Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Palouse city councilman and school board member Chris Cook is the lone candidate to replace Michael Echanove, the city’s four-term mayor.
Cook submitted his name to run during the initial filing period in May.
“I was approached by a number of different people and, in the end, in talking to others who may have been interested, circumstances and timing for other folks didn’t work out,” said Cook. “So I put my hat in the ring.”
A 14-year Palouse resident and eight-year school board member, he resigned the school seat effective at the end of the year, before he takes over as mayor.
Cook has been on the city council for one year.
“That was part of my hesitancy,” he said. “My game plan was different. Timing is a funny thing and here we find ourselves. I enjoy the work.”
Before joining the council, Cook served on the Palouse planning commission for three years.
Preparing
He now has seven months until he takes the mantle from Echanove, who has served at city hall since 1994 including two terms on city council.
“I continue to reach out with Michael. There is so much history that he has an understanding of, that I don’t, frankly,” Cook said, also noting input from veteran councilmen Rick Wekenman and Mark Wilcomb.
The director of career services at University of Idaho, Cook will also continue his role as co-head coach of the Garfield/Palouse junior high and high school cross-country team.
“That was non-negotiable, I refuse to give that up,” said Cook, a triple-jumper for WSU in the early ‘90s. “It was really hard to step down from the school board.”
He and his wife Brenda, a labor/delivery nurse at Gritman Hospital in Moscow, have three children, ages 16, 14 and 11.
Cook’s background includes an anthropology degree from WSU and a Master’s in Higher Education (administration) from U of I. He is the first of his family to get a degree, the first to get a master’s.
Start
Cook grew up in small towns in California: Biggs, Gridley and the larger Sonoma. He was the youngest child of six, his parents bringing in foster children, too. Cook’s father was a bowling alley mechanic and regional professional bowler.
The family later moved to Maple Valley, Wash., where Cook graduated from Tahoma High School.
What was the young Chris Cook like in government class in 1988? Was he engaged, interested?
“Not all all,” he said. “I was completely self-absorbed in high school. But I liked trying to solve problems and working with people.”
His interest later expanded.
“A small town is a funny thing, ultimately everyone has a hat to wear,” Cook said. “If you believe in something bigger than yourself, a cliché, which I do, then you want to start to get involved.”
What is the most surprising element in joining a city council?
“The diversities of issues that require a lot of attention,” Cook said. “You go from a noise complaint from a dog or rooster to the complexity of wastewater treatment to get up to speed on, because decisions have to be made. You want to make sure you’ve got a 360-degree view.”
Previous to WSU, Cook spent two years at Green River Community College and ran track, followed by a year at Pacific Lutheran University before transferring to WSU.
After college, he sold real estate and did property management for Windermere in Burien.
“There’s a direct correlation between anthropology and real estate. Everyone knows that,” Cook said, joking.
He came back to the Palouse for graduate school at WSU. He then started his career with the WSU athletic department. After he and Brenda were married, they lived in Moscow and were set to build a house in Pullman, when just days before signing, a property opened in Palouse and Cook took a drive to go look.
“When you roll into Palouse, it has a vibe, it has a thing. It felt good,” he said.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
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