Meet the Candidate: LFP City Council Pos. 1 - Bryce James

Bryce James

Bryce James — Candidate for Lake Forest Park City Council, Position 1

Lake Forest Park has been my family’s home for more than 75 years. I’m running for City Council to ensure that as our city grows, we protect what makes it unique — our trees, salmon streams, and neighborhoods — while managing growth and finances with transparency and discipline.

I come from a family that helped shape this community, and I feel a deep responsibility to preserve its character for future generations. With degrees in finance, accounting, and computer science — and more than four decades advising corporations, nonprofits, and sovereign nations — I bring a data-driven, results-focused approach to public service. My goal is simple: to make sure decisions are fair, informed, and grounded in facts.

Lake Forest Park faces serious challenges — state housing mandates, major transportation projects, and rising costs that strain both the city’s budget and its residents. Meeting those challenges requires careful planning, not quick fixes. I believe every major initiative should start with a clear statement of the problem we’re solving and an honest assessment of how the proposed solution addresses it. Good policy is built on evidence, not assumptions.

If elected, my priorities will be fiscal responsibility, environmental protection, and meaningful citizen engagement. I’ll work to restore the Fiscal Sustainability, Transportation, and Environmental Quality Commissions so residents can again play an active role in shaping city policy. These commissions once provided invaluable oversight and should never have been eliminated. I’ll also insist on clear performance metrics for city programs, so taxpayers can see what their dollars are accomplishing.

Another critical issue is Sound Transit’s Stride-3 Bus Rapid Transit project. As proposed, it would remove hundreds of mature trees, require large retaining walls, and permanently alter our city’s landscape for marginal travel-time gains. I support the City’s and CORE’s alternative plan that maintains reliable bus service while minimizing harm to residents, businesses, and the environment.

Beyond policy, I want to restore trust and transparency in how the city communicates. Citizens deserve accessible information, genuine dialogue, and a voice in the decisions that affect them. I’ll meet people where they are — through neighborhood meetings, open data tools, and citizen commissions that make public participation real and continuous.

I have not sought endorsements from organizations or individuals outside Lake Forest Park because I believe this office belongs to our residents alone. My only obligation will be to the people who live here — to keep government accountable, decisions transparent, and our community’s character intact.

Lake Forest Park is an extraordinary city. With steady leadership, financial discipline, and respect for the people who call it home, we can protect its natural beauty and civic integrity for generations to come.

— Bryce James
Candidate for Lake Forest Park City Council, Position 1