Executive meets with employees working in science at latest Listening Session
King County has hundreds of employees working in the sciences on some of our region’s biggest challenges, from protecting fish habitat to helping people manage and overcome diseases, to keeping waterways clean, and King County Executive Dow Constantine recently met with six of them to learn more about their work and experiences. At his August 6 Employee Listening Session, Executive Constantine had a wide-ranging conversation with Lara Whitely Binder, Climate Preparedness Specialist from the Department of Natural Resources and Parks (DNRP); Ecotoxicologist Carly Greyell and Water Quality Planner Josh Kubo from Water… Read More
King County pilots innovative solutions for shelter, permanent housing
The King County Department of Community and Human Services placed an order for 29 modular units to house approximately 100 people, the County’s first acquisition of modular housing to provide affordable, mobile units that can be placed into service much faster than units built by traditional construction. The County is also partnering with the City of Shoreline on a supportive housing project for 80-100 people that proposes to model modular construction for permanent affordable housing development. Modular is a type of housing in which the components are manufactured elsewhere and then assembled… Read More
Increasing home-visiting services so more parents and caregivers have the support they need
A wide range of support services for expectant mothers, parents, and caregivers – funded by Executive Dow Constantine’s Best Starts for Kids initiative – are increasing parents’ knowledge and confidence, strengthening parent-child bonding, and improving school readiness throughout King County. The services – delivered during home visits by community-based partners – provide parents and caregivers with support for a healthy pregnancy, free screenings for developmental milestones, information on breastfeeding, referrals to treatment for maternal depression, models for healthy parent-child interactions, and more. “We created and strengthened partnerships that provide parents and caregivers… Read More
King County uses ACS data to help older Americans with housing affordability
King County uses the American Community Survey data in many ways to support our residents. The following story from King County Assessor John Wilson was featured in the ACS User Data group; which includes users from cities and counties around the nation. This story was put together by the assessor’s office, the Executive Office, and Public Health staff; including Chandler Felt and Susan Kinne. When I became King County Assessor in 2016, real estate values had been jumping at a double-digit pace annually and housing affordability was headed towards a crisis level—especially… Read More
Teams trying to save ailing orca practice feeding live fish off Lummi Nation boat and SoundGuardian
The King County SoundGuardian was featured in a recent article by the Associated Press, highlighting its participation in efforts to save a sick orca whale in Puget Sound. Teams taking drastic measures to save a young, ailing killer whale loaded up two boats with fat live salmon as the sun rose Friday and rushed to waters off Washington state’s San Juan Island, preparing if needed to test-feed the critically endangered orca a day after injecting it with medicine. By early afternoon, it appeared the 3½-year-old female orca called J50 was too far north… Read More
The importance of STEM
KCIT Chief Information Officer Tanya Hannah delivered a baccalaureate address July 25 to graduates and students attending Goodwill Missionary Baptist Church in Seattle. Hannah urged the young people to consider careers in STEM fields, noting that artists, geographers and writers can combine technology with their passions for well-paying, absorbing careers. “It’s all part of STEM. STEM careers offer fun, compelling, important work,” Hannah said. “It’s work that pays well. It’s work that can change the world. And it’s time people of color take their rightful place at the technology table to help… Read More
King County launches SoundGuardian to join emergency Puget Sound orca recovery effort
On the morning of Aug. 5, King County’s research vessel, SoundGuardian, departed its Seattle homeport on its way to northern Puget Sound to take part in an emergency effort to save ailing members of the endangered resident orca population. “Orcas are the Salish Sea’s most iconic residents, and we all share the responsibility of protecting these beloved animals,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine. “We are doing whatever we can to help the orca now, and fulfill long-term goals to improve the health of local waterways and the Salish Sea.” Operating with… Read More
Funding victory gets staff back to doing what they do best
When funding for a major five-year study of Public Health’s pioneering FLASH sexual health education program was restored last week, employees who work on the program took a collective sigh of relief. “We were starting our third year of the project when we received notification that our study, which is funded by the Office of Adolescent Health’s Teen Pregnancy Prevention (TPP) Program, was going to be terminated two years early, so we weren’t going to have the final two years of our funding to complete the study,” Andrea Gerber, Health Educator and… Read More
Get to know Whitney Abrams, Chief People Officer
Executive Constantine recently launched a Get to know the Senior Leadership Team video series with a video featuring Chief Performance Officer Gary Kurihara. In this second video, we spotlight Chief People Officer Whitney Abrams, what she is working on, and what brought her to King County. Click the image above to watch the video. If you missed Gary’s video you can catch it here, and look for the full series of videos over the next couple of months as we feature Budget Director Dwight Dively, Chief of Staff Rachel Smith and Chief… Read More
With investments by Amazon and City of Seattle, King County Metro will offer more frequent, reliable service on some of its most popular routes
King County Metro will offer more frequent and reliable bus service on some of its most popular routes beginning this fall thanks to significant investments by Amazon and the City of Seattle. Amazon’s investment will provide 22 additional weekday trips for two years across some of Metro’s busiest routes serving West Seattle, Shoreline, Ballard, and Capitol Hill. The additional service provides room for roughly 1,700 weekday boardings, and includes the RapidRide E Line and C Line, and Routes 8, 40, 62, and 63. The additional service hours will be part of Metro’s… Read More
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