CANDIDATE Q&A: 11 Questions for Burien City Council Position No. 7 Mora vs DeVito

Burien voters will choose between incumbent Stephanie Mora and Rocco DeVito in the Nov. 4, 2025 general election for City Council Position 7, and below are their answers to our Candidate Q&As.

Ballots began arriving last week for the upcoming election, and voters are reminded that ballot boxes will close at 8 p.m. on Tuesday night, Nov. 4.

Incumbent Stephanie Mora, a 25-year Burien resident and mother of six, has served on the Burien City Council for four years. She emphasizes neighborhood safety, support for small businesses, and keeping the cost of living down. Mora has positioned herself against tax increases and policies that allow encampments, advocating instead for what she describes as balanced and practical leadership. She is endorsed by the King County Police Officers Guild and is seeking re-election to continue her focus on public safety and community-first policies.

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Challenger Rocco Devito is running with a platform focused on safe streets, fair wages, and government transparency. He emphasizes collaboration and common-sense solutions to address community challenges, pledging to move beyond divisive politics in favor of building consensus. Devito says he will advocate for working families and the rights of all Burien residents. His campaign is backed by the King County Democrats, the 33rd and 34th Legislative District Democrats, County Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda, MLK Labor Council, Protec17, ATU, UFCW 3000 and other labor and community organizations.

To help inform voters ahead of the primary, South King Media invited each candidate to respond to a standardized set of 11 questions covering topics such as public safety, housing, homelessness, economic development, climate policy, and their vision for Burien’s future.

This is our final installment of this series.

NOTE: Photos and links are from the King County Elections website. We do not correct punctuation, grammar, or fact check candidate statements. Answers are posted the same order as on ballots.

Stephanie Mora* vs Rocco DeVito

*denotes incumbent

1. Why are you runing for Burien City Council? What are your top three reasons and issues you want to address?

Stephanie Mora

Mora: I’m running for City Council to continue the work of protecting and strengthening our community. As a longtime resident and mother of six, I’m committed to continuing my work in leading the city with a focus on safer neighborhoods, responsible policies, and a strong local economy.

Mora: Top 3 issues I want to continue to address:

Mora: 1) Public Safety: This was my priority four years ago, and it still is today. I believe the primary responsibility of a local government is to ensure the safety of its residents.

Mora: 2) Cost of Living: I continue to support practical, common sense solutions that keep taxes low and help make life affordable for our residents. 

Mora: 3) Supporting small businesses: Small businesses are the backbone of Burien, and I will continue to stand up against harmful policies and agendas that harm our city’s economy and common sense values. 

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Rocco DeVito

DeVito: I’m running for Burien City Council because I love this city and believe we can find ways to work together to make things better for everyone! The current majority on council has spent a long time arguing with and suing everyone who disagrees with their extreme “solutions” to homelessness and their opposition to citizen-led efforts to improve our minimum wage. Instead of working on solving the multitude of issues that are important to people in Burien we are instead footing the bills of high priced law firms, all while our budget outlook becomes worse and worse. I want to get to work solving issues that matter to working people in Burien like: 

DeVito: Youth Programs – Something I’ve heard many times when I was a planning commissioner and in conversations with residents is that we need more places for kids. We have a lot of great youth programs but they are in desperate need of funds and work spaces. We should find ways of increasing their funding, finding space for them to be long term, and starting new programs so we don’t have kids fall through the cracks. With all the attacks on immigrant, low-income, and LGBTQ families we must provide safe spaces when kids can thrive. It is imperative that we foster the next generation if we hope to see changes to the problems in our country today. We can and should do more.

DeVito: Safe Streets – Our town lacks sidewalks on a vast majority of streets and we’ve prioritized cars over all other means. I want to see us implement traffic calming on residential streets, and to connect schools and parks throughout our city with greenways to make it safer for kids and adults to get around. We also need improved street lights to make people feel safe and seen at night. I also want to work hand in hand with our police and fire departments to keep and expand our co-responder program and community outreach programs to help prevent crime by connecting people to services.

DeVito: Housing/Homelessness – We have a long way to go to make housing more affordable in our city and region. We need to do all we can to speed up denser housing of all sizes, through improved permitting, as well as less restrictive parking, set back, and design rules. We also need to look for outside funding to help support housing and to offset the costs of building truly affordable workforce housing and permanent supportive housing. Our homelessness problem will similarly not get anywhere if we don’t build more housing and mental health facilities, which will require a regional approach.

2. Minimum Wage and Small Business: Burien recently passed a minimum wage initiative, while voters approved another. What are your thoughts on this and which version do you think should be enforced? Also, what are your thoughts on the lawsuit/countersuit over the initiative that was passed in February?

Stephanie Mora

Mora: Burien recently passed a minimum wage initiative, while voters approved another. What are your thoughts on this, and which version do you think should be enforced? Also, what are your thoughts on the lawsuit/countersuit over the initiative that was passed in February?

Mora: As a councilmember who has consistently supported our small businesses and stood up against outside influences that don’t reflect our community’s needs, I believe any minimum wage policy must strike a balance between supporting workers and keeping our local businesses thriving. Burien deserves thoughtful, local leadership not a one size fits all policy pushed by outside agendas like the minimum wage initiative was. 

Mora: The reality is that the voter-approved initiative was poorly written, which created confusion and legal conflict with the ordinance already passed by the City Council. That’s why the City had no choice but to file a lawsuit for clarity on how to move forward and avoid creating chaos for both businesses and city staff. The countersuit followed, which has only deepened the divide. 

Mora: While I respect the will of the voters, I also believe we need to focus on practical, enforceable solutions that won’t backfire on the people they aim to help. I have led with common sense and stand for balanced leadership solutions that protect jobs, support our small businesses, and reflect the needs of our community, not rushed policies that lead us into courtrooms instead progress. 

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Rocco DeVito

DeVito: I am proud of my involvement in the minimum wage ballot initiative, Raise the Wage Burien, because we need to better support workers by, at the very least, matching the minimum wage of the surrounding communities so that they aren’t losing money by working in Burien. Workers deserve a living wage and workers should not be the ones to be paid less or in tips in order for a business to be successful. For those reasons and more I would update our ordinances to match the citizen-led effort to raise the wage. I think the lawsuit is counterproductive and costly for our city and should be abandoned. 

DeVito: That is not to say that I don’t believe that we should find ways to support our businesses and new entrepreneurs. Costs (both goods and labor) have gone up and it has made it very difficult to run a business these days, especially when customers are being squeezed by the same effects at home. We should do more to help businesses find and retain space, utilize city resources and spaces where applicable, update zoning for certain types of stores and industries to encourage growth, and build more housing to attract more future customers to the area.  

3. Affordable Housing and Homelessness: What specific strategies do you support for increasing affordable housing and addressing homelessness in Burien? What is your stance on the recently proposed ordinance regarding homeless encampments at churches/religious organizations?

Stephanie Mora

Mora: As a renter with a large family of eight, I’ve seen firsthand how rising costs and unstable policies impact families. I support practical, community-focused strategies that truly help people. I oppose policies that sound good on paper but create more problems on the ground, like Ordinance 804 did. Shortly after the Council adopted Ordinance 804, we began hearing from residents about high increases in rent. I was one of the Councilmembers who voted against it, warning that it would drive up housing costs and lead landlords to pull long-term rentals off the market. Sadly, that’s exactly what happened. Many property owners of single family homes converted their rentals into short-term or vacation rentals, making housing even less affordable for Burien families.

Mora: We must work to make housing affordable for working families, seniors, and people on fixed incomes. That means cutting red tape, protecting single-family neighborhoods, and pursuing long-term, sustainable solutions, not overdevelopment or experimental zoning changes that will only end up raising costs.

Mora: On homelessness, I do not support policies that enable encampments (as exemplified in our citywide camping ban, Ordinance 864, which I proposed and was successfully passed). I will continue to advocate for leading with services. During 2023, at the peak of when the city was dealing with encampments outside of City Hall, I pushed to hire The More We Love because I saw the success they had in other places, getting people out of tents and into treatment, then into permanent housing.

Mora: Since 2023, working alongside our co-response teams and first responders in Burien, The More We Love has helped stabilize hundreds of people just in our city alone. They have worked to get individuals off the streets, out of domestic violence situations, and away from human trafficking. They helped hundreds of people get into treatment, permanent housing and most importantly, safety. They are now also taking officer calls and handling DV cases, not only helping those already unhoused but also working to prevent families from becoming homeless in the first place. Having The More We Love in Burien has improved the lives of all the people they have worked with while also making our city safer for everyone.

Mora: The proposed (and failed 4 times to get adequate council support ) permit ordinance that allows churches and religious organizations to host encampments raises serious concerns about health, safety, and accountability, especially in residential neighborhoods. We saw this play out with the one encampment that did occur at a local church. When it closed, people weren’t connected to or offered treatment and services. They were simply pushed back out onto the streets.  That was not compassion, that was neglect.

Mora: Compassion must be paired with common sense. I support continuing to invest in organizations like The More We Love. Not normalize tent encampments in our neighborhoods.

Mora: I will continue to advocate for balanced leadership and real solutions that protect our city, respect our neighborhoods, and offer meaningful, lasting help to those in need.

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Rocco DeVito

DeVito: The new comprehensive plan is a great start, offering building bonuses in exchange for long term affordable housing. Updating our rules around tiny homes and ADUs can also provide more people with housing options both as a homeowner or a renter. I would go further in our planning and think we should not just reduce but eliminate parking minimums to help support affordable housing and increase housing units. Parking spots can cost a great deal of money and take up a lot of space, where appropriate replacing parking with units can help projects to pencil out. We also need to do more to remove barriers to housing by relaxing rules on setbacks and design standards. Wherever possible we should make permitting easier and work with other jurisdictions to harmonize permitting (rules and systems) to make it easier to build things. We can also relax environmental review for select projects (like affordable housing and transit projects) to reduce building timelines and legal hurdles.

DeVito: I support churches and religious organizations having sanctioned encampments. A recent story in the Seattle Times about Tent City 4 and SHARE/WHEEL shows the success organized encampments can have when properly coordinated with the community, host organizations, and the residents themselves. We should not be making it harder for churches and religious organizations to serve people in need. 

4. Public Safety and Policing: How would you approach public safety concerns in Burien, including police funding, alternative response programs, and community trust?

Stephanie Mora

Mora: For the past four years, I’ve stood up against policies that make our city less safe, even when they come disguised as being more “welcoming.” I believe in supporting our police, protecting neighborhoods, and ensuring families feel safe.

Mora: I support fully funding our police department so our officers have the staffing, tools, and training to do their jobs effectively. At the same time, we can have smart, compassionate support systems that strengthen, not replace, public safety.

Mora: That’s why I’ve supported a partnership with our Co-Response Team and The More We Love organization. This partnership has been a valuable resource for our first responders, with trained outreach professionals assisting in mental health and social crisis situations. It allows police to focus on crime and safety while others in crisis get the help they need.

Mora: During my time as Deputy Mayor, I voted to end the city’s contract with REACH, the previous outreach provider hired before I was elected. Despite REACH’s efforts, tent encampments kept growing. I didn’t see the Co-Response model working. Not because our first responders weren’t doing a good job, but because the partnership with REACH wasn’t a good fit.

Mora: When I pushed to replace REACH with The More We Love, things changed. Homelessness on our streets began to decline, and for the first time, the Co-Response model started to deliver results our community needed. I’m proud to say we no longer have tents or encampments in our city.

Mora: According to their 2025 Mid-Year Report, The More We Love provided:

• 409 participants assisted
  
• 42 children stabilized
  
• 509 referrals
  
• 1,653 case interactions
  
• 637 emergency calls
  
• 3,066 nights of lodging
  
• 36 individuals helped escape violence or trafficking

Mora: Public trust is earned when people see the results for themselves: safer streets, quick response times, and effective services. As your Councilmember and a strong leader over the past four years, these are the results I’ve been proud to deliver. I will continue to support strong law enforcement and effective community partnerships.

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Rocco DeVito

DeVito: I’m very glad to see that crime in Burien, and the region, has been falling year after year since the pandemic. We can certainly do more but we should acknowledge that there have been improvements. When we include courts and other parts of our criminal justice system, we budget over 50% of our budget for public safety already. I want to make sure that we continue to support our police and fire departments but we should also find more ways to fund programs that help upstream to prevent some crimes from happening. We need to make sure we are supporting people in crisis and get them the help that they need. This is why I’m very supportive of our co-responder program, and would like to see it expanded to cover more shifts. The program pairs mental health professionals with our first responders to help connect folks with services. I know that our police department would also like to have more opportunities to work with community members and groups and I support their efforts to do more community outreach to build relationships and trust. But ultimately many of our public safety issues stem from the whittling away of our social safety net, and we should focus more on increasing our human services and parks and recreation departments to better fund projects around housing, youth development, and job training.

5. Airport Impacts: Burien continues to experience environmental and quality-of-life impacts from Sea-Tac Airport. Noise pollution, air quality, and land-use conflicts remain major concerns, particularly for residents in North Burien. What is your stand on this issue?

Stephanie Mora

Mora: This is a real concern for me not just as a councilmember, but as a resident and a mom of children who have asthma and special needs. I live in the Manhattan neighborhood, one of the closest areas to Sea-Tac Airport. Like many in Burien, my home sits directly under the flight path. I experience the constant noise and air pollution firsthand. I even hesitate to grow my own garden, knowing the soil is impacted by the pollution that settles over our community.

Mora: Burien is one of the most negatively affected cities in the region due to our proximity to the airport, yet we receive little direct benefit in return. That’s unacceptable.

Mora: I fully support the important work of our Airport Committee, which continues to advocate on behalf of Burien residents. They’ve been a strong voice for addressing noise, pollution, and land-use impacts. I believe we must keep pushing for greater accountability, stronger environmental protections, and fair compensation for the burden placed on our community. I’m committed to standing with our residents in this fight and ensuring Burien’s voice is heard loud and clear.

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Rocc DeVito

DeVito: When it comes to Sea-Tac and the Port of Seattle, the surrounding communities need them to contribute to programs to combat air and noise pollution. If they and airlines have $5 billion to build lounges and renovate terminals they have money to help our community with sound insulation and health programs. The Port should continue to advocate and/or fund cleaner and alternative fuels to lessen air pollution. They can also work with state and county officials to lobby congress for more support. Concerns will only increase with the predicted growth of passengers going through SeaTac.

DeVito: I also acknowledge that some of this growth is dictated by the federal government and not in the Port of Seattle’s control. It is also a huge economic driver for our region, and source of many local jobs. And while we could reduce flights it will likely just move them to another new greenfield airport which also seems unwise. We can do things in our region to manage this growth over the long term and we should start now. We could improve local and regional transit so that air travel to Portland, Vancouver, and Eastern Washington are unnecessary, helping to reduce the overall need for flights.

6. Downtown Revitalization and Economic Development: What is your vision for revitalizing Burien’s downtown core and attracting new businesses, jobs, and community spaces?

Stephanie Mora

Mora: Revitalizing our downtown core is important to Burien’s future, and I fully support continued efforts to make it a safer, thriving space for families, small businesses, and community events. However, downtown has received much of the city’s focus over the years, and I believe it’s time we bring that same level of attention and energy to one of our most underserved areas, Boulevard Park.

Mora: My vision includes attracting an investor to build a hotel in our downtown, which would bring jobs, tourism, a stronger tax base, and new energy to the area, while also partnering with the city to create a new park in Boulevard Park. This park could include a dog area and a splash pad for kids and families to enjoy during the summer. It would provide the neighborhood with a much needed, welcoming space to gather, play, and build community. It would also help attract visitors, increase foot traffic, and support local businesses creating new opportunities for economic growth in that part of the city.

Mora: I remain committed to strengthening downtown Burien through public safety, small business support, and smart development that reflects our city’s unique character. A healthy downtown benefits everyone, but so does investing in ALL of Burien. With practical, balanced leadership, we can uplift every neighborhood, including those that have been overlooked for far too long.

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Rocco DeVito

DeVito: While I think we can certainly make improvements, I think that downtown Burien is a lively place and that our businesses are showing visitors what a great city Burien is already! 

DeVito: But we’re also more than just Downtown Burien, we should also pay a lot more attention to Boulevard Park and help businesses succeed there too! There is so much more we could be doing there to bring together the community and help businesses to grow in our other downtown core, including a supermarket. We should continue and expand efforts to attract businesses but we should also be providing more support to new entrepreneurs and specialized assistance to those who speak other languages. In the long term, economic development must be paired with more housing which will bring in new residents to our city and local businesses. 

DeVito: For both areas, I would love to see us capitalize on our Creative District and create more spaces for the arts. This would compliment our already popular dining scene and help bring in more customers. I would like us to pilot efforts to pedestrianize a small part of our business districts on a longer term basis to see if it can help us increase visitors and customers. It has been shown locally and nationally that people oriented streets attract more customers and benefit many local businesses and we should give it a try as well! This could be paired with temporary spaces for pop-up businesses for those just getting started, these have been quite successful in Bothell and could be here as well. Finally, we should also explore some type of Medical zoning near the hospital to try and attract healthcare related businesses to help us diversify the types of businesses we are bringing to the City.  

7. Public Transit and Traffic: How can the city improve public transit options, address traffic congestion, ensure safe streets for all users, including pedestrians and cyclists?

Stephanie Mora

Mora: As our city grows, so does the need for safe, efficient, and balanced transportation options whether you’re driving, walking, biking, or taking transit. But those systems have to serve our community’s needs first, not create new problems.

Mora: I believe converting Ambaum to a one-lane street to accommodate the RapidRide H Line was one of the worst decisions in the history of Burien. It has significantly slowed traffic, and even worse, it has increased congestion and accidents on nearby residential streets, as drivers try to avoid the now heavily backed-up corridor. That change has made life harder for families, workers, and emergency responders and it needs to be addressed. 

Mora: I also believe we should consider temporarily closing the Burien Transit Center until the serious safety concerns are resolved. There are too many individuals catching a bus into Burien, committing crimes, and then quickly leaving the area. That’s not public transportation, that’s a public safety failure. Until it’s properly managed and secure, we’re putting our residents and businesses at risk.

Mora:At the same time, I support investments in infrastructure that improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists. I support investments in sidewalks, lighting, and bike lanes, especially near schools and parks. 

Mora: We can practically support transit and safety but not at the cost of making life harder or more dangerous for our neighborhoods.

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Rocco DeVito

DeVito: I feel this is an area where I can really add value to our City Council. I currently work at King County Metro, where I help businesses manage employee transit benefits. My job is essentially helping people find alternative ways to travel other than driving alone when possible (not everyone can take the bus everywhere). My household doesn’t have a car and we get around by transit, e-bike, on foot, and occasionally by rental car. In a State where 25% of people can’t or don’t drive I know my perspectives personally and professionally could help make it easier for people to get around Burien.

DeVito: We have a good amount of transit options in Burien and we should continue to advocate for improved service, especially on the 128 and 131/132. The 128 is busier now than before the pandemic, and all these routes would see higher ridership if they came more frequently than every 20-30min. The RapidRide H is one of the busiest routes in the system because it is fast and frequent. To make transit more of an option for folks we should make sure we are building more housing near these routes and make street improvements to make walking and transit more attractive. These can include sidewalks, benches, and/or shelters, especially in the dangerous 1st Ave S corridor where it feels unsafe to wait for the bus. People use transit when it is fast and frequent, and we can do a lot to make sure that it is in Burien too.

DeVito: Our streets are just not safe and that is why we don’t see many kids or adults walking and biking, mainly because drivers are going too fast or not paying attention. I would like us to work on a network of greenways through residential streets that connect schools, parks, and community amenities. We could pursue lower cost street calming with small pre-fabricated roundabouts and local access only streets like Seattle’s Healthy Street initiative. I’d also love for us to create protected bike/pedestrian paths in some areas for added safety. 

DeVito: All these options help us to tackle overall traffic congestion. We will not be able to grow as a city with only space for cars like we have done for the last couple of decades. By growing and concentrating larger apartments near transit and improving service, and making walking and biking safe enough for people to use, we can make it easier to get around for everyone.

8. Environment and Climate Resilience: What steps (if any) should Burien take to address climate change, protect green spaces, and improve urban tree canopy in light of funding challenges?

Stephanie Mora

Mora: I believe in protecting our parks, trees, and green spaces because they are what makes Burien beautiful and livable. They’re essential to our health, well-being, and the future we want for our children.

Mora: Given the financial constraints cities like ours face. I support low-cost, high-impact solutions like planting more trees, native plants, and protecting existing green spaces by removing invasive plants. This is something I personally enjoy volunteering my time to do and can encourage others to do the same. 

Mora: Simple steps at the neighborhood level can also make a big difference. For example, composting in our own backyards and raising a couple of chickens can help reduce food waste, improve soil health, and support local sustainability. These are solutions that empower residents and strengthen our environment without requiring major city spending.

Mora: With thoughtful leadership, we can protect what we love about our city while building a healthier, more resilient future.

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Rocco DeVito

DeVito: I would love for us to improve our greenspaces and tree canopy wherever we can! I think this is an area where the city and residents can really work together to make improvements. I would like to see us create a small tree nursery to provide trees for residents to plant on their properties. I think the city could help identify places and correct trees for public right of ways (like furniture/curb zones), so that we can have more shaded streets with the help of local volunteers to care for them. We should also identify locations that are far from parks and plan for acquiring the space we need to build new ones when we have the funds. When it comes to climate change, housing and transportation are important parts of this topic that I have discussed elsewhere but we should acknowledge they are the places we can best move the needle on greenhouse gas emissions locally. 

9. DEI & Sanctuary City Status: What is your stand on Burien’s policies that protect the needs of its diverse population? Also, the city voted to become a “Sanctuary City” in 2017. What are your thoughts on this?

Stephanie Mora

Mora: I support immigrants and families who are working hard to build better lives. Burien will remain a safe haven for immigrants, but we must also recognize the need to work with ICE and federal authorities when it comes to arresting and removing those who are here illegally and have committed serious crimes that endanger our community.

Mora: As a survivor of sexual assault that happened when I was a minor at Evergreen High School, I know firsthand the pain and lifelong impact that violent crimes leave behind. The men who assaulted me were in this country illegally, and I would have found comfort in knowing they were being deported and no longer able to hurt others in our community. That experience has shaped my belief that protecting minors, victims, and preventing further harm MUST ALWAYS come first.

Mora: There is a clear line between compassion and accountability. If someone who is here illegally commits a violent or serious crime and ends up in jail, the proper authorities should be notified. Public safety is not negotiable, and I will always stand up for policies that protect our residents while supporting law abiding families who want a better life.

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Rocco DeVito

DeVito: We should absolutely not change our policies, at no point should our local law enforcement collaborate with ICE. It is absolutely outrageous the lengths our current administration is going to terrorize immigrants and our communities. If we hope to have true public safety we need our first responders to be wholly separate from the lawlessness of ICE raids, detention, and deportation, so that all people can report crimes and receive the support they need.

10. Transparency and Community Engagement: What new approaches would you take to increase transparency and improve communication between City Hall and the public?

Stephanie Mora

Mora: Transparency and trust go hand in hand. Our residents deserve to know what’s happening in their city, how decisions are being made, and how their voices can influence the outcome.

Mora: I will continue to call out actions that happen behind the scenes when I believe they don’t reflect transparency or serve the public’s best interest. City Hall works best when it stays connected to the people it serves not just during election season, but every single day.

Mora: I work hard to stay engaged with the community by reading and responding to every email, letter, call, or text I receive. I meet with residents one-on-one or in groups whenever invited, because I believe leadership means showing up and truly listening. I’m proud of the open communication I’ve maintained with the public, even when I’m speaking with someone who may not share my views. Respectful dialogue is how we grow and solve problems together.

Mora: And I want to be clear: I don’t attend public events just to be seen or to check a box so I can later give a speech about how I attended another event. This isn’t performative for me, and it’s not a career move. This is me showing up for my community. 

Mora: Looking ahead, I want to expand town halls into more neighborhoods, offer more translated materials, and use both digital and in-person tools to reach and include more voices.

Mora: I’ll continue to be an accessible, honest voice for Burien. I will show up, follow through, and put our community before politics and city hall friendships. Engagement isn’t a photo op. It’s a responsibility I take seriously every day.

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Rocco DeVito

DeVito: On a personal level, I will be present in the community to hear feedback and answer questions. I will make myself available at different times of day and in different parts of the city so that more people can find me on a schedule that works for them. I will also work to have regular newsletters letting folks know what I’m up to and how they can reach me. I’ll do my best to also work with local organizations to help connect me with folks that don’t speak English so their voices are heard too. 

DeVito: At a city level, we need to find out more about how people in Burien are getting town news now and how best to reach people. While the City staff have done a lot to make meetings and forums known and open to the public, it is clearly not reaching everyone based on comments at council meetings. We need to use some combination of postcards, online content, and news outlets to make people aware of what is going on and how they can participate. 

11. Budget Priorities and Tough Choices: Given ongoing budget constraints, what would be your top funding priorities, and what tradeoffs would you consider balancing essential services with new initiatives?

Stephanie Mora

Mora: With ongoing budget constraints, we have to make every dollar count and lead with financial discipline and honesty. My top funding priorities are clear the same now as they have been during my time on the council so far: public safety, core infrastructure, and essential city services that directly serve Burien residents.

Mora: I do not support raising taxes and will continue to vote AGAINST tax increases. Families are already feeling the pressure of rising costs. Instead, I support growing our local economy and tax base. I want to explore every option, including the potential sale of city-owned properties as a way to increase revenue without placing additional burdens on taxpayers.

Mora: I also support cutting contracts that are not essential to the basic functioning of our city. When it comes to spending, we must ask: Is this a core service? Is it helping us run a safer, cleaner, more efficient city? If the answer is no, we shouldn’t be funding it. 

Mora: That also includes re-evaluating our Human Services grants. While I care deeply about many of the organizations we’ve supported, I do not believe the city should continue issuing grants until our revenues and spending are brought into alignment with the actual size and capacity of Burien. Right now, we are spending more than we can afford and that’s simply unsustainable.

Mora:Tough decisions have to be made, and I’m not afraid to make them. I’ll continue to prioritize essential services, protect taxpayers, and advocate for a realistic, responsible budget that reflects what Burien can sustain without compromising the things that matter most to our residents.

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Rocco DeVito

DeVito: We are coming up to tough budget choices in the next year or two and we have to do more to both fill the gaps and to increase revenues. We will be asked to increase taxes to fund public safety projects, including our co-responder program, and cover cost increases that every organization is facing. The majority on council should not have waited until the last minute to address this issue, and we should be working more collaboratively to address fundamental issues like this. We also need to have a better plan to increase and diversify our revenue by adding new and varied businesses. Our city also lacks any grant staff, which could go a long way to support city staff in finding and managing more grants. If we don’t want to increase taxes, we need to find more money to fund programs from different levels of government. In the short term we will likely need some new taxes to maintain the staff and programs that we are already offering. This may be the public safety levy or an alternative levy to support human services and/or parks departments which is where I think we should be investing more of our money. In the long term we need to find new revenue streams, advocate for a fairer tax system at the state level, and push for housing and mental health funds from the County and State.

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