Shoreline Council bids farewell to Doris McConnell

Doris McConnell delivering parting remarks at her last City Council meeting.
Screenshot from council recording

The Shoreline City Council’s final regular meeting of 2023 on Monday night, December 11, 2023, had a fully packed agenda, but found time to honor one of the city’s longest serving elected officials. The Council bid farewell to longtime Councilmember Doris Fujioka McConnell.

Monday night’s short ceremony - juxtaposed against actions by the council to address regional challenges - was emblematic of the changes (and growing pains) our city faces in the coming decades.

Mayor Keith Scully presented Doris with a plaque.
Screenshot from council recording.

As a City Councilmember, she served on the King County Regional Water Quality Committee, the Domestic Violence Initiative Regional Task Force and Seashore Transportation Forum. For the National League of Cities, she served on the Asian Pacific American Municipal Officials (APAMO) board, and the Advisory Council on Transportation and Infrastructure Services Committee (TIS).

Before and during her time on the Council, McConnell played a key role in significant accomplishments for the City. In 2006, she helped pass the first parks bond and recently helped to pass a renewal of that bond. She worked to complete phases two and three of the Aurora Corridor Project, and worked with Sound Transit and many other partners on making light rail a reality for Shoreline.

Doris was active in Shoreline PTAs and the Richmond Beach Community Association.

In prepared remarks, Mayor Keith Scully said “It is fair to say that the Shoreline of today is a very different Shoreline then when she first joined the Council and she could and should take credit for many of those accomplishments.”

Doris Fujioka McConnell was elected to the City Council in 2007, 2011, 2015, and 2019 and served as Deputy Mayor in 2019. Photos courtesy City of Shoreline

A slide show was presented that included the highlights of CM McConnell’s 16 year career as a member of the Shoreline City Council. She was first elected in 2007 and served as Deputy Mayor in 2019.

Doris was well connected, available to the community, and was known to drive out to locations that were being heatedly discussed in council meetings.

She presented the voice of the community whose members may have been unable to attend council meetings.

In her parting remarks, she lavished praise and appreciation on the staff of the city, commenting that Shoreline is fortunate to have such capable people.

--Story by Oliver Moffat and Pam Cross