Thousands of people throughout South King County ride public transit every day. Many of these riders do not own cars and depend upon buses and trains to get to work and school, and to access essential goods and services such as groceries and healthcare.
For 23 years I have been privileged to represent – at three levels of government – the interests of South King County. As someone who has spent her entire life in South King County, I have witnessed first-hand the significant change socially, culturally, and economically. Twenty years ago, the population in South King County was approximately 448, 500. Since then, our population has soared to over 660,000 people –a third of King County’s 2 million total population.
On June 16 the Regional Transit Committee, a committee composed of elected leaders from across King County, unanimously voted to approve a new vision for our Metro Transit bus system by adopting a the Strategic Plan for Public Transportation 2011-2021. The plan is the first of its kind in the nation, guiding where and how Metro delivers transit service to you and other King County residents for the next decade.
Summer is almost here! The kids are out of school, adults are on vacation and it’s time for outdoor activities like riding bikes and swimming at the lake. However, summer is also the time when our safety is most at risk.
Back in 1990, the Food and Drug Administration required major food producers to label their packages with calorie, fat, carbohydrate and other nutritional information. For many of us, this changed the way we bought groceries. In fact, studies show that 75 percent of people read these labels and, of them, 61 percent changed their purchases based on the information they read.
If you’re like me, you probably still have questions about the federal healthcare reform bill. Through the media, many of us have heard that pre-existing conditions no longer prevent people from getting or keeping health insurance. Still others may be aware that their children under 26 are now eligible to be covered under their health insurance plan, and that it closes the Medicare Part D “donut hole” for seniors.
Three hundred and two people were recorded as living in King County in 1860. That’s hard to believe when you drive around the county today.
Complex social problems, such as violence and homelessness, continue to challenge us. Our Valley communities are being threatened with the…
Over the past year local governments faced some of the biggest challenges of our lifetime – the recession, pandemic flu,…
Did you know that more than 50,000 individuals in King County do not have a bank account? Or that nearly…
With record temperatures sweeping the region, it’s hard to imagine winter is just around the corner. Many of us are…
