New perspectives
The La Conner Planning Commission, down three members after chair John Leaver resigned Aug. 14, is sporting a new lineup after welcoming two newcomers at Tuesday night’s meeting.
Timothy Corey, a union electrician and former semipro football player, and Maya Ojalehto, who has a background in behavioral health and medical office work and prior public service experience as a volunteer advocate for homeless youth, were nominated by Mayor Marna Hanneman and confirmed last month by Town Council members for service on the five-member panel. Both are ready to tackle commission duties.
Corey and Ojalehto were formally welcomed by Town Planning Director Ajah Eills and commissioners Sommer Holt and Bruce Bradburn to the board’s Sept. 2 session.
“I heard that the Town needed help,” said Corey, a La Conner resident for four years. “I felt that volunteering for the commission was a way that I could help the community and I’ll try to learn as we go along.”
Timothy Corey
Photo by Bill Reynolds/La Conner Community News
Corey, who spent part of his youth in the Dominican Republic where his father served as a missionary, is bilingual in Spanish and English. After he and his family moved to the Port Angeles area on the Olympic Peninsula, Corey first visited La Conner in the 1990s while a member of the Crescent High track team.
After high school, Corey’s athletic career took him to Everett, where he secured a spot on the city’s arena football team that was in operation from 2005 to 2007. Today, his primary sport is golf.
Corey will now be part of the La Conner Planning Commission roster at least through the end of this year, completing the term of Carol Hedlin. Hedlin stepped down in June after a decade on the commission.
Corey and his wife, Kim, who is employed at Calico Cupboard, reside on Caledonia Street.
Maya Ojalehto
Photo by Bill Reynolds/La Conner Community News
Ojalehto has resided in La Conner for three years but has long been familiar with the community. While attending the Aug. 12 town council meeting, she said she “fell in love with this town as a child.”
“I’m very passionate about the history of La Conner,” she said. “I want to keep that intact. We need to preserve the town.”
Ojalehto expressed her desire to be a bridge-builder as a commissioner responsible for reviewing and acting on Class 3 permit applications, which deal primarily with the Town’s Historic Preservation District, and recommending changes to La Conner’s municipal codes and comprehensive plan.
Ojalehto attended Town meetings throughout the summer, building awareness of La Conner’s pressing issues. She is scheduled to complete former commissioner Cynthia Elliott’s term that runs through December 2026.
Away from the planning table and her work as a doctor’s assistant at Averio Health Institute in Mount Vernon, Ojalehto enjoys hiking, paddleboarding, and musical theater. She is hopeful of participating in local community theater projects.
Ojalehto has two grown daughters who live out-of-town but visit whenever possible.
“They tell me that there’s no way I can ever move from La Conner,” she chuckled.
While Leaver’s recently resigned position remains unfilled, the commission — including Corey and Ojalehto — voted unanimously on Tuesday to name Holt as its new chair.
The commission would also like to add a non-voting La Conner High School student representative to succeed Maxwell Page, who stepped aside due to scheduling conflicts with football this fall. Page served during the 2024-25 school year and chaired one commission meeting.
Bill Reynolds is a general assignment reporter who covers Town government, schools, and spot news.
