Newly-elected Burien City Councilmember Rocco DeVito apologized last week after comments he made were picked up on a hot microphone during the Dec. 10 Burien Planning Commission meeting.
The incident prompted public discussion about tone, transparency, and the ongoing debate over zoning and housing growth in the city.
DeVito’s comment (“That’s right Hayden…f@# those rich people!“) was heard during a meeting conducted with both in-person and Zoom participation. DeVito later issued an apology for his off-color remark, acknowledging that they were inappropriate even though he believed he was speaking privately from his home.
Video of the meeting also indicates that DeVito wasn’t the only Zoom viewer with a hot mic, as shortly after his comment, another person can be heard responding to a different commissioner’s statement before being asked to mute herself.
Video
DeVito’s comment can be heard around the 30-second mark in this video clip (WARNING: contains adult language):
DeVito’s Response
“I’m passionate about housing or lack thereof and I let that passion get the best of me, in what I thought was the privacy of my own home,” DeVito said. “Regardless of that fact, I was wrong to have been so flippant, and I sincerely apologize for my language and comment.”
DeVito said the remarks stemmed from a disagreement over how housing growth should be distributed across Burien neighborhoods. He said some areas are already absorbing most of the city’s growth while others oppose taking on even a small share.
“They have been asked to take on a very small part of Burien’s growth and instead they would like to push that responsibility on to parts of the city who are already taking the vast majority of the growth,” DeVito said. “This does not sit right with me and is where we disagree, though I think there is room to compromise on this issue.”
Others Respond
Public commenter and Normandy Park Councilmember Mike Bishoff left this comment on DeVito’s Facebook post:
“The only mistake made was getting caught saying what you really believe on a hot mic. The lesson learned for Rocco DeVito is not to say what you really think out loud anymore. Watch Rocco’s votes, not his words.”
Another public commenter, Traci Richards Volle, said:
“There is zero room for division in our community – you already have fingers pointed at the haves and have nots.” Adding, “Hard work and integrity go a long way with me and to allow emotions to get in the way during a meeting is unacceptable.”
Shelli Park, a local interior design and residential architecture professional who also serves on the commission, said she viewed DeVito’s response as a positive step but emphasized the broader impact of how zoning debates are handled publicly.
“It is a strong move for Mr. DeVito to take responsibility for his comment,” Park said. “It’s a sign of good character to own that as an incoming councilmember in the public space. I look forward to seeing Mr. DeVito’s work to serve all of Burien.”
Park said zoning changes often bring heightened emotions and can deepen community divisions if conversations are not handled respectfully.
“The subject of zoning changes is an example of policy that can carry a lot of emotion,” she said. “I hope as we move forward as a community, we’ll be able to have challenging conversations while holding respect for each other so that we can create solutions that benefit the community as a whole.”
Park also described confusion during the meeting itself, saying commissioners initially could not tell where the voices were coming from.
“In the meeting where the comments were made by unmuted Zoom attendees, the commissioners could not clearly hear the voices from the dais,” Park said. “When it was clear that they were coming from an unmuted mic on the Zoom platform I asked them to please mute themselves. There were actually two unmuted mics.”
Jessica Ivey, also a planning commissioner, as well as a former candidate for Burien City Council Position No. 1 and a colleague of DeVito on the Burien Pride Committee, said she believes the incident should be weighed alongside his record of public service.
“I have served with Rocco on the Burien Pride Committee, and I know him to be a kind and thoughtful leader,” Ivey said. “While his remarks are certainly regrettable, I spoke to him and I believe that he is committed to facilitating dialogue with neighborhood groups on zoning matters with an open mind.”
Ivey said DeVito’s background as a former planning commissioner gives him experience that could help bridge divides as the city continues to confront housing and growth pressures.
“Because of his work as a former planning commissioner, I know him to be knowledgeable, reasonable, and will work hard to build trust and represent all of Burien residents fairly,” she said.
The incident comes as Burien, like many cities in the Puget Sound region, faces increasing pressure to add housing while balancing neighborhood concerns, infrastructure capacity and affordability.
Once considered taboo in almost all public settings, the “f-word” is now commonly heard in movies, television, music, podcasts, and even casual workplace conversations. Even though it can still be out of place in some situations, a lot of people now hear it less as a curse word and more as a way to add emphasis, vent frustration, or speak bluntly, which says a lot about how attitudes toward language have changed.
He was elected to serve all Burien residents, not just those who feel gypped by the system and life. Get the chip off your shoulder and stop envying people. You don’t know how they got where they are. I have no confidence in his decision making now.
Said like a true rich person, Kathy.
I never said that I was rich. I believe that people should be treated fairly whether rich or poor.
And said like a true “want everything for free” person, Julie
Agreed Kathy, he’s shown he won’t represent the entire community fairly. This poor judgement and lack of self control is not good for any council. He’s now being forced to recuse himself as being “fair & impartial” in any quasi-judicial setting on the subject moving forward.
Hi Kathy – you may not be aware, but your comment contains a word that is considered a slur.
Anyone hurt by his comment can go cry themselves to sleep on their piles of money, which is what I assume the rich do anyway. Imagine being offended on behalf of the wealthy. The wealthy!! They’re going to be just fine.
They probably fell asleep on their money be cause they are tired from working. Such resentment and assumptions here.
His quote ” in the privacy of my own home” is such a denial of being held responsible for inappropriate behavior as a Council Member which honestly I feel he’s unfit for as a purchased puppet of outside interests.
I find it ironic the progressive activists in this community tout themselves as fair, always willing to collaborate and listen to everyone. This isn’t the first incident in which one of them, in a public meeting,told someone to go F themselves. Where are your $5 words, my friends? I thought you were above the mudslinging and name-calling, yet when confronted with something that doesn’t agree with YOUR perspective, your first instinct is to tell them to F off. This time, it’s a newly-minted city council member. Hmmm.
Mr. Devito, welcome to life outside your bubble-where more than 50,000 of us are your constituents. Congratulations on landing a spot purchased by outside special interests. It is clear from your actions which of your constituents are your priority. However, you were elected to serve ALL of us, whether we voted for you or not. We will hold you to it, as you have spent more than three years targeting and harassing former Council members for doing their jobs and serving their constituents. You live amongst us, yet seem ready to condemn at the slightest provocation. You don’t know us, and your preconceived notions of the “haves” illustrate your lack of life experience.
I hope you take this opportunity to examine your priorities and what can be done for the greater good of this community.
This! Well stated and couldn’t agree more. Burien is very very diverse and all walks of life deserve representation, not just those that are friends of a councilmember.
Can we just get sidewalks in the north end where the densest housing and folks trying to access public transport? I’m tired of watching folks walk along 1st in the dark to get to the damn bus stop.
@Mario, Well this is what all the elected promised…safer streets, sidewalks for all… where they’ll get the money, well we all know where they’ll get it.
And as for the street work thats been going on, on 148th between 1st Ave So and 6th Ave So don’t let the newly elected say “look what we did” this was started way before they were elected.
Honestly, good for him. The sentiment is shared.
Using the F-word wasn’t the issue.
It was how it was used along with his stated belief that certain classes of taxpayers shouldn’t have a voice and shouldn’t be represented by him.
Rocco Devito will use more careful phrasing in the future but his votes will say that same sentence over and over and over again.
If people want fair elections here, something needs to be done about outside groups throwing money into our elections. We got many negative flyers and they misrepresented the opponent and said nothing that their candidate would do. This was hundreds of thousands of dollars wasted. There should be a limit on what can be spent. So if we are talking about fairness; let’s start there. Question: why are various unions choosing our elected officials for us? Do they all live here? Stop worrying so much ch about so called rich people and start doing your homework.
I feel the same way about the City Council who have had a “not in my back yard” response to homelessness. It is an often rich person’s needs being prioritized in discussions. Burien is a very conservative city compared to other cities in our area. Still not a single bed for a homeless male in Burien.
I feel his frustration.
The DESC has 95 beds for males in Burien, your wrong.
Just remember when we had the encampment siege of a few years ago and many unhoused and or drug addicts were directed to Burien. The unhoused advocates showed no empathy for actual residents of Burien. Senior citizens and those living in Town Square as well as small businesses were terrorized and marginalized on a daily basis. If not for some brave council members, our mayor, and our city manager; who knows where we would be? How easily we forget what happened here. Where was the fairness? I guess they thought we were all rich people, so who cares. I think that unions should put that wasted flyer money towards funding shelter for people. They picked our new city council members, so it is the least they can do!
My posted comment was hidden on FB so I’m placing here:
As someone from Mexico, I’m genuinely asking: if his comment, hot mic or not, had replaced the word “rich” with “F*** those Mexican people,” or even “F*** those poor people,” would it be viewed the same way? Or are there unspoken assumptions about which groups are acceptable to speak about this way?
Context matters, and this article didn’t include all of it. Normalizing the F-word (or any swear words) is one thing. But directing them at a group of people is another. If a kid came home from school saying this, we’d correct the behavior, not excuse it. Because if we didn’t, that would mean we’d be teaching hate.
The title of the article also avoids naming the conduct. If this had been a different councilor, the framing would likely have been far more catchy and “click” critical. Instead, it’s vague and will likely be quickly buried. I’ve seen those other councilors here be judged far more severely for implying things, while comments like this are excused. Which then begs the question: would the apology be received the same way from any other councilor? We have history here at our fingertips for anyone to go back and check.
Regardless of who you voted for here in Burien, how can anyone see this as an “oops” and accept this from a new councilor? Words carry weight, and there should be no double standards. The apology acknowledged the language was inappropriate, but it wasn’t directed to the group that was referenced and targeted. When that step is missing, it’s fair to ask whether this new councilor will act fairly toward all members of the community in his new position.
Welcome to governing by progressive liberals… wake up Burien. SMH
Calling all republican/moderate democrats to start running, the more the merrier – either is far, far better than this! Bring back the city of Burien please
“moderate” democrats are republicans.
Not true at all on moderate dems… Look at history, its all there.. and im a republican. Not to mention I know of many personally soooo no my friend, you are wrong. They exist and have beliefs opposing belief like birth control for example… but the woke crowd has taken the light inside in the dem party and imo theres a fight within it. (Hence moderate vs liberal dems)
** and most importantly the differentiator of faith and/or belief in God between republicans, moderate dems, liberal/progressives plays a huge part
From a Republican perspective, faith and belief in God are often seen as foundational influences on how people make decisions, develop moral strength, and understand their purpose in life.
Moderate dems seem to be mostly religious as well but still have some strong opposing views to republicans?
Liberal/progressives tend to not believe in anything atleast religion wise, in my experience. Also they seem to have more outlier views from the two above with policies & governing
Robert… very untrue statement. We are very alive and present