2019 Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration, Jan. 10
Please join us in honoring our nation’s foremost human rights leader and our County’s namesake, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The theme for this year is “I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality.” This year’s keynote speaker is Ijeoma Oluo, local New York Times bestselling author of “So You Want To Talk About Race.” The celebration will take place Thursday, January 10 from noon to 1 p.m at The Sanctuary Seattle, located at 811 Fifth Avenue, Seattle, WA 98104. Program includes music, spoken word, and comments from King County Executive Dow Constantine. For more… Read More
Metro Transit operator shares experience in KUOW story
King County bus operator Nathan Vass was profiled in a recent KUOW article. It focused on his experiences driving a bus throughout different parts of Seattle and his community engagement work as a filmmaker, writer and photographer. The article quotes Nathan saying: “If I say hi to people on the 7, they will say something in response. I don’t drive that route because it’s more cool, or more dangerous, or something like that, but because the people are more friendly. If I’m going to spend eight hours in one neighborhood, I want… Read More
Saving SoundGuardian
Crossposted from the Downstream Blog On the night of Saturday, Nov. 10, a four-alarm fire started at a lumberyard right across from the King County Environmental Lab. The fire was the largest Seattle has seen since 2010 with flames shooting over 100 feet into the air, according to the Seattle Fire Department blog. In the end, the fire that burned two buildings to the ground and damaged three others was determined to be arson. That night, in addition to the 142 firefighters that helped fight the fire, King County employees were coordinating their own… Read More
King County partner named best cat café in America
RASKC partner Seattle Meowtropolitan was named “Best Cat Café in America” by a national online news magazine, Hoodline. The café in Wallingford was recognized for its work to find new homes for cats, as well as its financial contributions to animal welfare organizations. The ranking was also based on its Yelp reviews, which are some of the highest in the nation. RASKC shared the honors on its social media channels, and the Executive also shared the good news with his social followers, saying, “One of the ways we increased the pet adoption rate by a record… Read More
Plan ahead, expect delays during SR 99 closure beginning Jan. 11, 2019
Dear fellow King County employee, Starting January 11, 2019, after the evening commute, the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) will close SR 99 through downtown Seattle for approximately three weeks, and permanently close the SR 99 Viaduct. Additional ramp closures mean this work could create up to six weeks of traffic disruption. No matter how you commute, or where from, you should expect significant delays during these closures and be prepared for crowded buses, trains, water taxis, and light rail. All buses coming into or through downtown Seattle will face delays…. Read More
Pet of the Week: Kingston
Crossposted from Tails from RASKC This regal-looking fellow is Kingston, our Pet of the Week! Kingston is a German Shepherd/Australian Shepherd mix who is smart, playful, and protective of his people. Since he’s so spirited and fun-loving, he’s one of our “Rambunctious Red” pets. Read more at Tails from RASKC
Inmate program provides opportunity and education
The Maleng Regional Justice Center’s Janitorial Certificate Program was recently featured on KING5 News. A story highlighting the program aired on Nov. 2 that featured how the custodial program sparks positive change for inmates. Through an interview with Renton Technical College instructor Martin Douthit and current students, the video shows how programs like this provide people a second chance. View the below or at this link.
Executive meets with employees from Native American Leadership Council
King County Executive Dow Constantine recently met with employees from the County’s Native American Leadership Council (NALC) to learn about their experiences as employees, what the County can do to bring more Native American employees into its workforce and help them advance, and how the County can be more effective in serving Native people in local communities. At his November 19 Employee Listening Session, Executive Constantine discussed a wide range of issues with Tristen Gardner from the Local Hazardous Waste Management Program, Andy Boland from Parks Division, Natasha Frazier from the Department… Read More
Take the King County Parks and Trails User Survey!
What do you think of King County Parks such as Cougar Mountain, Marymoor Park or the Sammamish River Trail? As part of our commitment to improving visitor experience, King County Parks is looking for visitor opinions – what’s great about King County’s parks, trails, and natural areas, and what could be improved to make them even better. Take our survey to provide feedback! The survey will be open until Dec. 7. Upon completing the survey, respondents can leave their email addresses to be entered in a drawing to win two tickets to a concert at… Read More
If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like driving a 60-foot-long articulated Metro bus, you’re not alone
Crossposted from Metro Matters King County Metro’s 3,000 drivers make it look easy. They’re master curb huggers and their turning radius down sometimes busy and narrow streets in Seattle and across King County is on point! To get a better sense of the widths and turning radius of buses, the team at the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) got together with Metro’s safety and training sections to go for a spin. Read more here or watch the video below.
Employee News 