Granite Falls, Washington

How Granite Falls is governed

Form of government not yet listed.

1 of 14 positions listed. Gray dashed boxes are placeholders waiting for a name.

• Mayor

  Executive

  • Matt Hartman per Wikidata

  The city's chief elected official. Presides over the executive branch, proposes the budget and represents the city.

  • City Manager / Administrator

    Executive

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    The professional administrator who runs day-to-day operations (in some cities appointed by the council instead of the mayor).

    • Police Chief

      Administration & departments

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      Leads the police department.

    • Fire Chief

      Administration & departments

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      Leads the fire and emergency services department.

    • Public Works Director

      Administration & departments

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      Streets, water, sewer, and city buildings.

    • Finance Director

      Administration & departments

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      The budget, taxes, and city accounts.

    • Planning & Zoning Director

      Administration & departments

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      Land use, zoning, building permits.

    • Parks & Recreation Director

      Administration & departments

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      Parks, programs, and public facilities.

• City Council

  Legislative

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  The elected body that passes ordinances, sets the tax rate and approves the budget.

  • City Clerk

    Administration & departments

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    Keeps the official records, runs meeting agendas and, often, local elections.

  • City Attorney

    Administration & departments

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    The city's lawyer; advises officials and prosecutes ordinance violations.

  • Boards & Commissions

    Legislative

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    Citizen advisory bodies, such as planning, zoning appeals and library boards.

• Municipal Court

  Judicial

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  Hears traffic, ordinance and other minor cases.

  • Municipal Judge

    Judicial

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    Presides over the municipal court.

Website

ci.granite-falls.wa.us

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Population over time

From 3,364 in 2010 to 4,450 in 2020 (+32.3%).

History

The Pilchuck River and Upper Stillaguamish basin was historically inhabited by the Skykomish people, who used the modern-day site of Granite Falls as a portage along with other Coast Salish tribes. Several Skykomish archaeological sites were discovered in the 1970s between modern-day Granite Falls and Lochsloy, with over 700 artifacts recovered from later excavation.

The first permanent European settler was Joseph Sous Enas from the Azores, who staked a homestead claim in 1883 on land south of the present city. He was joined by other homesteaders who took advantage of open land that had been cleared by an earlier wildfire, nicknamed "the Big Burn". A school district was established in 1886, initially using an abandoned cabin as a one-room schoolhouse until a permanent school was built in 1893. The discovery of gold and silver in the Cascades, particularly around Monte Cristo, lured miners and settlers to the Granite Falls area.

A general store and post office were established in 1890 at the corner of four homesteads, which would later form the center of the townsite platted in August 1891. The name "Granite Falls" was chosen for the settlement to replace the earlier name of "Portage". The Everett and Monte Cristo Railway reached Granite Falls on October 16, 1892, building a station for the town on the route between Monte Cristo and the county seat of Everett.

On November 8, 1903, Granite Falls voted to become a city. It was officially incorporated as a fourth-class city on December 21, 1903. At the time, it had approximately 600 residents and several lumber mills. Electricity, sewers, sidewalks, telephones, cars, and all the amenities of modern life soon followed. A power plant was also constructed at the falls.

By World War I, the once bustling mining towns of Monte Cristo and Silverton were no longer shipping out ore. The railroad, now owned by Northern Pacific, stopped running and the tracks were torn out in the early 1930s to make way for the Mountain Loop Highway.

Granite Falls between the world wars was a lumber town; logging companies felled trees, sawmills created lumber and shingle mills created shingles. The Great Depression, however, took its toll. By 1935, the population of Granite Falls was half what it was in 1925. Mills closed and people left to find work elsewhere. On April 26, 1933, a fire destroyed the Cascade Hotel in downtown Granite Falls and threatened other buildings. The historic hotel was rebuilt at the same site.

At the end of World War II, things looked bleak. The opening of Miller Shingle in 1946 (now the country's largest specialty lumber mill) meant jobs both in the woods and at the mill. Construction booms through Snohomish and King counties also meant jobs at the gravel pits dotted around Granite Falls. The city later became a bedroom community for commuters working in Everett and Lake Stevens for large companies.

Hard times would come again. In 1986, the United States Forest Service severely limited logging in old-growth forests under its protection in an effort to save the northern spotted owl from extinction. In June, 1990, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Department declared the spotted owl an endangered species, and in 1991, a federal court judge ruled the Forest Service's logging plan to save the owl was inadequate. Over one-fourth of old-growth forest on both public and private land were put off-limits to logging.

In the 21st century, Granite Falls has focused on attracting visitors to the natural environment and recreational opportunities along the Mt. Loop Highway. Expanded housing development has brought an increased population of families who commute to Everett, Seattle, and the Eastside to work. In 2001, the Tsubaki Grand Shrine of America was given a 17-acre (7 ha) plot of land next to Kannagara Jinja (built by the Reverend of the shrine) in Granite Falls, which was built upon, combining the two places.

A truck bypass around the north side of downtown Granite Falls opened in 2010 to serve several quarries to the northeast. A new high school campus was built near the bypass, along with a housing development with 327 homes in the late 2010s.

A downtown revitalization project began in the 2000s with renovations to buildings and a small city park. A new civic center is planned along South Granite Avenue, including a city hall that opened in 2019, a public plaza, a community center, and a gymnasium for the Boys & Girls Club that will also serve as an emergency shelter. The city government has also proposed promoting Granite Falls as a location for outdoor recreation retailers and businesses.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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• Spokane 228,989
• Tacoma 219,346
• Vancouver 190,915
• Bellevue 151,854
• Kent 136,588
• Everett 110,629
• Renton 106,785

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