The city’s 20th birthday has me thinking more about the future than the past. Big issues about our future loom as we blow out 20 candles on the F-Dub’s cake.

It was the first birthday bash of the week — a party thrown for the public by King County Councilman Pete von Reichbauer last Sunday at the Marriott — that got me thinking forward.

It’s fitting that Pete von Reichbauer’s celebration was the first event in the week’s birthday festivities. Not only is Pete one of the quickest and deftest elected leaders the region has seen, but he’s also been a driving force in the city for these past two decades and more. Speculation about the future often has his name attached.

The guests in attendance reflected on Pete’s historical influence, as there were many who had been involved in the drive to incorporate Federal Way. Sam Mitchell, husband of the late Rep. Maryann Mitchell, who is often regarded as the “Mother of Federal Way,” was there. Federal Way City Councilwoman Jeanne Burbidge spoke of attending planning meetings in Mitchell’s living room, while others reminisced about the hard work and passion that it took to birth our city.

While I glimpsed and shook hands with the city’s past, it occurred to me that what I didn’t see at this party, and what will only sort itself out after the celebrations have died down, is what the city’s future will look like.

Big changes are in the offing with the shift from a council-city manager form of government to an elected mayor. While I wasn’t a fan of the initiative, the form of government is not as important to me as the level of civic involvement. If people actively participate in our government, we should get the results we want.

That being said, one theme in the pro-elected mayor campaign struck a chord with me: That having an elected mayor will bring forth a strong vision for the city.

The argument goes something like this: The council-manager form of government is a more cautious style that focuses more on policy and process. Having an elected mayor will attract candidates who will need to articulate their vision for the city. Voters will then choose the vision they best like in the election. The winner would be able to coalesce the political capital of election victory into implementing the vision.

Not to be too simplistic about it, but the argument could be seen in terms of the ubiquitous “I’m a PC” ads on TV. The council-manager form of government is the PC, while the elected mayor is a hip, creative Mac. Do you want the political equivalent of a Zune, or do you want an iPhone?

The great story of Federal Way’s first 20 years is that we achieved what incorporation set out to do. We replaced a negligent, Seattle-based governance with a professional, fiscally conservative and responsive city government. We made significant strides in building the infrastructure and community amenities that a 21st-century Puget Sound city should have.

But in important ways, we’re stuck on the big issues: Creation of a downtown and overall economic development. With the added onus of the current local and regional economic conditions, and a population that is mixed in its belief that Federal Way can develop a downtown, the hill couldn’t be much steeper to climb.

So, the time is right for an iPhone mayor with a flashy (but functional) vision for the future. The new mayor will also need the ability to sell that vision to the citizens of Federal Way, and the landowners and developers who will make the critical decisions about our downtown.

Was that person in the room Sunday night? That, I don’t know. But hopefully, over the next 10 months, he or she will show themselves to a city needing to get a good start on Act Two.