New Challenges Await Tom Weeks In School District

Having accomplished one of his main goals - he helped to steer the Seattle City Council toward policy-setting and away from micro-management - Tom Weeks found himself growing bored with life at the top.

"Now that I got it (the council) where I wanted it, I don't want to be there," Weeks said yesterday, revealing more about his motivation to leave office 1 1/2 years before his term ends.

Weeks, in his second term, is giving up his council seat to become the Seattle School District's director of human resources. At the district, he'll be the one implementing policies instead of setting them - a switch he looks forward to.

When he joined the council in 1989, he recalled, budget debates focused on relatively minor issues.

"I wanted broad directions, and to evaluate performances, and to get out of personnel changes," he recalled.

But now that that goal has been largely accomplished, Weeks said he's ready to move on.

"Interestingly, as you move in that direction and the council becomes a broad, policy-making body, this job gets less interesting because I like being where the action is," he said.

Weeks believes the school district has been going through a similar transformation, with more day-to-day management responsibilities shifting away from the School Board and to the administration - without questioning the superintendent's every move. The new job will be "more suited to my skills and interests," he said.

Weeks also said the makeup of the council has shifted from a generally older body to a younger, more headlines-conscious group.

"I don't like the competition for who gets credit for stuff and who gets their name in the paper. That part of the job drives me crazy," he said.

Weeks' resignation will be effective Aug. 2.

Former Councilman Paul Kraabel is expected to be appointed to take over Weeks' seat until this fall, when an election will be held to determine who will fill out the unexpired portion of Weeks' term, which runs through 1997.