 Good evening, Kent,
Last night, we remembered 12-year-old Gabriel Coury. The family was joined by the Kent Little League, his teammates, neighbors, and I at the Ryan Brunner Playfield where we honored him with a candlelight vigil. The loss of this young man is felt deeply through our community.
It's moments like this where we need to remember to look out for one another and prevent the needless tragedies that can result from impaired driving. Together, we can keep our roads safe and protect the well-being of our community. Thank you for being responsible, and let's continue to make Kent a place we are all proud to call home.
Watch the story Fox 13 Seattle reported last night.
Stay safe and take care.
Dana Ralph, Kent Mayor
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Each year, Green River College hosts a group of young women from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan for a summer study- Study of the United States Institute on Women's Leadership.
Wednesday morning, they came down to Riverview Park and helped with habitat restoration. I had the chance to welcome them and talk about salmon side channels, plantings and the importance of shade for the river, and the integration of recreation and habitat.
The Green River Coalition and Kent Parks planned and facilitated the visit for the SUSI cohort.
Thank you to the SUSI students, Green River Coalition and Margaret from our Parks Department for all the great work!
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Thank you Kent Lions Club for another fabolous Cornucopia Days!
Council President Boyce and I met these great students before the parade. Young Mariners is a youth program for boys and girls, ages eight through high school, focused on leadership, citizenship through community service, self-discipline, and living a healthy, drug-free lifestyle.
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On Saturday, I stopped by the annual Mela Mawan Dhiyan Da Women's Festival at accesso ShoWare Center. The festival is a wonderful celebration focused on empowering women in the Sikh, Punjabi and South Asian communities in Washington.
Thank you Ranjit and Satwinder for always including me in this beautiful event.
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National Night Out
National Night Out is August 1!
Listen to me and Chief Padilla talk about how NNO started, and what we all look forward to each year on a past episode of KentNow!
This event is all about bringing your neighbors together to enjoy food, music and fun! It is a proven crime prevention tool when we know our neighbors and watch out for each other. Send the fillable invite on the webpage to all your neighbors.
Register your neighborhood now! The deadline is Wednesday, July 26.
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Kent 101 is an eight-week civics course that deepens understanding and knowledge about local government and how it operates.
The course is designed to educate, inform and build experience for residents, businesses and students.
Classes start September 14, 2023.
Registration is now open and you can sign up here.
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Kent Comprehensive Plan
Ever wonder what Kent would look like over the next 20 years?
The Kent Comprehensive Plan is the city’s long-term strategy to guide decisions on where we locate housing and jobs. It also helps inform investments in transportation, utilities, parks, and other public amenities that impact daily life.
We invite everyone who lives, works, or visits and spends time in Kent to participate in a special meeting and interactive workshop called “Game of Jobs and Homes: Planning Our Future Together." RSVP with a free ticket on Eventbrite.
📅July 24
⌚3 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
📅July 25
⌚10 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
📅July 25
⌚6 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Kent City Council
Here's the recap on what the Kent City Council has been working on! It was a busy week with lots of important items to attend to.
     You can also see the full meeting agendas, minutes and livestream recordings on our website.
As a reminder, the council has switched back to the Committee of the Whole format, so business that was previously discussed at meetings throughout the week is back to being before our regularly scheduled Workshop and council meetings.
Cruisin' Kent Car Show
 The Cruisin' Kent Car Show is back for it's 5th year at Kent Station next month! Bring the family down for lunch, dance to the live DJ and win prizes!
We are excited to partner with Kent Station for this fun and free event! Don't forget to pick up your 50/50 ticket where the profits will be donated to the Green River College VET fund. Here's where you can register your car and get all the information!
📆 Sunday, August 27
⌚ 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.
📍 Kent Station
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At City Council on Tuesday, I proclaimed the month of July as Parks and Recreation Month.
To accept the proclamation was Kent Parks Deputy Director Brian Levenhagen.
These programs are vitally important to establishing and maintaining the quality of life in Kent.
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At this week's city council meeting, I presented Chief Padilla with a proclamation for National Night Out on August 1.
We're expecting dozens of Kent neighborhoods to participate, and representatives from the city will visit as many of their gatherings as we can! |
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Remember in May when I told you about Alex?
He wrote me a letter and shared with me that he is 10 1/2 years old and had FASD- fetal alcohol syndrome disorders.
We honored his work Tuesday night at city council by presenting a proclamation to him and his sister for their FASD advocacy.
He is an amazing kid, doing even more amazing work. Read more about Alex's cause in the latest installment of "People of Kent".
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Last weekend I was at Emerald Downs for the annual Kent Stakes. It was an honor to present the winners trophy to Aloha Breeze. |
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Kent kids! Registration is open for a 5-day summer camp designed for kindergarten through 6th graders who want to learn soccer skills while being introduced to fun space exploration and hands-on STEM activities.
There will be:
✅ Inspiring talks with real-life rocket scientists and astronauts
✅ Activities that unite sports with modules on space exploration
✅ Hands-on experiments
Hosted at Family First Community Center in Renton, WA. Camp starts July 24, click here to learn more! |
Port of Seattle Business Accelerator Program
Business Impact NW and Port of Seattle are now accepting applications for the Business Accelerator Program!
This exclusive 10-week program is designed to empower small businesses, particularly women- and minority-owned enterprises (WMBEs), that are generating annual revenues of $500,000 or more. If your business has been operating for at least 3 years (ideally 5+ years) in the A&E services, construction, or energy industries, you're encouraged to apply.
The program will support businesses in Seattle and South King County, but applications from neighboring areas will also be considered.
The application deadline is August 1, and the program is scheduled to start on September 14, 2023.
This link will provide more information and how you can apply!
Kent Farmers Market
The Kent Farmers Market is back after having last weekend off!
Living Well Kent and the Kent Lions Club have partnered to bring their Farmers Market downtown! This is a community driven market, increasing access to fresh, healthy, and culturally relevant produce to our community.
📅 Every Saturday
⏰ 9 a.m. - 2 p.m.
📍 2nd Ave between Smith and Gowe
Recycling Event
Each year the city of Kent hosts a number of free recycling collection events that allow residents to dispose of recyclable items not typically accepted at the curb. Instead of going to the landfill as trash, all collected items will be reused or recycled!
Here's a list of items our team will accept.
📅 Friday, August 18
⌚ 9 a.m. - Noon
📍 Hogan Park (24400 Russell Road)
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Storm drainage improvements are coming to James Street! This project will upsize the existing stormwater infrastructure on E. James Street to address localized ponding eastbound.
Work will impact eastbound traffic lanes of James Street from Central Avenue North to Woodford Avenue North from Monday, July 24 to Wednesday August 2. There will be a detour in place!
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The KentWorks app lets you access information and improve your neighborhood and community by reporting non-emergency issues to the city.
You can request a service, report a problem and find information about the City of Kent all from your mobile device in just a few taps! KentWA.gov/Kentworks
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Hops and Cops
Meet Chief Padilla and our officers on August 17 at the Ram in Kent Station for another Hops and Cops event!
This is a great evening opportunity to ask questions, meet the Kent Police Department staff that handles your concerns, and connect with your local law enforcement that serves our community!
📅 August 17
⌚ 5 p.m.- 7 p.m.
📍 The Ram at Kent Station
Cajun Fest
Get ready to spice up your taste buds and experience the soul of Louisiana in the Pacific Northwest.
There will be live music and dancing throughout the day, Cajun-themed food trucks, beer/wine garden, vendors/artists, and activities for the kids.
📅 August 19
⌚ 2 - 7 p.m.
📍 Kent Burlington Green Park
Parks & Recreation Month
July is National Parks and Recreation month! Celebrate the last free pop-up event for the month!
🍧Popsicles in the Park
📅 Wednesday, July 26
⌚ 12 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.
📍 Van Doren's Landing Park
Summer Concert Series
Kent Summer Concerts are back next week! Super excited for this annual series of musical performances presented throughout the summer.
Wednesday Picnic Performances
12-1 p.m. at West Fenwick Park
Wednesday Family Date Night
6-8 p.m. at Kent Station
Thursdays at the Lake
7-8:30 p.m. at Lake Meridian Park
Learn more about specific performers and dates on our website.
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The Greater Kent Historical Museum will offer free admission every first Wednesday of the month. Next free Wednesday will be August 2. |
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Registration for the Kent Parks Youth Fall Volleyball program are open!
Registration is open to all kids in Pre-K to Grade 8.
Pre-K participants must be 3 by August 31, 2023.
There are scholarships are available to qualifying families! You can register at MyKentParks.com/Register
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We're HIRING! Check out our featured jobs and great opportunities on our hiring page at Jobs.KentWA.gov!
🟡 Account Representative
🟡 Parks Youth Leaders/Sports Officials
🟡 Civil Engineers
🟡 Fleet Mechanic
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Don't forget to check out the new episode of the KentNOW podcast! Tracy and Josh recap Kent Cornucopia Days, talk numbers from the last recycling event, and how you can get involved with the Adopt-A-Street clean up.
Listen to new and previous episodes on:
🔊 Apple Podcasts apple.co/3J2UMkd
🔊 Spotify spoti.fi/3GNCeli
🔊 Amazon Music amzn.to/3jjaOvU
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Translations
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