For decades, official neighborhood associations have been an essential part of Olympia’s civic fabric. This week, we examine how these associations operate with Michael Craw from The Evergreen State College, a scholar in the field. Then, Daniel sits down with Grace Fletcher to discuss the new generation leading the Council of Neighborhood Associations and their evolving approach to civic engagement.

Daniel sits down with Greg Quetin, Chair of the Olympia Planning Commission, to talk about the city’s recently approved Comprehensive Plan and the role of the planning commission in guiding Olympia’s growth.

We are in the season where, in the Olympia School District, you can choose a different path for your kids. In this episode, we sit down with OSD4All’s Erika Lari to talk about the new guide the group recently released to describe, in fine detail, all of the different programs around the district: https://osd4all.org/district-guide/

Daniel visits with leadership at Intercity Transit. Emily Bergkamp, General Manager, and Nick Demerice, Chief Marketing, Communications & Outreach Officer, cover the recent history of our local transit agency, what is going on with the change in routes and how transit will grow.

You’ve already received your ballot, so this week Erika sat down with Superintendent Mr. Dr. Patrick Murphy and Marc Elliot, Chief Information Officer, to talk about the replacement levy. Don’t forget to vote by February 10!

What is Olympia going to get from Olympia this year? Erika sits down with Maria Flores from the school board and Daniel visits with State Senator Jessica Bateman. We dive deep into what schools need from the legislature and what we should expect this session as a community.

For further discussion on school funding, please see episode 105: Do We Need to Close Schools?

We sit down with Mayor Dontae Payne and City Councilmember Dani Madrone (also host emerita) to walk through the formative issues in Olympia of 2025 and how they lead into 2026.

Daniel sat down with Sarah DeStasio to round out our campaign coverage for this year. Destasion worked on the Caleb Geiger and Robert Vanderpool campaigns and takes us through 2025 from the progressive lens.

Not that we expect Justin Stang to exit civic life, but Daniel sat down with him following the election to reflect on how it went for him and the future of Olympia.

This is the last election 2025 episode! We are joined in the first segment by Danielle Westbrook, long time friend of the podcast and political consultant. In the second segment, the 2025 election crew comes together one more time with Rob Richards.