Michael Malek’s career in municipal government began by complete accident.
After graduating from the University of Washington-Tacoma in 2018 with a degree in public relations, he visited Yelm City Hall to pay his water bill when the staffer at the desk informed him of a vacant accounting assistant position in the city.
“I said, ‘Cool,’ and then I walked out the door,” Malek said. “They later called me and said, ‘Hey, you should really apply for this.’ I had experience in banking and cash handling, so I was like, ‘OK, why not?’ I applied, and I got it.”
He spent nearly two years working as an accounting assistant in Yelm before the COVID-19 pandemic began, and he then took over as the City’s financial analyst to help with budgeting.
After three more years in Yelm, Malek began advising the City of Roy and its finances as Mayor Kimber Ivy took over a new administration. He enjoyed the fit in Roy and got the job as the city clerk-treasurer in June of 2023.
“Everything just kind of worked out. I was really lucky to have such an amazing team who wanted me to help support the mission they were on,” he said. “There were so many really great ideas when I got here, and it was exciting to see some of those cool things happen during my time.”
Malek will finish his 11-month tenure in Roy at the end of May and head to the City of Puyallup to take its financial analyst job. While he acknowledges that his time in Roy was short, he said he appreciates the council and the community for allowing him to learn and grow in his role as he wore many hats, including applying for and managing grants, building council packets, paying bills and more.
“I’m very blessed to have gained so much knowledge through my time in Yelm and then now in my seat here in Roy and to learn and be able to support the community,” Malek said. “It’s a staff of seven or eight people, so you have to do it all or it doesn’t get done. I’ve been very lucky that Mayor Ivy and this team have trusted me to navigate them to get these things done.”
Malek said he is proud that the City of Roy is in a better place now than it was when he started in his role last summer. He added that Ivy’s administration has aimed to be transparent in every aspect regarding accusations about previous administrations, concerns about water quality, infrastructure and other public safety issues. The City has also rebuilt relationships with local representatives, organizations and the Nisqually Tribe.
“Just being in the room or at the table to talk about those things is so incredibly important to me. If you continue in municipal government, you will come across these people along the way throughout your career, so I’ve been very blessed to already have built some of those relationships and brought them over here,” he said. “I was able to introduce the mayor to those people and have her now have that connection and feel empowered enough to reach out to these people who represent our communities and say, ‘Hey, we would love to meet with you and talk about all of our amazing things that we want to make happen in Roy.”
The City of Roy has begun work on its water quality concerns, as it approved a water rate study this year and was awarded $300,000 from the state Legislature for water infrastructure this upcoming year. It is also working on a crosswalk in town that will help pedestrians traverse through Roy. Malek said the issues are being addressed because the City is prioritizing listening to residents’ concerns and taking action as much as it can within its budget.
“We want the community to know that we’re listening and we’re taking action and we’re getting to those places where people need us to be. In the same vein, we need people to understand how everything works behind the scenes,” he said. “At the end of the day, the buck stops with their City Council. If they want to see change and they want to see projects done, they need to come to council meetings and speak up.”
Malek said he will miss working with the administrative team and the police force, as well as making progress on big projects in the city.
“They’re 100% the best people. They are just so dedicated to this community. I know that people think that we just sit behind desks and are zombies at the computer, but these people work so incredibly hard for this city and go out of their way to get things done,” he said. “I just want to thank Roy so much for inviting me into their community and working with me to have these amazing projects get underway and giving me the space to learn and grow. I’ll always be around and always watching as the city grows, and I hope great things happen here.”
The City of Roy is looking for applicants for its city clerk-treasurer position. To learn more, visit https://cityofroywa.us/jobs-projects/.
