Sam Low's eNewsletter
Snohomish County Council 3000 Rockefeller Ave., M/S 609 Everett, Washington 98201 8th floor, Robert J. Drewel Building Phone: 425-388-3494 E-Mail: Sam.Low@snoco.org
Darcy Cheesman, Legislative Aide
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Hope everyone had a great summer. Here is an update on current issues in District 5. And, as usual, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact my office.
Evergreen State Fair – 2017 record breaking attendance
Each year, the Evergreen State Fair celebrates
the tradition of agriculture, handmade goods, homegrown delights and families
spending time together. This year, however, they also celebrated with Luis
Sanchez (and family) from Everett who was the 348,631st person to walk through
the gate, breaking the all-time attendance record for the Evergreen State Fair,
previously set in 2014. During the morning Fair Safety meeting on September 4,
staff began going over attendance and the numbers looked promising enough to
start planning for record-breaking attendance. Many vendors pitched in fun
gifts including fudge from Seattle Fudge, kettle korn from Pioneer Popcorn, a
purple cow gift certificate from Snohomish County Dairy Women, a t-shirt and
cinnamon rolls from Snohomish Pie Company, custom soda bottles from Jones Soda,
ride tickets from Butler Amusements and two dozen scones from Fisher Scones.
Sanchez said his family was deciding whether to go to the beach or the Fair to
celebrate Labor Day so he let his 10 year old daughter decide because it was
almost her birthday. “I think I chose the right answer,” she said. Grasping his
balloon bouquet, Sanchez’s son exclaimed, “Papi, this is the luckiest day of my
life!” “The success of our Fair is not
based off of numbers because truly it’s so much bigger than that. However as
the County’s largest family friendly event, we never want to turn down the
chance to celebrate and make someone’s day,” said Brielle Dodge, Marketing
Specialist. Final record-breaking attendance at the 2017 Fair was 350,761. In
2018, the 110th Evergreen State Fair is scheduled for August 23
through September 3 and the Fair theme is “Summer Days and Country Ways.”
September
is Disaster Preparedness Month
National Preparedness Month was originally
declared in 2004 as an effort to educate and empower individuals, families, and
communities to prepare for emergencies and disasters. Snohomish County has
experienced emergency and disaster events including floods, windstorms,
mudslides, fires, and earthquakes. First
responders may not have the ability to reach all areas of the county quickly,
so it is important that individuals and communities take steps to prepare
themselves should such an event occur.
Here, our Snohomish County’s Department of Emergency Management’s
mission is to lessen the impact of disasters on people, property, the
environment, and the economy. The
department coordinates preparedness and training activities for city and county
staff, first responders, partner agencies, and community members annually. Snohomish County Government encourages all
those who work, live and play in Snohomish County to Make a Plan, Build a Kit,
Stay Informed, and Get Involved. Please visit their website for
everything you need to know to build your kit and make a plan.
In May of this year, I had the pleasure of presenting a check from
Snohomish County to the Sultan PTO and Sultan Elementary School for $5,000 to
help fund the construction of an elementary baseball field. In July a team of parents, kids and
grandparents went straight to work to get this field in place for the children
of this community. There was measuring
and painting of baselines, sod cutting, sand to be spread, infield dirt to be
delivered and fencing to be installed. Just a month and a half later, the field
is ready to place ball! I love being a
part of a community coming together to provide resources for kids. I am happy
to have played a small part but the project would not have been possible
without the hardworking volunteers in the Sultan community.
The process for setting the Snohomish County budget for 2018 will begin
this month when the County Executive presents his proposed budget on September
21st, 2017. After the budget is presented, the Council will begin
receiving presentations from the County Departments and other elected officials
detailing their requests. From there, the council will begin deliberations and
working with our staff to come up with our changes to the budget. As we move
forward, I will keep you in the loop with updates on the budget.
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