Darren Gold is running for Position No. 7 on the Mercer Island City Council, which is the only seat to have a primary this year. He faces Traci Granbois and incumbent Debbie Bertlin.

Gold’s goal as a member of the City Council is to “continuously improve Mercer Island while simultaneously maintaining its values,” he wrote in a statement.

Gold, a patent portfolio manager at The Boeing Company, said he became interested in local politics when the current City Council proposed paving an open space near the Community and Event Center to erect a parking lot.

Gold said that he and his family moved to Mercer Island for its values— a family-friendly, small town atmosphere, a commitment to open space and superb schools.

Gold and his wife have young children, and he said they look forward to starting their children in the Mercer Island schools when they reach kindergarten age.

Gold has degrees in economics (BA), engineering (BS), computer science (MS) and law (JD), and worked as a software engineer for the missile defense program and Human Genome Project before practicing intellectual property law.

Throughout his career, Gold said he has worked and negotiated with many types of people, from line engineers to corporate executives.

He said he will bring his experience and skills to the City Council. He aims to “drive consensus and implement action,” and help move Mercer Island forward. For more, go to www.voteforgold.org or email darren_mi@yahoo.com.