EDITOR'S COLUMN Dec. 26, 2001 An invitation from the other mayor

I considered the invitation with suspicion, as a snake might ponder a proposal from a mongoose. The mayor of Coupeville had invited me over for a chat. Mayors seldom invite editors anywhere, unless it’s for a long walk off a short dock or a test ride in the town’s new electric chair. But the invitation was timely. My recent column on Oak Harbor’s “whatever” system didn’t go over too well at city hall, and I needed a new town to explore until the heat died down. So I walked into the door of the office of the mayor of Coupeville, like a reluctant cockroach entering the Roach Motel.

What greeted me caught me by surprise. Mayor Nancy Conard was nice. Friendly. Informative. Helpful. She loaded me down with with copies of the town’s comprehensive plan and its annual operations report, chatted about her long experience in the town, and answered any question I proffered. She’s so nice that nobody’s even run against her the last two elections. If you did, you’d probably lose just for being rude. The city’s budget is balanced, and there’s no complaining about voter initiatives like I-747. “We can weather the storm,” she said. Taxes are fair in the town and it has parks, historic buildings and caring volunteers who help the town operate. My favorite facility, the sewer plant, was being upgraded. Malcolm Bishop, Public Works director, gave me a tour. He’s a nice guy.

I thought to myself, what’s the catch? When will the mayor start complaining about this story or that story or some editorial or column? Then she offered to introduce me to Town Marshal Lenny Marlborough. Ah, I get it. They’re going to slam the cuffs on me, walk me down to the wharf and push me over the edge. Oh well, editors have ended up as worse than crab bait. At least my demise would contribute to the ecosystem.

Surprised again. Marshal Marlborough was also nice. It seems to be a common condition in Coupeville. Must be something in the water system, which, of course, is also being upgraded. He explained why such a small town has a full-time force of five cops. Citizens even passed a special levy to provide for it. The population may be 1,200 when everyone’s in bed Sunday night, but weekdays it balloons to 5,000 or more when all the schools, government buildings and health care establishments are busy. Cops are needed to keep up with those most likely to commit the crimes — teenagers, patrons of the criminal courts and the county commissioners (OK, I made up that last part). The crime rate has dropped dramatically since the cop levy passed.

Coupeville was great but I didn’t want to overstay my welcome. The mayor had a job to get to. She works fulltime as the school district’s business manager.

As I drove away, I recalled one thing she told me, and I knew it was the truth: “I love being mayor. I love Coupeville.”

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