Mayor Mike Rosen, who has served since Jan. 1, 2024, delivered his 2026 State of the City presentation on March 16 at the Edmonds Waterfront Center, offering a detailed snapshot of City operations and the work happening across departments.

Tucked inside that presentation were the hidden gems – the small, surprising details that reveal what it really takes to keep Edmonds running while the rest of us are just hoping our favorite coffee shop isn’t too busy, the ferry line isn’t too long on a holiday weekend, and the city looks as beautiful as ever.

These were the standouts.

We outlawed “bawdy houses” before we had modern plumbing

Edmonds’ first three ordinances, passed in the city’s earliest months, read like a time capsule. One regulated the sale of “intoxicating beverages,” with a fee that would equal roughly $20,000 today. Another outlawed “bawdy houses” and “lewdness,” with fines ranging from $5 to $50.

And the third banned a long list of gambling games – faro, monte, roulette, and even something called “raw poker.” It’s a reminder that cities have always had to think about everything, even the things we no longer imagine.

One person handled more than 1,000 police records requests

The Edmonds Police Department processed more than 1,200 public records requests last year – and one specialist handled over a thousand of them. It’s the kind of quiet, meticulous work that keeps a city transparent and accountable.

Storm drains: 6,970 of them –  and more than 3,000 cleaned last year

Edmonds maintains nearly 7,000  stormwater catch basins. In 2025, crews cleaned more than 3,000, preventing flooding and keeping pollution out of Puget Sound. It’s the kind of infrastructure you never notice unless it stops working.

4 million gallons of sewage are treated every day

Every day, the city’s sewer system treats about 4 million gallons of wastewater. Crews cleaned more than 170,000 feet of sewer pipe last year and unclogged 51 backups. It’s not glamorous work, but it’s the backbone of public health.

Parks crews collected 100 tons of trash

That’s 200,000 pounds of trash removed from Edmonds parks in a single year. It’s astonishing – and a testament to how heavily our parks are loved, used, and cared for.

The city defends itself from 50 million intrusion attempts per month

Cybersecurity isn’t just for tech companies. Edmonds’ systems block roughly 50 million intrusion attempts every month. Even small cities operate in a global digital environment, and the threats are constant.

We maintain 8,103 street signs

And replaced 227 of them last year. Someone knows where every one of those signs is, what condition it’s in, and when it needs attention. That alone feels like a superpower.

And the human side: 222 neighbors supported

The City’s human‑services team coordinated support for 222 vulnerable residents last year. Many were experiencing homelessness or mental‑health challenges. These are the quiet, life‑changing efforts that rarely make headlines, but matter deeply.

@The takeaway

Cities are complex. Beautiful, yes. Scenic, absolutely. But also intricate, fragile, and full of moving parts most of us never see.

While we’re grabbing a latte, walking the dog, or admiring the sunset, someone is repairing a sewer line, pruning a park tree, reviewing a permit, or defending the city’s network from millions of digital threats.

And that’s what stood out most in this year’s State of the City: the sheer amount of invisible work that keeps Edmonds feeling like Edmonds.