Mark Hoppen sets sight on GH council reprise

Former city administrator wants to fix streets, diversify services

Nate Hulings

of the Gateway

Mark Hoppen is seeking his second elected Gig Harbor City Council appointment — nearly 20 years after his first go-around.

Hoppen served on the city council from 1990-92 and was the city administrator from 1992 through 2006.

Born and raised in Gig Harbor, Hoppen said he’s been sailing since age 5. Some of his earliest childhood memories involve working on boats with his father at Eddon Boat.

Street infrastructure and creating a business-friendly city are two issues Hoppen hopes to address if he’s elected to the council.

As city administrator, Hoppen said he focused on modernizing city streets — an issue that he believes needs to be readdressed.

“All those streets eventually need major repaving,” Hoppen said. “(We) have to have a revenue stream that is planned and forward-thinking. I’m concerned about that.” Hoppen also wants to see the continuation of diversity services in the community. He wants to “make sure that the business areas in town prosper in a reasonable way that works for city residents.”

Hoppen said a main component in prospering businesses is to make Gig Harbor an attractive area to set up shop. That includes not raising taxes on business.

“From my point of view, now is no time to tax business generally,” Hoppen said. “(It’s) hard enough for retail now.”

If elected, Hoppen also would like to see licenses and fees be “capably and fairly charged.”

“They shouldn’t be a profit center,” he said.

Hoppen is the current public works director for the City of Puyallup. However, he plans to resign from the position and leave the city at the end of July.

Hopped graduated from the University of Washington in 1974 with a degree in English. Seven years later, he earned a master’s degree in public administration, with an emphasis in human resources.

His educational background also guided his early professional career. Hoppen taught at Peninsula High School, his alma mater, for five years. He also taught and coached at Tahoma High School in Covington and worked in the Federal Way School District as an administrator. He currently teaches a servant leadership class at Chapman University at McCord Air Force Base.

Hopped said his background in education and his doctorate studies in educational leadership — which he completed in 1997 — have helped shape his understanding of local government.

“I have a natural inclination to try and help the people,” he said. “I work with them to actualize their professional development.”

Balancing his professional responsibilities and educational endeavors also taught Hoppen the value of achieving goals. He said he learned not to “make excuses for getting things done I wanted to get done.”

Hoppen and his wife Marilyn have been married for 33 years. Their daughter, Whitney, 22, goes to Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma. In his spare time, Hoppen enjoys working on his sailboat, the Diosa. He purchased the boat from his father 25 years ago.

Hoppen also reads. He hopes to soon begin writing about his Gig Harbor maritime experiences.