alive? 

Evan told Kacey that he hadn’t been able to stay with Monica for long as he was a good little soldier. He’d wanted to do something for his nation, and he believed that Angler gave him the opportunity to do so. Kacey saw that Evan decoded the “Classified” ads in the newspaper, and she asked him what it was meant for. Evan revealed to her that it was like a registry for everybody he had killed up until then. Kacey figured out that before the division closed, Evan had killed all sorts of bad guys like terrorists and mafia. But once the division shut down (or as she believed that it did), Evan got orders to kill CEOs, scientists, and all sorts of other people in important positions or working white-collar jobs. Now, a CEO of a company can be equally involved in illegitimate activities, but certainly, there was a shift in the kind of people Evan got ordered to kill. Also, Kacey speculated that Evan was made to kill Sean Davis of the sovereign military order of Malta because he was after Angler’s life. Kacey told Evan that it could be possible that he was not doing any service to the nation and probably just killing an innocent person who was after his boss’ life. Earlier in Classified, we saw that Evan had found a tape in which he had heard Sean and Angler talking. He learned from it that Sean had threatened to expose Angler. 

After Kacey told Evan that she believed that Angler had passed away, the latter went and read every obituary that was printed on different papers. All the newspapers printed the same information with the same picture. However, there was one newspaper that had not only a different picture but also a different note written below it. Evan believed that it was some sort of code. Kacey and Evan figured out that there was one company that benefited from each and every killing the latter had done. It seemed like the Griffin Group, a Malta-based hedge fund, was running the show. Kacey and Evan went to their headquarters, where they met Antonio Griffin. Kacey was right. It was all a sham, and has never worked for the CIA. Antonio gave Evan the location of Angler, under the condition that henceforth they would work together and rule the world.

During Classified’s ending, Evan found out that Angler was not dead. Evan was livid, and he wanted to take out all his anger on the man. His entire life had been a lie, and he wanted somebody to be answerable to him.

Was Evan able to stop Griffin? 

Evan had a concealed GPS on him, and the moment he reached Angler’s place, the latter knew that Griffin’s men would come to hunt them. Angler accepted the fact that he was a greedy man who had done certain objectionable things in the past. Angler knew that Evan would be angry, and he prepared to give him the reasoning behind each and every action he took. But before they could talk and come to terms, Griffin’s men arrived. Angler was killed in the shootout, but somehow, Evan and Kacey were able to escape from there.

In Classified’s ending, Evan decided that he was going to stay with Kacey and look after her. He couldn’t be there for Monica, but now he wanted to be there for his daughter. Before starting fresh, Evan just wanted to finish what he had started. He broke into Griffin’s mansion and, finding the opportunity, shot him dead. Griffin’s group had been responsible for taking the lives of many innocent people, and Evan knew that as long as Antonio was at the helm of things, more people would end up losing their lives. If there is a Classified part 2, I won’t be surprised if Kacey and Evan decide to go on a mission together. But as of now, Evan wanted to keep Kacey safe, and he had all the motivation in life to retire from his line of work and lead a normal life, something that he had always wanted. 

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‘Family Pack’ Movie Ending Explained & Summary: Does The Family Return To 2024?

Arts & Culture, Film & TV

Family Pack is an adventure ride where a family accidentally time travels after trying to play a card game. The game, called Werewolves, is essentially a role-playing game, where a designated person gives each player a card, which states their role on it. This is the game Jerome used to play when he was little, and hoped his family would join. However, his father, who is suffering from what seems to be Alzheimer’s, can’t remember the rules he set up. Never mind the rules; he can’t even remember his son’s name, so I’m not sure why Jerome would hope for such a thing. Anyway, Jerome gives each family member a card; he’s the seer, his father’s the hunter, his elder daughter Clara is the little girl (whatever that means), and Theo, the son, is a thief. While he’s distributing the cards, the family gets distracted, and we don’t get to see what his wife Marie, his youngest daughter Louise (or Loulou) get. But, before they can even start playing the game, Clara leaves to do a live stream, Gilbert (the dad) takes a nap, and Louise complains she’s hungry. So much for playing. With everybody gone, Jerome decides to shut the game and lock it, but when he turns the werewolf at the center of the game, everything begins to shake and everybody has to take cover. What happens after this earthquake-like situation? Let’s quickly find out.

Spoiler Alert

Where Does the Family End Up? 

The family hides in the bunker in Gilbert’s house, and when they emerge, Clara’s missing. Marie suggests they head to the village, where a festival is taking place, and as soon as they step out of the house, they notice that it looks completely different. This should be enough for them to realize that they’ve time traveled, but they think heading into the village festival will help them figure out what’s happened. Of course, when they get there, everybody is dressed in 15th-century clothing because they’ve been transported to 1497 in a game of Werewolves. Anyway, the family gets to watch an actual execution, freaks out, and runs back home to find that Clara’s gone invisible, which means they all have their powers from the game. Now the house they’re in belongs to an ancestor of Gilbert who happens to have been caught for being a wizard, soon to be burned at the stake. So, naturally, the knights think these guys are witches and wizards too. However, Jerome saves the day by pretending they’re a minstrel group called The Minstrettes. With a  lute he saw in the house, Jerome impresses the sheriff, and the family is safe for the moment. Additionally, Gilbert is able to remember everything clearly as a time traveler. I suppose it comes from being a “strong” hunter, or maybe it’s just the game that makes you yourself again. 

When night falls, the villagers are sent home packing because this is when the werewolves come out. Now remember we didn’t know what Marie and Loulou’s roles were? Louise’s happens to be a werewolf, and at night she turns inside the house, but Gilbert holds her down using his hunter powers and saves the day. Jerome can hear people’s thoughts, while the next day Theo learns that when he steals someone’s things, he can shapeshift into them using said object. So if he stole a soldier’s helmet and wore it, he’d transform into that soldier. Definitely a useful power to have.

What Is The Meaning Of Everybody’s Powers?

What’s interesting is that everybody’s powers have something to do with what they’re searching for in the future. For example, Gilbert thinks he’s weak, so he’s strong in 1497. Clara’s is especially interesting because her biggest fear in the present day is becoming invisible because she sells things online and has to be chronically online or she becomes “invisible” and everything falls apart. Theo’s in search of his identity; there’s a ridiculous joke at the beginning of the film when Gilbert calls him a girl. It’s all mostly played off as unserious, but later, when Theo shows his power to his mother, she tells him that she knows he’s in search of his identity, but she doesn’t want him to use his powers anymore because she’s afraid he won’t be able to go back to himself. I guess for Jerome, he has trouble understanding the family, you know, dads, so he has the power to read minds. Loulou being a werewolf probably has something to do with needing attention. Like at the beginning, she was desperately hungry, but nobody bothered giving her any actual food. Another thing to note is that Clara is Jerome’s daughter from a wife that died, and Theo is Marie’s son. They had Loulou together. 

How Can the Family Escape? 

Gilbert now remembers the one important rule of the game: if you kill the werewolves, you get to go home. There are 4 werewolf cards, but how will they make it back without killing Loulou? We’ll just have to wait to see. The family discussion is interrupted when an intruder overhears this conversation about them being from the future. The guy’s called Piero, and he’s Italian. Piero seems like a nice enough guy, and so the family allows him to make a new skin for Clara. This is essentially a rubber solution she has to step inside. He paints her features in, and this should’ve been a hint to who he really is, but we’ll get there at the end. The family then starts to figure out who the werewolves are using their powers and the hints Clara noticed the previous night while trying to save Loulou from trouble. 

Why is Marie caught? 

Marie’s a lawyer in the real world, and when she notices a woman being beaten up by her husband, she completely loses it and shows the whole village how she can read and write. But worse, she speaks about divorce (yikes)! Marie is then sent to be burned at the stake with Gilbert’s ancestor. Just before the execution, Jerome shows up with his lute and 1497 version of an amplifier to sing a final song for his wife. This is obviously a distraction, so Marie can be set free. It works wonderfully, and the village proves why we’re obsessed with musicians. As you know, teamwork makes the dream work, and the family manages to escape. Piero then tells them to hide in the church, where there’s a basement-like space where he’s built a secret tunnel accessible with a code. He gives them the code to enter the tunnel and save themselves. But before they can get out, a werewolf drops in. 

How Does the Family Return? 

Somehow, for all this time, Loulou’s headphones and tablet haven’t run out of charge, and they get her to listen to some music so she doesn’t turn. This is after Gilbert, Theo and Clara, fight off the wolves, protecting their family. But they aren’t strong enough. At that moment the sheriff shows up with his bow and arrow; however, he points them at the family instead of the wolf because she’s his wife. He has the power of “cupid,” which means if she dies, he dies too. The sheriff’s been trying to catch the other werewolves to save himself and his wife too, I guess. 

This is when Loulou’s headphones go out of charge and she turns too, but Jerome and Marie sing to her, making her remember who she is on the inside. So Loulou remembers whose side she’s on and tries to fight the massive werewolf. Of course, the older one is too strong for her, and she pushes her against a wall. Louise lands on the floor as a human again, but with her card in her hand. Are you wondering what Marie’s power is yet? Well, it’s her love for her daughter that pushes her to the brink, and she comes into her role as a powerful witch. Marie defeats the other werewolf and brings her daughter back to consciousness. Everybody’s cards appear in their hands, including the soldier’s, which means they must be playing the game too. 

In Family Pack’s ending, the family says goodbye to Gilbert’s ancestor and Piero, who turns out to be Da Vinci. Jerome tells his guy to buy everything Piero paints. Also, Piero is kind of in love with Jerome, but we’ll soon see what that really means. Everybody places their cards back in the game, and they’re back to 2024. Gilbert’s back to having forgotten things, but he asks his son if he’s losing his mind because he remembers seeing knights and werewolves, but they reassure him. There’s a letter in Gilbert’s hand that Jerome takes. He had written this in 1497 to give to Jerome as they returned. It’s essentially a letter of gratitude for having spent time with his son as “normal” again, even if it wouldn’t last. The letter also contains everything Gilbert remembers about his life, and he hopes his son can tell him all about it at some point. Oh, and the Mona Lisa now looks like Jerome (I told you we’ll get back to it). 

Family Pack shows how sometimes you just have to listen to each other to be close as a family. Everyone gets stuck in their own thing, but when a crisis arises, the family is able to come together and save the day, everybody with their own individualistic strengths. Just how it is in real life too. 

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Colton City Council Honors Serrano Nursery for 30 Years of Business Excellence

Business News

On Oct. 15th, the Colton City Council recognized Andres and Marina Serrano, owners of Serrano Nursery, with a Business Focus Recognition Award for their successful contribution to the city.

Founded in 1993 in the Serranos’ own backyard, Serrano Nursery started as a modest enterprise. Within four years, the business expanded to a five-acre parcel at the corner of Reche Canyon and Prado Lane, where it currently operates. The nursery has become the local destination for plants, flowers, and landscaping ideas, helping many community members beautify their homes.

Over the past 30 years, the family-owned business has thrived despite challenges such as a slow start, economic downturns, and the pandemic. Andres and Marina, along with their team, consistently begin work at 8 a.m., ready to serve customers with a wide array of flowers, plants, trees, and decorative garden items to suit various landscaping needs.

Serrano Nursery exemplifies the impact of small businesses on the local economy and community pride. Their commitment enhances the “home-grown” quality of life in Colton, especially in the Reche Canyon area.

Residents are encouraged to visit the nursery, which offers a comfortable and relaxing atmosphere with vibrant displays. Convenient parking is available near the entrance. Serrano Nursery is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The City Council commends Andres and Marina Serrano for their dedication and significant contribution to Colton’s local economy. The community looks forward to their continued success in the years to come.

Meet pan India superstar who gave two Rs 1000 crore films, made Bollywood debut with Ajay Devgn, Sonakshi Sinha

Arts & Culture, Film & TV

This actor spent five years on one project, and he became a pan-India superstar with two films. The pan-India star who made his Bollywood debut with Ajay Devgn and Sonakshi SinhaFrom 2015 the word pan-India has came into popularity. Movies have been made on a wider scale, and talents across the languages have collaborated and churned out Indian films, rather than Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, and Kannada films. However, the word pan-India came into the limelight with the blockbuster franchise, Baahubali. SS Rajamouli directed a two-part fantasy drama that diminished the language barrier. The success of Baahubali also gave birth to the pan-India star, Prabhas. 

With Baahuabli, Prabhas became an instant nationwide sensation. He spent five years on these two films, and in return, he got recognition across the country and even globally. After Baahubali, Prabhas was seen in several pan-India films, but he tasted success with Salaar Part One: Ceasefire, and the recent blockbuster Kalki 2898 AD. Films like Saaho, Radhe Shyam, and Adipurush were major flops but still earned Rs 200-300 crores worldwide. Do you know the film that marked Prabhas’ debut in Hindi? It’s not Baahubali: The Beginning. 

Prabhas’ Hindi debut was…

Action Jackson, a year before Baahubali, Prabhas made a cameo appearance in Ajay Devgn-starrer. In this film, Prabhudeva directorial, Prabhas shook a leg with Ajay and Sonakshi Sinha in the song, ‘Surya Ast Punjabi Mast’. In the song, Prabhas dances with Sonakshi Sinha on a tabletop. 

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Prabhas has given two Rs 1000 crore blockbuster

In his filmography, Prabhas has given two Rs 1000-crore blockbuster, Baahubali 2: The Conclusion and Kalki 2898 AD. Baahubali 2 grossed Rs 1788 crores worldwide. Meanwhile, Kalki 2898 AD grossed Rs 1042 crores worldwide.

Prabhas upcoming films

Prabhas has an interesting line-up, he will soon be seen in the romantic comedy The Raja Saab, scheduled for a 2025 release. He will also be seen in Salaar Part Two, Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Spirit, and Kalki Part Two. 

Also read: Meet actor who sold cigarettes on road, suffered major injuries before breakthrough film shoot, faced bankruptcy, then..

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