The Enumclaw City Council gained one new member but lost another during the early stages of the March 27 session.

Kicking off the meeting, Mayor Liz Reynolds shared a letter of resignation from Mike Sando. In stepping down, Sando made it clear he had work-related reasons as well as personal dissatisfaction with the direction Enumclaw’s governing body is headed.

“It is troubling to participate in a process that ignores responsible discourse in the pursuit of narrow and individual interests,” Sando wrote in an email to the mayor.

On a personal note, Sando noted that new job demands “will require every bit of my focus and energy over the next few months and into the next school year.” A former Enumclaw High teacher and coach, Sando switched in the fall and now works at West Auburn High School, a four-year alternative secondary school operated by the Auburn School District.

Moving into the scheduled agenda, the council witnessed the swearing-in of Steve Cadematori, who fills the vacated Position 1 seat. The post became vacant in January when Morgan Irwin resigned to accept an appointment to the state House of Representatives.

To fill the Position I seat, the city went through a two-month process that netted five candidates and culminated in Cadematori’s selection. It appears the same scenario will not play out with Sando’s departure.

City Administrator Chris Searcy said the council will likely select a replacement from the field of candidates who had applied to fill the Position 1 vacancy.