Vancouver’s Mayor Points to Growth and Change
VANCOUVER, Wa. — Vancouver’s on a fast track to growth, according to the city’s mayor. That’s her message in her state of the city address.
Anne McInerney-Ogle is now in her second term as mayor, an office she started to hold in 2018. Before that she served on the Vancouver City Council. In her decade of elected service, she says, “We grew 40, 000 people in the last decade. We went from about 162, 000 to 200, 000 people in 10 years.”
That means more needs, and more services, and not just for those within the city limits. “We serve an additional 90, 000 people in our urban growth area, just outside the city with water, sewer, fire, and EMS. Sorry Ridgefield, but we are now the fastest growing city in this state. And we’re one of the fastest of the 50 fastest growing cities in the country. No wonder things are a little hot around here.”
The city’s first woman elected mayor also points out, “We became more diverse with 64% of an increase in our communities of color. And the City Council has made some incredibly bold moves to address all of that growth and development.”