Councilman Nehring's April Newsletter

Dear North County Neighbors,

I hope you have had the chance to enjoy some of this nice weather after the recent snow. March was very busy at the Snohomish County Council. In this month’s newsletter, I will share information about our 2020 Council budget retreat, Executive Somers’ Snohomish County Update, the Vision 2050 Summit, the SR 530 Slide Remembrance Ceremony, and a recent visit from North County students to the County Campus.

Each year we start off the budgeting process early with a Council Retreat to discuss shared priorities, strategies, and goals. On March 15, the Council met together with staff for our first retreat. We had great discussions about forecasted revenues and our plan for developing the 2020 Snohomish County budget. As you know, we have made it a priority to limit tax increases and this has resulted in two consecutive years of not increasing the County’s general property tax levy. Like previous years, I will maintain my commitment toward fiscal responsibility and accountability with your tax dollars during this year’s budget process and will not be supporting any proposed tax increases.

The County Executive gives his annual State of the County address at the Snohomish County Update sponsored by the Economic Alliance of Snohomish County. This year’s Update was held on March 20^th at the Angel of the Winds Arena. In front of a sold-out crowd, Executive Somers shared many of the successes from the past year including passenger flights out of Paine Field, the work of the Office of Neighborhoods and Embedded Social Worker teams to combat the opioid epidemic, and our fiscal responsibility in recent county budgets. He also shared a vision for the future including work on economic development, the recruitment of Boeing’s new midsized aircraft, and government reforms to increase efficiency in county operations. Executive Somers released a video with an overview of Snohomish County that you can watch here.

We have all seen the significant population growth over the past few years in all parts of the county. This growth presents challenges for us as neighborhoods, as a county, and as a region. We must work together at all levels of public and private institutions to be ready for the growth to come. This process was the point of discussion at the Vision 2050 Summit held on March 21^st. At the Summit, local government, business, and community leaders came together to start to plan for the quarter of a million new residents expected to move into Snohomish County in the next 30 years. It is important for us to have these conversations and I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues at the County as well as leaders and residents in the community to take the necessary steps to be ready for the growth to come.

Last Friday marked the five year anniversary of the tragic SR 530 Slide which took the lives of 43 of our neighbors near Oso on March 22, 2014. On Friday, survivors, family members, first responders, and community members gathered to commemorate the anniversary. Heartfelt speeches remembered the lives of those lost, the bravery of the first responders, and the community resilience that came in the aftermath of the disaster. The names of the 43 victims were read and the chime of a bell rang through the valley for each life lost. The ceremony was a touching tribute to that tragic day and I was honored to be a small part of it. Below is a picture of the memorial unveiled representing the mailboxes that used to stand along SR 530 (PC: Everett Herald).

Finally, I was honored to host 22 local students at our offices earlier this week. The students were members of the Stanwood YMCA’s Youth and Government group and the Skagit Defenders Speech & Debate Club. These students came to observe their county government in action and attended our 10:30 am Public Hearings. At the hearing, the Snohomish County Council unanimously passed resolution 19-011, “A RESOLUTION COMMENDING STUDENTS PARTICIPATING IN CIVIC ENGAGEMENT”. After the meeting, I had the chance to sit down with the students and answer their questions about local government and civic engagement. We also took a tour of the County Council and County Executive offices where they were able to talk with other councilmembers and executive staff. I was very impressed by the level of interest and knowledge that these young people had about civics and government. If these students are any indication, our future cast of community leaders looks bright.

I send out newsletters on a monthly basis to keep you informed about what I am working on and how I am representing the residents of North Snohomish County on the County Council. Please feel free to reach out to me at 425-388-3494 or Nate.Nehring@snoco.org.

Sincerely,

Nate Nehring

Snohomish County Council 3000 Rockefeller Ave., M/S 609 Everett, Washington 98201   8th floor, Robert J. Drewel Building  Phone: 425-388-3494 E-Mail: Nate.Nehring@snoco.org   Russell Wiita, Legislative Aide