Washougal has ‘fantastic visit’ with sister city delegation

The city of Washougal hosted three representatives from its sister city of Zielonki, Poland, Oct. 16-23.

“This was a fantastic visit,” Washougal City Manager David Scott said. “The delegation was engaged, interested, attentive, and asked excellent questions, and they are just really nice people. They are like family to us now. We had great discussions about the similarities and differences of our systems and how we provide services.”

The two cities agreed to form a sister-city partnership earlier this year. Washougal Mayor David Stuebe, councilmember David Fritz, and Scott and his wife Julie visited Zielonki from Tuesday, June 13, to Wednesday, June 21, to finalize and celebrate the two cities’ pact.

Three months later, Zielonki councilors Magdalena Listos and Tadeusz Gysek and treasurer Agata Adamczuk toured Hathaway Park, Steamboat Landing, the Washougal Community Library, the Washougal Community Center, Washougal’s fire and police stations, Two Rivers Heritage Museum, and Pendleton Woolen Mill.

They also visited the Port of Camas-Washougal and the Washougal School District administrative office, had dinner at a ReFuel Friday event, and attended a Washougal High School football game, the city’s Pumpkin Harvest Festival, and a City Council meeting.

“They surely had some good ‘takeaways,’ just as we did when we visited there,” Scott said. “They were impressed by the beauty of our region, the community, our facilities and programs, and how we engage with partners in so much of what we do. Their time was greatly enhanced because of the gracious reception and involvement of everyone involved in the various activities and tours we provided. We are grateful to our partners for being generous with their time and energy to engage with the delegation.”

Scott said the next steps for the partnership “are still in development.”

“Initial ideas brainstormed include tourism exchange, business group exchange, student engagement, and virtual tours shared on our respective websites and regular visits back and forth, involving new city and community leaders and members each time as much as possible,” he said.