Growing from a decade of success, King County’s updated Local Food Initiative has a broader vision, addressing hunger relief, access to farmland, and climate resiliency

King County is updating its Local Food Initiative to address some of the most urgent challenges facing the local food economy, including access to hunger relief, rising farmland cost, a lack of food distribution infrastructure, and increasing threats from climate change. Since launching in 2015, the initiative has guided King County’s efforts to expand access to farmland for farmers, improve the farm-to-market pipeline to get more locally grown food to consumers, and ease access to healthy, affordable food in low-income communities. Read more.

Holiday travel? Metro will help you get there

Crossposted from Metro Matters The holidays are coming! Whether you are going to holiday events, shopping or celebrating with friends and family, it’s a great time to explore your transit options. We have some schedule adjustments to bus, water taxi and other services during the upcoming holidays and sharing them here to help you more easily make travel plans. Tips for holiday travel How do I pay my fare? Tap your ORCA card, show your Transit Go Ticket or tap your Android Google Pay app. Insert correct amount of cash into the farebox. Link tickets… Read More

Keep food poisoning off the menu this holiday season

Crossposted from Public Health Insider It’s the holiday season, and that means FOOD! Whether you’re hosting a big group or bringing your famous side dish to a gathering, you want to make sure your food is both delicious and safe. While anyone can get a foodborne illness, and symptoms like diarrhea and vomiting are never pleasant, foodborne illnesses are most dangerous for children, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems. Read more.

Spend your remaining FSA funds

Do you have money left in your Flexible Spending Account (FSA)? To check the balance of your Health Care or Day Care FSA, go to Navia Benefits and sign in to your account. Expenses must be incurred by Dec. 31, 2025, and submitted for reimbursement by March 31, 2026. Please see details below. Health Care FSAs The Health Care FSA allows you to carry over up to $660 of unused funds from your 2025 Health Care FSA for use in 2026. Any other remaining funds are forfeited. You can use your Health Care FSA funds to… Read More

Honoring Native American Heritage Month

Crossposted from Metro Matters Each November, Native American Heritage Month invites us to honor the history, cultures, and enduring contributions of Native peoples throughout our region and across the nation. At Metro, this is also a time to reflect on how our work connects to the values of stewardship, respect, and community—values long upheld by the Indigenous peoples of this land. We acknowledge that Metro operates on the ancestral lands of the Muckleshoot, Snoqualmie, Puyallup, Tulalip, Suquamish, Coast Salish Tribes, and the Duwamish people. These communities have cared for the land and… Read More

Metro General Manager Michelle Allison named Woman of Influence

Crossposted from Metro Matters The Puget Sound Business Journal honored King County Metro General Manager Michelle Allison with a Woman of Influence award, recognizing a leader whose clarity of purpose, steady approach, and commitment to community are transforming how our region moves. The award was given at a ceremony on Wednesday night in Seattle. “She is only the second woman to lead Metro, and her example is paving the way for future generations of women in public service,” said King County Executive Shannon Braddock. Every weekday, Metro delivers more than 300,000 rides. That number… Read More

Big day for small runway: 14L/32R reopens after rehabilitation project

Crossposted from the DES Express Before dawn on Oct. 30, promptly at 7 a.m., Runway 14L/32R at King County International Airport-Boeing Field (KCIA) officially reopened for flight operations. Moments later, BETA Technologies’ ALIA electric aircraft quietly took off from the runway (watch a video of the flight), the first plane to do so. Later, airport tenants, guests and employees celebrated the reopening of the small utility runway at a brief gathering over the lunch hour outside the terminal, with Mount Rainier in the background. “This is celebrating the history of Boeing Field,”… Read More

Emergency exercise tests communications ahead of World Cup

Crossposted from the DES Express For the first time, Emergency Management held a drill called a Joint Information Center/Joint Information System exercise involving other local governments and non-profit organizations in addition to the usual King County agencies. A total of 33 people participated, with 13 of those in person and 20 online. They hailed from as far south as Clark County and as far north as Vancouver, Canada. Another eight people were involved in exercise coordination. “This exercise was a great opportunity to have our partners test the communications plans and procedures… Read More

King County Wins 2025 Geospatial Professional Network Award for Innovative AI-GIS System

Crossposted from GIS & You King County is proud to have been honored with the 2025 Exemplary Systems in Geospatial (ESIG) Award in the Single Process Systems category by the Geospatial Professional Network (GPN, formerly URISA). This recognition honors our innovative AI-GIS Strengthened State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Response Letter Generator, a novel system that integrates geographic information systems (GIS) with generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) to advance health equity across King County. Read more.

Executive Braddock on adoption of $20 billion budget for 2026-27 – A reflection of our community’s priorities

King County Executive Shannon Braddock issued the following statement after the King County Council passed a $20 billion biennial budget that adopts major components of her 200-Day Plan and reflects key investments in public safety, housing and homelessness, and behavioral health while preparing for future federal funding uncertainties. “This budget reflects King County’s values, which means delivering a balanced plan that protects essential services, increases efficiency, and reinvests in programs that most benefit our residents. I would like to thank the King County Council for their hard work in passing the budget,… Read More