Dear District 2 Friends and Neighbors:

After burning the midnight oil to finish the 2005 King County Budget before Thanksgiving, the Council is quietly finishing up business through the month of December.

I am committed to being your most accessible elected official. Even though it’s getting colder, I’m still knocking on doors to bring the Council directly to you. My office has visited over 3,300 homes already this year. I’m also still meeting constituents for coffee at local coffee shops in the district.

I hope you enjoy District 2 E-News. Please contact me with any comments or if you would like to meet for coffee. To unsubscribe, please see directions at the end of this message.

Bipartisan 2005 Budget Passed Unanimously

The Council recently passed the 2005 King County budget. I am particularly proud of the bipartisan 13-0 vote.

My budget priorities were ensuring adequate funding for transportation, the environment, human services, and District 2 organizations and projects. I worked hard to maintain the current levels of funding for health and human services. I also opposed the proposed Metro Transit bus fare increase that would have adversely impacted seniors, youth, and the disabled. Fortunately, the Council rejected that fare increase.

This budget ensured funding for important District 2 programs. My staff and I volunteered at several of these organizations this year and discovered first-hand the positive impact they have on our community.
• Thornton Creek: $200,000 to acquire open space along Thornton Creek
• Burke-Gilman Trail: $1.2 million to redevelop the Burke-Gilman Trail
• Ryther Child Center: $25,000 to support the Sexually Aggressive Youth Therapists Program at Ryther Child Center in Lake City
• North Helpline: $20,000 to assist the Lake City Food Bank, operated by North Helpline, to provide food and emergency assistance
• Wallingford Community Senior Center: $25,000 to secure a private space for health screenings, counseling, and legal advice to independent seniors
• University Playground Park: $25,000 to revitalize the 93 year-old historic University Playground Park

My upcoming print newsletter focuses on the budget and will be in mailboxes soon. If you do not receive a copy, please visit my website to view the newsletter electronically or contact my office at (206) 296-1002 and we will mail you one. Please let me know if you have any questions about the budget process.

Read my op-ed in the North Seattle Herald-Outlook:
King County Budget Revenue Shortfall Reduced – November 10, 2004

Council Reduction Next Year

The King County Council will reduce from 13 to 9 members in 2005. King County voters approved a measure to reduce the Council in the 2004 General Election. Council district lines will be redrawn based on population. Each of the districts will have an election in 2005, with some Councilmembers potentially running against each other.

Two citizens from each party were selected by the Council to serve on a Redistricting Committee to perform this task: Steve Dennis of Bellevue, Joann Francis of Seattle, J. Michael Mann of Seattle, and Skip Rowley of Sammamish. The Redistricting Committee will select another citizen to serve as chair and hire a District Master to assist with population data and map design.

New district lines are scheduled to be drawn by January 15, 2005. Under state law and the County charter, the Districting Committee must use the most recent U.S. Census to draw new district lines. There will be opportunities for public input and I will send out information and meeting dates when they are available. You can visit the Redistricting website for more information.

Conservation Futures Committee Opening

I am looking for an interested District 2 resident to serve on the Conservation Futures Citizen Oversight Committee. Conservation Futures is a voter-approved levy fund dedicated to open space preservation. A Citizen Oversight Committee makes recommendations to the Council on important regional open space acquisitions. The Council dispersed over $8.8 million of dedicated funds for 2005, including funding for Thornton Creek.

Please email your resume and letter of interest by December 15, 2004. Contact my office at (206) 296-1002 if you have any questions.

In the Community

Providence House: No Sex Offender House in Wallingford

On October 29, I learned that Providence House, a faith-based nonprofit organization planned to open a transitional sex offender home in Wallingford. Since Providence House is a private organization and receives no public funds, the State, County, and City had no say in the placement of this facility.

I contacted the organization and met with Providence House representatives early the next week. I was particularly concerned about the placement of the facility and the lack of community notification. My staff and I attended the packed community meeting called by Providence House the following day. A lot of questions went unanswered and I received a great response from community members concerned that their comments were not getting across to Providence House board members. To help resolve these issues, I organized a meeting between a few Wallingford community members and Providence House board members.

In mid-November, Providence House announced that they will not be placing a sex offender transitional home in Wallingford. Providence House notified their landlord that they will not keep their lease. While I believe that Providence House had noble intentions, I think this was the right decision for the community. In my conversations with Providence House representatives, I was told that the information provided by the community was the "primary reason" for their decision.

Thank you to the five community members who participated in the meeting I organized: Chris White, Jeff Johnson, Linda Mason-Wilgis, Ed Kuh, and Sara MacKenzie. It is obvious from the final outcome of this issue that they were persuasive advocates for the Wallingford community.

Volunteering at Operation School Bell

A few weeks ago, my staff and I volunteered at Operation School Bell in Wallingford. Operation School Bell, sponsored by the Assistance League of Seattle, is located in a house at 1415 N.E. 45th Street and assists low-income children in the Seattle School District grades K-5 with new clothing. Every week, school children visit the house to select new clothes and hygiene kits.

We spent the morning working one-one-one with kids, picking out jackets, jeans, shirts, and hats, all new unused clothing. It was a heart-warming experience. To volunteer or contribute, please contact (206) 547-4680 or alofseattle@aol.com.

Each month, my staff and I volunteer at a different District 2 organization—serving lunch at senior centers, making dinner at shelters, and cleaning-up local parks. If you know of an organization that can use our time, please contact my office.

Thornton Creek Benefit

Thornton Creek Alliance will host a special night of jazz to help support restoration projects throughout the watershed. Javatown Jazz Quartet and Jake Bergevin will perform.

Friday, December 3— 8:00 p.m.
Berkshire Grill at the Ramada Inn
2132 North Northgate Way
$15.00 per person – all proceeds go to Thornton Creek Alliance

Thornton Creek Alliance is a grassroots, non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and restoring the ecological balance in the Thornton Creek watershed. For more information, please contact (206) 367-4635.

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Phone: (206) 296-1002 | Fax: (206) 296-0198 | TTY/TDD: (206) 296-1024 | Toll Free: (800) 325-6165
Mailing Address: King County Courthouse, 516 Third Avenue, Room 1200, Seattle, WA 98104-3272