No, I’m not talking about belly buttons. Sequim is not only an extraordinarily wonderful place to live; it’s a most unusual city as well.

Most cities have a fairly sharp demarcation between in and out of city residents. Those living outside the city generally regard themselves as just county or other community residents. City volunteers and governmental boards consist almost exclusively of city residents.

Sequim is different. Four-fifths of residents of the greater Sequim community live outside the city limits but nevertheless identify themselves as Sequim residents. Sequim volunteers come overwhelmingly from people from outside the city limits. The Lavender Festival and Irrigation Festival would collapse without the involvement of volunteers from outside the city. The city governmental advisory boards, including the Planning Commission, Design Review Board, Parks Review Board and Sequim Speaks consist of a mixture on in-city and outside-city residents. This is very unusual; most cities do not let noncity residents participate on these boards. But Sequim is not most cities.

The city council and city government benefit greatly from this support from the contributions of residents of the greater Sequim community. Most issues that affect Sequim affect the entire area; advice and assistance are appreciated, whatever the source. We recognize that while we legally represent only in-city residents, as a practical matter we represent the concerns of everyone living in the Sequim area.

Fortunately, on most issues, in-city and outside-city residents are aligned. For example, while market forces control real estate development, the public has made it clear that it opposes ugly, ramshackle development. Consequently the city has established design standards reviewed by a board (currently populated by volunteers from outside the city). The city council also has enacted other measures designed to give the public a greater say in future development.

On the rare occasions when differences occur, we obviously must side with our in-city voters. There are demographic differences between the two groups. Outside city residents tend to be younger with a higher percentage of school students. But because so many senior citizens are in-city voters, we must be especially mindful of their needs. While most businessmen live outside the city, most businesses are inside. This generates a bias to look at commercial activity from the perspective of the public and customers.

Residents of the Dungeness Valley and the greater Sequim area must be assured that we on the city council recognize that we all are going into the future of Sequim together.

Ted Miller is a Sequim City Council member. Reach him at lawyerted@msn.com.