Celebrating and Honoring Our Communities!
February 2025
Dear Friend,
February was filled with celebration and recognition of the many diverse and passionate communities in our district!
I celebrated Lunar New Year at Eastern Washington University’s campus in Sammamish and recognized Twin Peaks Day, which continues to generate tourism and revenue for local businesses and landmarks in the Snoqualmie Valley.
At council, we celebrated Black History Month with a proclamation recognizing the legacies and ongoing incredible contributions of African Americans.
We honored our Japanese American communities by observing Feb. 19 as the Day of Remembrance of the devastating impacts of Executive Order 9066 and internment.
It always brings me joy to spend time with our district’s many communities, and I am honored to continue serving you and representing your voice on the King County Council. As always, if you’d like to meet or talk about anything, reach out by email, sarah.perry@kingcounty.gov, or phone at 206-477-1003, and we’ll find some time to connect!
All the best,
As the Councilmember entrusted to represent your voice, it means a great deal to me to hear your priorities, both individually and collectively, so I can be confident that I am representing your voice on the Council. That is the exact purpose of our annual survey below, so please take a moment to fill it out so we hear your voice!
Please a few minutes now to fill out these 10 survey questions now. The deadline is Friday, March 14! Click here or the button below to take the survey now.
Council Briefings & Actions!
 Council has been working hard this month! Here is some of the work that matters most to D3:
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Confirmations: We confirmed Snoqualmie Tribe member, artist, and U.S. military veteran Bethany Fackrell to the 4Culture board, increasing the board’s D3 representation.
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Policy Agenda: As Chair of the Local Services and Land Use Committee, I presented my work plan priorities for the year, including updates to our critical areas ordinance, code enforcement, and building and energy code!
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Legislation: I co-sponsored legislation requiring King County Metro to track “Ghost Buses,” which are buses that don’t show up at your bus stop at the scheduled time with no explanation. Understanding the impact of “Ghost Buses” on confidence in our transit system is critical!
If you are interested in joining us for a meeting to make a comment or just listen in, click on any of the following links: Full Council; Flood Control District; Local Services and Land Use; Budget and Fiscal Management; Committee of the Whole; Government Accountability and Oversight; Employment and Administration; Transportation, Economy, and Environment.
Congratulations to the King County Search and Rescue Association on celebrating their 60th anniversary!
I want to extend my congratulations to executive director Carrie Lee Gagnon and the entire King County Search and Rescue Association (KCSARA) on celebrating their 60th anniversary!
KCSARA is an amazing organization of volunteer heroes who protect the health and safety of our D3 communities and beyond by acting as citizen first responders.
The association was established to advocate for and facilitate collaboration between our local search and rescue units. Today, it has over 600 dedicated volunteers.
I was honored to join KCSARA at the wonderful South Fork restaurant in North Bend to celebrate this momentous occasion. Please join me in expressing our gratitude to this exceptional group of dedicated volunteers for their selfless work!
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On the Issues!
On the Topic of Road & Bridge Infrastructure
SR 203 & Tolt Hill Road Roundabout: In Olympia, I convened a powerful coalition of community organizations, experts, and elected officials to address the public safety challenges at the intersection of SR-203 and NE Tolt Hill Road just outside of Carnation in unincorporated King County.
We met with the chair and vice chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, and 12th Legislative District electeds Keith Goehner and Mike Steele to discuss installing a roundabout.
This intersection is a critical gateway connecting North/South and East/West corridors for residents, freight, and emergency response vehicles throughout the region. It is also an emergency exit should the Tolt Reservoir Dam ever break, which would cause immediate and significant flooding of the Carnation area.
Smoothing traffic and emergency response access at this intersection will improve the safety of the over 100,000 residents in the Valley alone and have regional impacts.
I look forward to continuing conversations with those present, including Congresswoman Kim Schrier’s office, state senators and representatives, Washington State Patrol, WSDOT, Eastside Fire & Rescue, the Flood Control District, the Snoqualmie Indian Tribe, the City of Carnation, and more to solve this crucial infrastructure and public safety issue. Stay tuned for updates!
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On the Topic of Environmental Preservation & Farm Protection
King County Local Food Initiative Update: As chair of the Council’s Local Services and Land Use Committee, I’m leading this year’s effort to update King County’s Local Food Initiative. The Local Food Initiative guides us in our work to grow our local food economy, maintain the viability of local farms and food businesses, and increase your access to healthy, affordable food.
Updates to this initiative will re-establish our shared food system priorities and continue to build strong partnerships with the dedicated D3 farm owners and agricultural workers who feed our district and beyond.
We will be holding focus groups over the next five months to hear the thoughts and priorities of people in our local food system. The first focus group will meet on Thursday, March 6 from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Sammamish Valley Grange.
Farm Sustainability Roundtable: Also on March 6, from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., I am convening a meeting with farmers and farm organizations located in the Agriculture Production District (APD) of the Snoqualmie and Sammamish Valleys to talk about how to support and sustain farming in the valley.
In addition to farmers, we will be joined by the Snoqualmie Valley Preservation Alliance, SnoValley Tilth, Pallet Shelter, experts in farmers’ markets, and King County experts in food sustainability and farming for a rich discussion. We will discuss farmworker housing, access to equipment and land ownership, transit, potential subsidies, and many other topics. For more information, contact our policy analyst, Robby, at robby.paige@kingcounty.gov.
I look forward to engaging with our farmers on a meaningful level that will make a difference in their ability to do this critical work!
On the Topic of Small Businesses & Creative Economy
Twin Peaks Day: I was honored to present this year’s proclamation recognizing February 24th as Twin Peaks Day. For 30+ years, millions of fans around the world have been captivated by David Lynch's beloved TV show set in the fictional town of Twin Peaks – a town based on real-life communities in our own Snoqualmie Valley!
The show continues to pull tourists to the Snoqualmie Valley to visit recognizable landmarks and support small businesses featured in Twin Peaks, such as Snoqualmie Falls, Mt. Si, Twede's Cafe, the Roadhouse Restaurant & Inn, and the Northwest Railway Museum Snoqualmie Depot.
Hundreds of fans and residents celebrated Lynch’s work and honored his legacy at the Real Twin Peaks Festival, bringing energy, tourism, and commerce to our D3 communities. Big shout out to Historic Downtown Snoqualmie, North Bend Downtown Foundation, North Bend Theatre, and the organization Real Twin Peaks for making Twin Peaks Day such a success!
This year’s celebration was especially poignant as we recognized the recent passing of beloved Twin Peaks writer and director David Lynch.
On the Topic of Community Health & Safety
Crisis care centers: King County selected Connections Health Solutions in Kirkland as the operator for the North King County crisis care center – the first of five to be located throughout King County!
This is an important step in our work to meet the needs of community members in mental health and substance use crisis and honor the urgent requests from our first responders to provide a location for those services in our communities.
This is known as the most financially effective and efficient approach to tackling this issue in the country, and this first crisis care center serves many D3 communities including Skykomish, Woodinville, Duvall, and unincorporated areas in Woodinville and Redmond.
This is an exciting milestone in the delivery of crisis care services that will go a long way toward addressing the impacts of these crises on our neighbors and loved ones and keeping our communities safe and healthy!
4Culture Preservation and Facilities Grants Now Open!
I’m excited to share that 4Culture has opened applications for its Preservation Special Projects and Building for Equity: Facilities Grants!
Preservation Special Projects grants funds research, education, and advocacy to promote the preservation of historic places in King County. Funds may be used to create printed or digital resources such as research reports, building assessments, landmark nominations, recordings, or educational exhibits focused on historic places.
In 2025, approximately $270,000 is available. Awards typically range from $2,000 to $15,000. Apply by Wednesday, March 12 at 5 p.m. for support in your work to preserve historic landmarks in our D3 communities!
Building for Equity: Facilities grants help organizations acquire, build, or renovate the brick-and-mortar buildings and spaces that make culture, science, and technology experiences possible. Projects with budgets of $10,000,000 and under are eligible. Organizations must contact 4Culture staff by Tuesday, March 25, to complete a pre-screening for this grant.
Carnation Spotlight!
This month the spotlight is shining on a Carnation business, non-profit, and community engagement opportunity! We hope you have a chance to visit these fantastic community contributors – and remember to Go Local!
This Valentine’s Day, I attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony of Barzen’s Blooms, an award-winning florist in Carnation! Barzen’s Blooms is run by the wonderful Erin Barzen. Erin and her husband began cultivating Barzen’s Blooms in 2020 when they settled on a 16-acre farm in Carnation. Now, they’re bringing beauty and life to the Snoqualmie Valley with Erin’s stunning floral arrangements and her vintage pastel yellow delivery truck, Miss Daisy. Check out where Barzen’s Blooms will be vending next or order from their website!
I had the amazing opportunity to tour Camp River Ranch, a camp just outside the city of Carnation operated by the Girl Scouts of Western Washington. The camp sits on the beautiful Lake Langlois and is a storied space that gives Girl Scouts opportunities to be themselves, find their voice, and learn about the nature and agriculture vital to our District 3 communities.
It doesn’t just serve our D3 Girl Scouts, though. As the only Girl Scout camp in King County and the surrounding counties, Camp River Ranch serves Girl Scouts from across our region!
The Girl Scouts of Western Washington run overnight camps and day camp activities at Camp River Ranch. They also run specific programs that work to empower LGBTQ youth and African American youth. Visit their website for more information!
The Sno-Valley Senior Center in Carnation is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year! This community pillar is housed in Odd Fellows Hall in the heart of Carnation. They are also celebrating the 100th anniversary of this historic building.
Last year, the Sno-Valley Senior Center completed the construction of 15 affordable senior housing apartments. The senior center received over $1 million from King County to make this possible. Together, I hope we can continue to work towards making housing more accessible for all our D3 community members.
The senior center still has two apartments available specifically for veterans. You can go to their website to learn more!
About Town!
With so much going on across our District 3 cities and towns, we want to ensure that you know about any upcoming major events, parades, festivals, and activities. Below is a short list of some upcoming events!
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Saturday, March 1, 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM: Enjoy delicious wine and cider while you take in the amazing original artwork from Woodinville Arts Alliance Exhibiting Artists!
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Tuesday, March 4, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM: Learn about seeds and best growing practices and help kick off Sammamish Valley Grange and Sammamish Valley Alliance’s 9th Annual Seed Swap!
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Sunday, March 16, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM: Patrick’s Day fun (a day early!) with Irish food, beer, and live music from a Celtic fiddler at The Grange!
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Saturday, March 22, 11:00 AM – 5:00 PM: DJ music, musical performances, and color throws every 30 minutes at Crossroads Park in Bellevue!
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Sunday, March 30, 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM: Hands-on activities with a giant free-build area, LEGO displays and models, shopping, and photo ops!
If you know of any upcoming events that you’d like us to highlight in next month’s newsletter, please share them at Isabel.Smith@kingcounty.gov.
Grant Opportunities this Quarter!
Do you know of an impactful organization that's looking for funding? Our District 3 Team has resources for you! Every month we share a Grants Newsletter that highlights upcoming grant opportunities over the next few months, and there are several grant opportunities that are available now! Investing in our local non-profits and supporting innovative ideas through funding is critical to ensure that each of our communities can thrive, now and into the future!
Stay Connected!
Please forward this email and invite others to sign up to receive email updates. Also, make sure that you follow our Facebook account, Instagram account, and X (Twitter) page to stay up-to-date on everything we are working on together!
Finally... a reminder that I’d love to grab a cup of coffee and talk. Just reach out to our team member Isabel at Isabel.Smith@kingcounty.gov or at 206-561-8513 and they will set us up!
All the best,
 Sarah Perry
King County Council
District 3
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