Burien attorney Gerald Robison was sworn in Jan. 3 as Burien's newest council member, replacing Kathy Keane.
First-term Councilman Brian Bennett was also picked by his colleagues as the new deputy mayor.
Robison was selected by a 5-1 vote with Councilwoman Lucy Krakowiak as the lone dissenting vote. No one else was nominated.
The attorney had been named in December as the other council' top candidate after the lawmakers interviewed five finalists. He could not be formally elected until Keane's resignation was effective at the first of the year. Bennett must win election in November to remain on the council.
Keane is retiring and moving to Florida.
Robison has been involved in property and real estate law for 30 years. Before attending law school, Robison had a real-estate office in White Center. He graduated with a J.D. from the University of Puget Sound/Seattle University in 1993.
He has also been a Burien Planning Commission member.
In an interview with the Times/News' Keith Daigle, Robison said he would like to see more businesses locate in Burien.
"Burien should have more thriving successful businesses than it does," Robison declared.
But he added, he believes Burien is doing a good job of providing services and improvements.
"Generally, the government in Burien is doing pretty good," Robison said. "I think Burien has been doing an excellent job with its money. It is a point of civic pride Burien has such better finances than Seattle."
Bennett was selected by a unanimous vote of his fellow lawmakers as deputy mayor, replacing Rose Clark.
According to the Burien website, Bennett is a fourth-generation resident of the city. He lives in north Burien with his wife, Oksana, and their two daughters, Emilia and Yeva.
Bennett was chairman of the Burien Shoreline Advisory Committee and served on the Burien Planning Commission.
He works as a business and technology attorney for F5 Networks, a Seattle based global technology company.