Behind the scenes of the limited-edition SEA26 ORCA Card
Crossposted from Metro Matters
There’s nothing Seattle-area transit riders love more than a special-edition ORCA card! To celebrate Seattle’s status as a host city in the 2026 World Cup, ORCA produced a limited-edition, promotional ORCA card which celebrates the excitement of the sport and the culture of the Pacific Northwest.
Led by King County Metro in partnership with 4Culture, this ORCA card was designed by local artist Alison Bremner. 4Culture is King County’s cultural services agency, providing funding and support for art, heritage, historic preservation, public art, and science and technology to help connect people throughout the region with cultural experiences. Read more.
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Events Ahoy! West Seattle Water Taxi is set for sailing to Mariners games, soccer matches and more this summer
Crossposted from the Captain’s Blog
You don’t need a soccer tournament to stay busy in Seattle this summer, and the King County Water Taxi wants to help you get to all of the events taking place downtown—as well as to that soccer tournament!
Weeknight trips after Mariners baseball
Weeknight post-game sailings for the Seattle Mariners are returning this summer. The weekday post-game trips from Pier 50 to West Seattle started June 1, after an interleague game between the M’s and the New York Mets.
The water taxi will provide evening post-game service Monday through Thursday. The scheduled trips between Pier 50 and the Seacrest Dock in West Seattle will operate. Read more.
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Hundreds of thousands of people are coming to Seattle for the World Cup. Here’s what it means for your health
Crossposted from Public Health Insider
With six World Cup matches and many fan events in Seattle planned in June and July, up to 750,000 people are expected to come to the region! Public Health and our partners have compiled tips to help people going to the events and exploring King County stay safe and healthy, whether you’re new to King County or already live here.
Please share this information if you are hosting or working with visitors during the World Cup. Read more.
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Employee Assistance Program and Making Life Easier undergo refresh, July 1
King County’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and Making Life Easier (MLE) are about to go through a refresh. This is the result of feedback from employees, supervisors, leaders, and HR staff.
Historically, the MLE program focused on helping all King County employees with home- and life-related stress and concerns. Beginning July 1, MLE will expand their services to also support employees with workplace issues. MLE will continue to provide support to employees and their families living in the same household for home-related stress and concerns. This all-in-one counseling is provided by our external vendor Curalinc and includes:
- Confidential and free counselor accessibility 24 hours a day, 365 days a year for employees who work all shifts
- Network of mental health counselors and coaches who offer a variety of clinical specialties, cultural backgrounds, and diversity
- Tools to cope with work-related stress and career decisions, navigating conflict with a coworker or supervisor, addressing burnout and trauma, coping with workplace change, and more
- Financial and legal consultation; referral and consultation for adult, elder, and childcare; and counseling for individual, marital, and family problems
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Using data to guide resources to where they’re needed most: Portraits of Public Health
Crossposted from Public Health Insider
Our website is full of all sorts of interesting data dashboards, synthesizing information from an array of data sources to allow our staff and the public to better understand who is most impacted by various health issues.
Danny is one of the data scientists who does the behind-the-scenes work to make these data visualizations possible and to allow our staff to work efficiently. For this month’s Portraits in Public Health, we look behind the scenes to understand the work of Danny and his colleagues.
Hi Danny. What’s your job at Public Health?
I’m a data scientist. I create software tools to help my colleagues easily access and analyze public health data for the community.
I love taking away unnecessary complexity for people. If I can free their time, their energy, their resources, they can engage more fully with community partners. Read more.
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King County officials urge extra caution on rivers after December flooding created new potential drowning hazards
King County officials are urging the public to be extra cautious on rivers this summer after major flooding this past December changed conditions and created new potential drowning hazards. They also warn that Lake Washington and Puget Sound remain dangerously cold even when the air temperature is warm.
Widespread flooding this past December moved logs, rocks, and other hazards into rivers throughout King County, creating new drowning risks that might not be visible above the surface. Historically high flows shifted riverbeds, resulting in deeper or shallower pools that can create hazards for swimmers, tubers, boaters, and kayakers. Read more.
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Free summer lunches for kids at King County Parks
Every kid should have access to healthy foods year-round. To help fill the gap in the school lunch program during summer break, King County Parks’ Teen Rec Aides are providing free summer sack lunches to kids under 18 along with activities at multiple locations throughout the summer.
- Steve Cox Memorial Park Community Center, 1321 SW 102nd St Seattle 98146, June 29 – Aug. 21: Mondays – Fridays from noon to 2 p.m.
- West Hill Community Center, 12320 80th Ave S Seattle 98178, June 30 – Aug. 21: Tuesdays – Fridays from noon to 2 p.m.
- Thurnau Memorial Park Picnic Shelter #1, 11050 10th Ave SW Seattle 98146, June 29 – Aug. 21, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 12:30 to 2 p.m.
- Skyway Park Playground, 12010 71st Ave S Seattle 98178, June 30 – Aug. 21, Tuesdays – Fridays with snacks and crafts from 2:15 to 2:45 p.m.
For more information, visit wcteenprogram.org/recreation-aide-program.
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It’s swimming season! Answers to your top questions about beach closures and reopenings
Crossposted from Public Health Insider
There’s nothing quite like relaxing on a beach by the lake in the summertime. Here in King County, we’re lucky to have dozens of great beaches to choose from, and the Lake Swimming Beach Program works hard to make sure the water is safe for people to swim.
Every week during the summer (typically from mid-May through mid-September) we test the water at popular swim beaches in King County for bacteria. If there’s a high risk that people could get sick from swimming or playing in the water, we recommend closing the beach. Once there’s less risk that people will get sick, we recommend reopening the beach. Read more.
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Outdoor movies return to King County’s Marymoor Park this summer with food trucks, entertainment, dog-friendly activities
This summer, moviegoers can once again enjoy big-screen films, food trucks, and dog-friendly activities at King County’s Marymoor Park in Redmond for the 22nd season of the KeyBank Movies at Marymoor presented by Sasquatch Strength & Nutrition.
The season begins July 8 with the 1980s classic “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” kicking off another summer of relaxed, fun evenings stretched out on a beautiful grassy expanse. It will be the first season since Sound Transit’s 2 Line was completed with service to the nearby Marymoor Village Station.
On July 15, audiences can sing along to crowd favorite “Mamma Mia.” The July lineup continues with “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” on July 22 and the romantic comedy “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” on July 29. Read more.
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SEA26: Getting around town—Metro launches Waterfront Shuttles for summertime fun
Crossposted from Metro Matters
Metro’s new Waterfront Shuttle is now in service in downtown Seattle, connecting riders between the Seattle Center, the Seattle Aquarium and the Great Wheel on the downtown waterfront, historic Pioneer Square and our treasured Chinatown-International District.
Rides are free thanks to a sponsorship from the Seattle FWC26 team, all part of making it easier to ride transit and leave your car home all summer long—especially on Match Days.
Shuttle service is very frequent—operating every 15 minutes, seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.—with stops near the city’s most popular destinations. Read more.
Employee News 