Heroism by King County Metro bus operators
Crossposted from Metro Matters
Two King County Metro bus operators helped lead to the arrest of the suspect in the murder of Metro Transit Operator Shawn Yim on Dec. 18.
While driving a northbound RapidRide E Line bus on the morning of Dec. 21, Metro bus operator Anthony “A.J.” Ross observed a passenger onboard with some similarities to the suspect, whom Ross had driven a number of times prior to Wednesday’s murder. However, there were differences between the passenger and the police description. After the trip terminated at Aurora Village Transit Center along with Ross’s shift, Ross dropped his bus off at North Base and returned immediately in his personal vehicle. Read more.
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Holiday closure reminders
Please note most King County government offices will be closed Wednesday, Dec. 25 for Christmas and Wednesday, Jan. 1 for New Year’s Day.
Metro buses will operate on Sunday schedule. For other transit holiday information, please see Metro holiday schedules. All County transfer stations will be closed Dec. 25 and Jan 1. For garbage collection, please contact your hauler for details. District Court, Superior Court, and the Superior Court Clerk’s office will be closed Dec. 25 and Jan 1.
For all other holiday closures and and service impacts, review the King County website.
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King County Metro and regional transit agencies to help riders celebrate with free fares on New Year’s Eve
Crossposted from the Captain’s Blog
King County Executive Dow Constantine announced today that Metro will join other regional transit agencies to provide free rides this New Year’s Eve. Riders can travel without paying fares on King County Metro, Sound Transit, Community Transit, Everett Transit, Pierce Transit, and the Seattle Streetcar as part of their celebrations.
“The list of transit agencies participating in Fare Free New Year’s Eve continues to grow. From Tacoma to Everett, you can now leave your car at home and celebrate the start of 2025 without worrying about driving,” said Executive Constantine. “No matter where you plan to ring in the new year, we’ll get you there!”
Regional transit agencies will operate on the following schedules to accommodate fare-free New Year’s Eve rides. Read more.
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2024 Recap: A look at our work across King County this year
Executive Constantine highlights progress on building affordable housing, expanding behavioral health crisis care, protecting water quality, improving salmon habitat and more.
1. Helped build 1,248 affordable homes for families, seniors and veterans
King County helped build 1,248 new affordable homes that opened their doors to families, seniors and veterans this year.
We have also created 1,350 units of emergency housing and permanent supportive housing across 16 buildings in seven cities for people experiencing homelessness. More than 900 people are currently living in these Health Through Housing buildings.
2. Continued work to prevent overdoses, save lives and clear paths to recovery
King County and community partners are expanding access to effective, low-barrier treatment. This year we created a 24/7 hotline that provides medication for opioid use disorder, launched mobile treatment programs to reach people where they are and distributed life-saving resources like naloxone and fentanyl test strips. Read more.
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Our top stories and videos for 2024, and a sincere thank you to all King County employees
The county-wide Employee Newsletter, developed by the Department of Human Resources (DHR) Employee Communications Team, shared relevant, essential information to employees throughout 2024. This included employee spotlights, benefits and retirement notices, learning and advancement opportunities, safety information, and other important news.
These stories, and more, were also posted on the KC Employee News blog, the King County Employees YouTube channel, and the King County, WA LinkedIn account.
Thank you, King County employees, for engaging with our stories, providing ones to include, and promoting them to your coworkers. You are the reason we are able to develop interesting, impactful stories that share what it means to be a King County employee, and a resident of our beautiful community.
We look back on the year with fondness, and encourage you to consider sharing story ideas, suggestions, and recommendations with us in the year ahead at KCEmployees@kingcounty.gov.
The 10 most popular stories of 2024
- Do you take Humira? Important medication coverage update
- Get rewarded for referring successful candidates to public safety jobs
- IT Helpdesk “walk-up window” now available at King Street Center
- Meaningful ways to “Thank a veteran for their service”
- Seattle Pride Parade on June 30 and 2024 King County Pride shirts are now available for purchase
- Three things we did to make contracting more equitable
- Shared learning towards a racially just King County
- Employee safety reminders as the fall season begins
- Kaiser to close three Puget Sound-area medical facilities
- Sunsetting the Temporary COVID-19 Personnel Policy
The 5 most popular videos of 2024
- King County Best Run Government: Leading the Way as One Team
- King County Wellness Heroes: Skyler Bridges
- King County Wellness Heroes: Carmen Johnson
- King County Wellness Heroes: Velda Alexander
- King County GIS: Aerial Imagery
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Minimum wage in unincorporated King County increases to $20.29 on Jan. 1
Crossposted from King County Local
On Jan. 1, 2025, the minimum wage will increase in unincorporated King County. The minimum wage is the lowest hourly wage an organization can pay an employee. It will increase from $16.28 an hour to $20.29 an hour, with exceptions for smaller businesses. The increase impacts employees and employers.
The King County Council passed the measure in May 2024 with the intent of providing a living wage in an increasingly expensive area and to keep up with other cities in King County that have already raised the minimum wage. Tukwila, for example, raised the minimum wage to $20.29 in January 2023. Seattle raised the minimum wage to $18.69 that same year. The Washington State minimum wage is currently $16.28. Read more.
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Airport’s Engineering Team volunteers at Food Lifeline
Crossposted from the Plane Talk Newsletter
The King County International Airport’s Engineering Team volunteered at Food Lifeline recently, sorting and re-packing almost 2,800 pounds of food items in a two-hour period. The team dedicated part of their time on the Veterans Day holiday to help the non-profit, located just minutes west of the airport.
Food Lifeline’s mission is feeding people facing hunger today and working to solve hunger for tomorrow. Food justice – the belief that everyone has a human right to equitably access nutritious and culturally relevant food that enables them to thrive – is a foundation of their mission.
Pictured from left to right are Jorge Sanchez Yubero, Eric Miller, Derek Doell, Peter Dumaliang, and Brian Bartley.
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Elections and DAJD: Working together to ensure all eligible voters can make their voices heard
Last autumn, the Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention (DAJD) welcomed staff from King County Elections (KCE) to the Maleng Regional Justice Center and the King County Correctional Facility to assist minimum and medium security jail residents get registered to vote and get their ballots.
This year was the third year staff from KCE have visited both juvenile and adult facilities to share voting information and get eligible voters what they need to make their voices heard. Ensuring both safety and access requires thoughtful partnership between DAJD and KCE. During just this past General Election, that partnership enabled almost 100 voters to register and vote. Read more about this amazing work.
Pictured: Elections workers Said Shekuna (center) and KC Jung (right) assist a resident with registering to vote at the downtown Seattle jail on Sept. 24, 2024.
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2025 King County Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration, Jan. 14
King County employees and community members are invited to join in honoring our nation’s foremost human rights leader and King County’s namesake, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The annual celebration is Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025 at 6 p.m. at the Ikea Performing Arts Center in Renton. Tickets are free.
RSVP for the event at this link.
The theme for the 2025 Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration is Dedication to Community, and the accompanying quote is “All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence. Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?'” by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
If you have any questions, email erwhite@kingcounty.gov.
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‘If a field is starting to produce, it’s because of biosolids’: Farmers credit King County’s Loop biosolids for stronger crop yields, better soil retention
Farmers in Central Washington credit the King County Wastewater Treatment Division for enhancing their drought resilience with Loop biosolids, a natural alternative to artificial fertilizers that require significant energy to produce and often contain harmful chemicals.
Loop transforms wastewater into a nutrient-rich amendment that researchers and soil scientists have found increased crop yields by up to 40%. The long-standing product supports the Wastewater Treatment Division’s mission to put recovered resources to beneficial use
“It’s clear that for decades Loop biosolids have made a positive impact by transforming the landscape of modern agriculture and land restoration,” said Kamuron Gurol, director of the King County Wastewater Treatment Division. “By capturing and beneficially using a valuable resource, we are leading the way toward a more sustainable and climate-resilient future.” Read more.
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