Honoring King County employees who continue to serve our community
This weekend, we will pay tribute to those who served our country in uniform. Veterans Day allows each of us a chance to reflect on the sacrifices these men and women made to keep our nation safe and free. No matter where or when they served, we all owe a debt to our military veterans. As a small token of appreciation, throughout this month King County managers and supervisors will present a special “Veterans” pin to employees who served or are serving in the U.S. armed forces, active duty or reserve. We… Read More
Recovery Place Seattle at Beacon Hill offers integrated treatment options for people with mental health and substance use disorders
Shared from the DCHS Touching Base Newsletter Recovery Place Seattle at Beacon Hill, operated by Valley Cities Behavioral Health Care, will be the first detox facility in King County to offer treatment for co-occurring disorders. The new treatment facility opened its doors for a community open house on Oct. 18 and a media event and tour on Oct. 19. King County contributed $1 million in capital funds for the new detox facility that will offer integrated treatment for mental health and substance use disorder – including opioid addiction – that prioritizes bed space… Read More
Kudos! Graduation day for new Metro drivers!
Crossposted from Metro Matters Congratulations to our 20 newest part-time drivers! They’ve completed training and will be carrying riders starting Monday, Oct. 30. They join the ranks of 2,800 (and growing) part- and full-time professional transit operators who keep our community and economy moving! New members of the King County Metro family: (pictured) David, Charito, Veronica, Najea, Shukri, Amos, Alex, Zachary, Said, Eli, Peter, Jashua, Jeremy, Oliver, Brandi, Va, Teshim, Mamo, Le’Ray and Kulwant. Read more at Metro Matters
General Election ballots due Nov. 7
Don’t forget to vote! Ballots for the General Election are due November 7. Here’s how to return your ballot: By mail: Put a first-class stamp on your ballot and mail it back to King County Elections. Your ballot must be postmarked by Election Day. Ballot drop box: Return your ballot to any one of the 54 ballot drop-off locations; no stamp required. Your ballot must be returned to a ballot drop-off location by 8 p.m. on Election Day. Accessible voting centers: King County accessible voting centers (AVCs) are open to voters who may have difficulty completing their mail… Read More
Going beyond carbon neutral: New solar panels installed in our parks
Crossposted from King County Parks Plog In the fall of 2016, DNRP announced it achieved carbon neutrality a year ahead of scheduleby removing or reducing more GHG emissions than its operations create. But we didn’t stop there! For the past year we have continued to make changes in our department with a green mindset. Recently, two of our parks became a little more sparkly with the welcome addition of more than 300 solar panels. We’re pretty psyched about the project. Check them out! Marymoor Park Last month 112 new solar panels were installed at the North… Read More
A job with a view
This article originally appeared in the Seattle Transit Blog. It features Link operator Kevin Gumke. In a tight workspace with barely enough room to turn around, light rail operators enjoy some of the most unusual views of Seattle from their cabs as they traverse the city. Like all Link operators, Kevin Gumke started out driving for King County Metro Transit, before transferring over to the light rail side in 2010. To qualify, bus drivers must have a squeaky-clean driving record and complete 8 weeks of paid training, starting with a week of classroom instruction. “It’s… Read More
King County Noxious Weed Program launches web pages in four languages!
Crossposted from Noxious Weeds Blog Want to learn more about noxious weeds in Spanish—or know someone who does? How about Vietnamese, Chinese, Russian, or Somali? Well now, King County’s Noxious Weed Control Program has made a start to offer just that. This week, the program launched a revised and expanded version of its Spanish web page, along with four brand new web pages hosting noxious-weed-related resources in an array of languages. You can find these pages gathered under a new “Languages” landing page as well as linked directly in the right column of the noxious… Read More
eCourt: Case filing made easy
With over 200,000 case filings a year, King County District Court clerks processed 2,429,000 pieces of paper in one year alone using a 1980’s software system jokingly referred to as the ‘black screen of death’. In order to improve workflow efficiency, expedite cases and reduce their carbon footprint, District Court is launching eCourt, a new electronic case management system that offers new functionality County employees and residents will enjoy, electronic filing being one of them. “Not only the Court is reducing its carbon footprint, we’re helping other people reduce their carbon footprint on… Read More
King County Executive, Governor celebrate Colman Dock project and our future home
Crossposted from the Captain’s Blog As crews continue to build King County Water Taxi’s future home, Executive Dow Constantine, Gov. Jay Inslee and other transportation leaders took time last week to celebrate the progress of the Seattle Multimodal Terminal at Colman Dock Project. The Executive was one of the keynote speakers at a celebration inside Colman Dock, the state’s busiest terminal, which overlooks the site of the Water Taxi’s future Passenger Only Ferry (POF) facility. Executive Constantine – who has long made improving mobility throughout the region one of his priorities –… Read More
2017 Annual Giving Drive: Women
Crossposted from KC Employee Giving King County’s Employee Giving Program’s (EGP) Annual Giving Drive provides over 60 prescreened nonprofit organizations whose primary category of service is promoting equity, safe-space, and programs that are important to and for women. Last year, donations by King County employees doubled to this category of service. This response was a powerful example of the collective impact of individuals that can be made through the Employee Giving Program. Read more at KC Employee Giving
Employee News 