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Holiday travel? Metro will help you get there
Emergency exercise tests communications ahead of World Cup
King County Wins 2025 Geospatial Professional Network Award for Innovative AI-GIS System
Recognizing the service of Metro veterans
News
Mobile Identification helps law enforcement on the go
What does an officer do when a suspect will not cooperate and provide his or her name? One solution is to use a new tool called Mobile Identification. Mobile ID is a handheld fingerprint device paired with software that gives the officer the ability to search two fingerprints against the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) and receive results in minutes. Devices do not save data; fingerprints are searched against prints on file and are not stored in the database. “The Sheriff’s Office is very excited to be using Mobile ID,” King County Sheriff John… Read More
Delivering technology solutions with architectural precision
What does an IT Business Analyst have in common with an architect? According to Ina Percival, a senior Business Analyst with King County Information Technology, it comes down to the planning. “It’s probably not the best idea to build a house without an architect, and in the same way, we shouldn’t tackle an IT project without the help of a Business Analyst,” Percival said. KCIT Junior and Senior Business Analysts are now available to provide services Countywide on IT projects. If a department or agency knows there’s an upcoming IT or technology… Read More
Fighting truancy to keep kids out of court system
In Washington State, 75 percent of prison inmates do not have a high school diploma. That’s why Stephanie Sato, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney and Senior Specialist in Truancy Intervention, is passionate about education. “Basically education re-engagement is crime prevention. When I worked in our juvenile division I got to see it for myself. The students skipping school—they’re not bad kids—maybe there are problems at home. But, if you don’t catch truancy early, they fall behind,” Sato said. “It spirals out of control into criminal activity, and I don’t know if the kids even… Read More
Five Questions with Meredith Li-Vollmer, Risk Communication Specialist, Public Health – Seattle & King County
1, What is Risk Communications? Risk communications involves providing information and engaging audiences about issues of concern or perceived threats in ways that will help people cope, make informed decisions, and understand their risks. This means we need to show empathy for what people are experiencing, be as open and transparent as we can about what we’re doing and why, and start communicating as soon as possible. 2. What do you do as Risk Communication Specialist for Public Health? I support the health department’s programs that work with disease outbreaks and other health… Read More
Goat Hill gears up for spring gardening
Every morning on his way to work, Dan Malone stops by King County’s Goat Hill Garden for a few minutes to rip up some weeds and make sure plants are growing as they should. Malone and fellow Goat Hill Garden Coordinator Heather Whitten, along with other King County employee-volunteers, tend and manage garden maintenance and growth on their lunch breaks and before and after work at the garden located across from the Chinook Building in downtown Seattle. Malone, a new Goat Hill Garden Coordinator, and Whitten, a veteran coordinator, have a few… Read More
Employee finds new ways to deliver energy and cost savings
Ben Rupert has been the Energy Manager in King County’s Facilities Management Division (FMD) for a little over a year but has already made significant contributions to the County’s reduction targets for energy use and operating costs in its facilities. King County is on track to meet its 2015 goal of reducing energy use in its facilities by 15 percent over the baseline 2007 usage. For more than two years, the County has been meeting its goal of generating the equivalent of 50 percent of county government energy needs through renewable resources. At… Read More
New approach to youth who commit violence in the home
The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office (PAO), in partnership with King County Superior Court and the King County Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention, plans to launch FIRS (Family Intervention and Restorative Services), a new juvenile diversion program geared to provide services to families who are struggling with domestic violence (DV). Unlike adult court, juvenile DV rarely involves intimate partner violence. Instead, the vast majority of cases in juvenile court involve youth acting out against their parents or siblings at a misdemeanor level. Many of these youth struggle with substance abuse and… Read More
Who is your favorite nonprofit?
If your favorite nonprofit wasn’t in last year’s Annual Giving Drive, now is the time to make sure they get in for this year. All nonprofits that turn in a complete, on-time application by April 30, 2015, and meet all of the eligibility requirements, can participate in the upcoming 2015 Annual Giving Drive and be eligible to receive payroll and time donations. “By being in the program nonprofits gain exposure and access to 13,000+ King County employees, payroll donations, which statistically are three to six times larger than one-time check gifts because… Read More
Public safety employees reach out to the community to build trust
To build trust between law enforcement and Hispanic community in Shoreline and Lake Forest Park, Sheriff’s Office Community Service Officer Dahlia Corona started a workshop series called “Nurturing Trust, With Family, With Community – Padres Unidos-Familias Seguras.” “You’ll find that when there is a language barrier or a cultural barrier then there’s a disconnect between the police and the community,” Corona said. The workshops focus on topics such as positive discipline, domestic violence and child abuse, bullying, drug prevention and leadership in the community, and the role that law enforcement plays in… Read More
Five Questions with Debra Baker, ROYAL Project Manager, Department of Public Defense
1. Why did you choose Public Defense as a career? I began working in public defense right out of high school. As a young person I endured a lot challenges and knew that I couldn’t go to college right away. That’s when I stepped into the door of a public defense office – TDA (The Defender Association). I started there as a receptionist and went to school along the way. I fell in love with the work and chose over the years to remain in the work. Public defenders then were my… Read More
Marine employees rescue kayaker off Alki Point
Employees from the Department of Transportation’s Marine Division recently rescued a capsized kayaker in the water about a mile off Alki Point, bringing him to safety aboard their Vashon Island ferry. On Friday, March 13, 2015, Captain Frank Massaro and Deckhands Joe Chrisman and Scott Denhart, were operating the M/V Melissa Ann serving the Vashon Island route. After departing Vashon Island at approximately 5:58 p.m. bound for Seattle, the crew on the bridge noticed something in the water approximately one-half to three-quarter miles away. They slowed the vessel and looked through the… Read More
Singing employee brings unique voice to construction projects
When Patty Overby isn’t managing construction projects, she’s often singing in an a capella, barbershop chorus. “I think it makes you a better rounded person – for me it’s a big stress reducer and it’s a positive influence. It’s another opportunity to meet new people who are doing different things,” Overby said. A Project Manager in King County’s Department of Transportation, Design and Construction Section, Overby has worked at the County for more than 35 years. Overby has been singing all her life, but six years ago she decided to give the… Read More
Tony Wright appointed Director of Facilities Management Division
Tony Wright has been selected as the new Director of King County’s Facilities Management Division (FMD). FMD is charged with providing clean, safe, secure, environmentally sustainable and cost-effective facilities for King County and the public. FMD is also responsible for designing and managing capital construction projects that are responsive to customer needs. Wright has served as interim director of FMD since October and has demonstrated strong technical knowledge, professionalism and innovative leadership during that time. He joined King County in May 2014 and was responsible for managing high-profile, complex projects involving multiple King… Read More
Kudos! Michael Gish, Metro Link Light Rail Operator
This is a commendation for the motorman on a Link Light Rail train and the security personnel at Westlake Station. The particular train arrived northbound at Westlake Station at about 11:20 PM on January 30 and left southbound at about 1:40. After leaving the station and heading to my apartment on First Hill, I realized after a couple of blocks that I had left my backpack on the train, which also had the keys to my apartment. I hurried back to the station and contacted security. They outlined the “lost and found”… Read More
Five Questions with Jim Chan, Assistant Director for Permitting, Department of Permitting and Environmental Review
1. What was your first role at King County? I was hired as a summer intern in my junior year at the University of Washington, working for the Building and Land Use Department as an Engineer Assistant. I reviewed residential building permit applications, drove throughout the county visiting development sites and met with property owners and consultants. 2. Why did you choose King County as an employer? While a student at the UW, I worked for a professor making $4.50 an hour counting cars on overpasses. The Building and Land Use Department was… Read More
ADR launches Conflict Clinic Online
Got conflict in your workplace? The King County Office of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) recently launched the Conflict Clinic blog to help you work through it. They post weekly tips and tools for shifting destructive conflict into a creative force for stronger relationships and better results. “Instead of avoiding difficult conversations for fear things will just get worse, or lashing out at others, you can read the blog for practical approaches to engage others in conversations that matter,” said Doug Nathan, a mediator with ADR and a writer and editor for the… Read More
Kudos! Kyle M. Gulke, Metro Transit Operator
Good Morning, This message is overdue by a couple of weeks, and I apologize. But I want to make sure that this bus driver gets kudos. This happened on January 30th, 2015. His name is Kyle, and he was driving bus number 9540z (not sure if there was a z on the end of that number or if I accidentally hit it when putting it in my phone). It was the 522 bus at 7:58am south bound on the Bothell Way and 153rd St in Lake Forest Park stop. This was a… Read More
Trailblazing carpenter wants more women to follow in her footsteps
When Linda Romanovitch joined King County 30 years ago she didn’t consider herself a trailblazer but she unwittingly broke through a barrier that would make it easier for other women to follow in her footsteps. Linda became King County’s first female carpenter on December 4, 1984. Her interest in carpentry grew while helping her grandfather, also a carpenter, complete odd jobs. At 22 she joined an organization in Seattle that helped women and minorities become successful in the trades and she completed a six-week pre-apprenticeship. She went on to complete a full… Read More
Official launch of KCWeb & roadshow – Feb. 26, 2015
King County’s new KCWeb Intranet will officially launch on Thursday, Feb. 26, and we will be celebrating with a traveling roadshow, an online treasure hunt, prizes and giveaways to help you get to know your new one-stop shop for employee news, information and the tools you use every day. Join us from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 26, for live demonstrations of the new KCWeb, tips and giveaways in: The Chinook Building lobby King Street Center lobby Administration Building 5th floor lobby. If you can’t make it to one of the… Read More
Kent Public Health is a design winner
The new Kent Public Health Center received a national design award in the 2014 International Interior Design Association Healthcare Interior Design Competition. The IIDA presented nine awards, including projects at major institutions in New York City, Cincinnati and Los Angeles. Designed by Buffalo Design, in collaboration with Public Health an the Facilities Management Division (FMD), the Kent project was the only winner in the Northwest. In addition to winning the IIDA award, it’s important to note that this and other projects, managed by Public Health and FMD, achieved goals set forth by the… Read More
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