Pierce County Councilmembers Calvin Goings and Kevin Wimsett will work out of new district offices starting March 28. The new offices were established in response to new council district boundaries that were confirmed in Superior Court March 15.
Goings is moving his District 2 office from the Sheriff’s South Hill Precinct near 160th and Meridian to the City of Puyallup’s Community Resource Center at the corner of Meridian Street and Main Avenue. Wimsett, whose newly configured District 3 includes much of South Hill, will take over Goings’ previous space in the South Hill Precinct.
“Both of us are looking forward to serving the Pierce County citizens in our modified districts and meeting new constituents,” Goings said. “Councilmember Wimsett and I work together closely on a day to day basis, and citizens in both districts will benefit from that.”
Wimsett said, “We look forward to making County government more accessible to the people.”
Puyallup Mayor Kathy Turner, whose office also is in the Community Resource Center, said having Goings in the building two days a week will benefit the city and county.
“Having Councilmember Goings in the same facility will be advantageous for us and our constituents, and it will provide another opportunity for us to work together as partners,” Turner said.
Likewise, Sheriff Paul Pastor appreciates having first Goings and now Wimsett in his South Hill facility.
“More citizens are coming into the precinct because of the district office arrangement, and that allows us another contact with the community. We also value the opportunity to work more closely with the council members,” he said.
Their offices will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each Thursday and Friday. Goings’ office will be staffed by Christine Wilson, his assistant, and Wimsett’s by assistant Mary Sherman. Both council members will be in the district offices Thursdays and Fridays as their schedules allow.
Goings and Wimsett said appointments to meet with them aren’t required but are appreciated.
“There may be times when we aren’t there because we’re out helping someone else. If a citizen takes time out of his or her busy day to come to see us, we want to be there,” Goings said.
Council district boundaries were changed by the Pierce County Redistricting Committee last October. The new map puts Fife, Summit, Waller, Puyallup and parts of Tacoma in District 2 and South Hill, Ashford, Eatonville, Elk Plain, Frederickson, part of Graham and part of Spanaway in District 3.