SOAP LAKE — Soap Lake City Council approved several administrative resolutions Wednesday but postponed decisions on tourism funding and planning services after an hours‑long discussion over staffing, contracts and oversight.  

Council members unanimously approved giving the mayor pro tempore temporary access to city accounts when the mayor is unavailable; a step officials said would clarify procedures.  

“If the mayor were out of town for an extended time, the mayor pro tem would have the ability to process the accounts and passwords,” Council Member and Mayor Pro Tem Kayleen Bryson said. 

The council also approved an updated interagency agreement between the Washington Traffic Safety Commission and the Soap Lake Police Department, as well as revisions to the job description for a municipal maintenance worker.  

The update removes the need for level three applicants to hold either a wastewater or water management certification.  

“The major change was the guys don’t have to have wastewater one or a water management one, which would make it where they could work anywhere else,” Public Works Director Eli Olson said.  

Tourism proposal delayed 

A proposal to establish a tourism committee and allocate tourism‑related funding was tabled after council members raised concerns about language in the draft resolution. Councilmember Susan Carson recommended changing several sections so the committee would “recommend approval or denial” of funding requests rather than make final decisions. 

Council members, including Judith Gorman, also noted the city has struggled to fill committee seats.  

“If we’re not able to fulfill this committee, will we be able to, as a council, review and approve funding?” Gorman asked.  

Staff confirmed the council could still act if the committee cannot be seated. 

The council will revisit the proposal during a special meeting set for March 24 at 1 p.m. 

Planning services debate 

Much of the meeting centered on the city’s planning services, which have been in flux since the departure of former planner Alex Kovach, who several council members said had been working on the city’s comprehensive plan update. Kovach’s contract with the city was terminated Aug. 30, 2025. 

“It’s really unfortunate he was let go when he was,” Councilmember John Carlson. “We can turn that around. We can fix our situation right now.” 

Multiple firms have submitted proposals, but council members said they had not received all the documents needed to compare them.  

“We’ve got a proposal made today. We’ve got a contract here, but we don’t have the contract for their proposal for our review,” Carlson said. 

Carson expressed frustration with the process, saying the council had repeatedly asked for the position to be posted rather than contracted out.  

“We told you no on a contract over and over,” she said to Mayor Peter Sharp. “Now you’re bringing it back to us and literally stuffing it down our throat.” 

She said permit work has already been stalled.  

“The planning ceased… They’ve already ceased doing anything,” Carson said. “We have a complaint on 10 properties… They have not been responded to.” 

However, Sharp said the City of Moses Lake is still providing permitting services until the end of the month. This was confirmed by Moses Lake City Manager Rob Karlinsey the following day.  

The council ultimately agreed to postpone action until the March 24 special meeting. 

RV park oversight 

During the meeting’s later portion, council members raised concerns about management of the city‑owned RV park, citing contract delays, unclear authority and a lack of financial transparency. 

“There’s been a lot of miscommunications,” Carlson said. “There’s no checks and balances… We need to go through all these contracts.” 

She added that the city should reconsider the campground’s name, length‑of‑stay rules and reservation system, saying the current setup has caused confusion for visitors.  

Carson supported establishing a defined operating season.  

“We went through the winter with months of nobody at that park except for the camp host,” he said. “We need to establish a season where the campgrounds can be open.” 

The council passed the ordinance, with Carson and Judith Gorman opposing.  

Tourism requests:  

The requests below have not been approved, but are pending a decision on tourism issues as noted in the story.

Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce
Visitor Center Operations
$8,000 

Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce
Suds-n-Sun
$5,500 

Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce
3 on 3 Basketball
$2,500 

Friends of the Lower Grand Coulee
Soap Lake Food and Folk Festival
$2,600 

Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce
Full Moon Harvest Festival
$4,000 

Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce
Fantasy Croquet
$3,000 

Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce
Shop Small Saturday
$500 

Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce
Earth day
$2,000 

Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce
Lava Links Sandblaster Open
$1,600 

Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce
Moonlight Paddle
$1,500 

Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce
Shop About
$500 

Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce
Winterfest
$2,000 

Masquers of Grant County
2026 Masquers Season
$5,000