E-Mails Show Acrimony Between Kimberly Cole and Debi Humann

After at least seven months of acrimony between two members of the City of Edmonds, tension came to a boil on Sept. 22 .

The ongoing saga of Mayor Mike Cooper’s executive assistant, Kimberly Cole, who resigned, and Human Resources director Debi Humann, who was fired, continues today as both have hired lawyers while an outside investigation by Kirkland lawyer Jim Webber is ongoing. Humann is . Cole, who is still technically on paid administrative leave, says .

Humann’s firing allegedly came after some city staff members had complained about Cole's work hours and had contacted the State Auditor's office to look at her time sheets. as part of its regular audit, according to Mindy Chambers of the State Auditor's Office.

In her job with the city of Edmonds, Cole says she was a confidential, salaried employee who was not required to keep time records.

According to public records request for the last two weeks of Cole’s official e-mails while working for the City of Edmonds, Cole—in her own public records request for Humann’s e-mails—said that Humann, in a Feb. 3 meeting with Cooper and Economic Development Director Stephen Clifton, “worked off script and made several derogatory and inflammatory statements relating to her perceptions of my work, but stated as fact, including making very serious and targeted accusations.”

Cole says that documents that Humann brought into the Feb. 3 meeting were subsequently destroyed by the Human Resources manager when she learned about Cole’s status as confidential, salaried employee. Still, Cole claims Humann’s documents are public record and she put in her own record request to secure any documents that Humann carried during the Feb. 3 meeting.

The tension between Cole and Humann began in earnest on Sept. 12, according to the e-mails. During a meeting in which both were in attendance, the subject turned to multiple public records requests at the time. Cole claimed she asked Cooper if he wanted her to follow up on the requests. “In front of a total of 11 colleagues and before you, her boss, (Humann) proceeded to make a disgusted, condescending facial expression and eye roll , shaking her head, made a noise and say in plain, audible volume ‘…why????.’ It was demeaning in tone, tenor and content, embarrassing and meant to insinuate insignificance or ineptitude in front of coworkers and an interference with me doing my job in that meeting as I followed up on …  you asking the clerk for follow up on my end.”

After the meeting, Cole claimed, she heard Humann talking to City Clerk Sandy Chase: “If you need help, just let me know. Just sayin’ ”

Continued Cole, who is a member of the Lynnwood City Council: “Please handle this, Mayor. I cannot turn to HR as an obvious matter, so I again bring this to you. I am fearful of my options as this continues and grows unbearable and its effects felt across my other two professional networks as well. It is out of hand.”

The next day, Cole brought her concerns about Humann to Cooper again, telling him that she did not feel that he was addressing her concerns and that, “I do not believe I can receive fair and equitable employment conditions in this workplace, or others, as a result of her abuse of her position and lack of professionalism in dialogue and taking direction from superiors. Indeed, I feel further victimized in attempting to get it addressed because you have, one year in, essentially allowed it to happen.”

On Sept. 22, Cooper e-mailed Cole: “In consideration for the concerns you raised regarding a safe work place as it relates to treatment you have received from other employees and the possibility that someone is electronically reviewing your e-mail without authorization, I feel it is the best interest of you and the city to place you on paid administrative leave until I complete a review of this matter. Your leave will run through Tuesday September 27th. Please report to work at you scheduled Wednesday start time and we will review this matter further.

“It is important for me to have a safe family friendly work place. I take your concerns seriously and will treat them as such during my follow up review.”

“I understand,” Cole replied. “I have been anxious about even going to our floor's restroom at this point, opting instead to go downstairs. The volume of hostility is such that this is probably best. Thanks for being proactive in understanding the environment I find myself in today as I experience what I feel like is retaliation for issuing a private records request, on my own time.”

Cole did not report to work on Sept. 27 as she resigned the same day Cooper notified her of her paid administrative leave.

Mayor Cooper's temporary executive assistant is Michael Heavey, who is on staff through Nov. 28.