Megan Dunn'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: Megan.Dunn@snoco.org
Paula Rhyne, Legislative Aide
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As the leaves change color and pumpkin spice everything is coming back to store shelves, fall is certainly in the air. We are seeing school buses on our roads again and I am grateful for all of the hard work that our local school districts are doing to help keep students and staff safe. The Snohomish Health District recently released the “Back to School COVID-19 Tool Kit” with helpful information about sending kids back to school. School Districts have also been working to establish guidelines, so please check with your individual district for more district-specific information. There has also been recent news that a vaccine for children between ages 5-12 will soon be available, possibly as early as Halloween. I’m feeling hopeful that there’s a light at the end of the tunnel, but am committed to keeping my neighbors and communities safe by following CDC and Snohomish Health District protocols.
In this fall issue of my monthly newsletter, I’ll be highlighting my priorities during the upcoming “Budget Season” at the county, the county and state’s re-districting process, a recent affordable housing groundbreaking event that I attended, opportunities for input on tax structures, local area events, and some of the work that my office’s summer volunteer was able to complete, including a fantastic video about how to give public comment.
If you have any questions or if there is any additional information that I can provide, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at megan.dunn@snoco.org or at 425-388-3494. You’re always more than welcome to reach out to my aide, Paula Rhyne, at paula.rhyne@snoco.org with additional questions or scheduling requests.
It’s no secret that local governments have had a tough time since March of 2020 to balance their budgets. At the county, we received federal CARES dollars in 2020, and then this year the county received $80M (with another $80M coming next year) in federal American Rescue Plan Act (“ARPA”) dollars. These funds have helped balance our budget and also provide money to address immediate and long-term needs in the county during the COVID response and recovery. While we’ve been working on deciding how this will be spent, we are also quickly coming up on “Budget Season” to determine the county’s budget for 2022. On September 28, the County Executive will deliver his proposed budget to council, and over the six weeks following this address we will be combing through it line by line and making adjustments when needed.
Over the year, the county’s finance team has been providing quarterly reports and have shared that the revenue forecast is looking better than we could have predicted back in March of 2020, so I’m glad to know that moving into this year’s season we can have more flexibility. During deliberations I will be prioritizing environmental sustainability, public safety reforms, and expanding human service resources for our neighbors in need. If there are priorities or programs that are important to you and your community that you would also like to see prioritized, please reach out to me at megan.dunn@snoco.org to share more. What’s included in our budget is a reflection of our values as a local government, and I value you and the community.
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Every ten years boundaries of county council and state legislative districts are updated to reflect how populations have changed. The Snohomish County Districting Committee is currently review three “Springboard Maps” to determine how county council districts will be adjusted. The maps are meant to be starting points for discussions and committee members are eager to hear from the public about what elements of the maps that they like or dislike. You can provide comment or input to the Districting Committee either at a virtual public meeting, via US Mail (Snohomish County Districting Committee, c/o Snohomish County Council, Attn: Debbie Eco, 3000 Rockefeller Ave., M/S 609, Everett, WA, 98201), or via email at districting@snoco.org.
In a separate process, the WA State Districting Commission has been meeting to determine new boundaries and they are also open to public comment and participation in the process. They recently released draft Legislative District maps and will soon release draft Congressional District maps. Take a look at the WA State Districting Commission page for more information.
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Towards the end of August I went to a field day an tour event, along with other elected leaders including State Senator June Robinson and Congresswoman Suzan DelBene, at The Farm at Swan’s Trail to kick off the Snohomish County Food Resiliency Project. During the height of the pandemic, we saw a dramatic increase in food insecurity across the county as well as empty grocery store shelves that resulted in panic buying. This highlighted the need for increased efficiencies in food production and the role technology can play in our food production, distribution, and security. A partnership with the 5G Open Innovation Lab was an opportunity to bring new technology to our local farms that was otherwise unavailable. Collaborating with technology companies to develop new capabilities that improve the resiliency of Snohomish County’s agriculture sector and minimize future food system disruptions for consumers is already benefitting our community. It’s exciting to see the improvement this is making in how farming decisions are made using real-time data that is delivered directly to farmers’ cellphones. Below are some pictures from the event, and you can also watch a brief video or find out more about the project here: Field Labs - 5G Open Innovation Lab (5goilab.com).
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I recently attended the groundbreaking event in Marysville for an affordable housing project called Twin Lakes Landing II. When completed, it will provide 60 units – half of which will be income capped at 50% AMI, or $57,850 for a family of four, and the other half is income capped at 30% AMI, or $34,700 for a family of four. This project was developed by Housing Hope, a local non-profit whose mission includes developing more affordable housing in the region to help make sure that everyone has a safe and affordable place to live.
Projects like these are imperative to help address housing affordability and the homelessness crisis in our county. We all know that the cost of rent and homeownership have skyrocketed, and wages have remained stagnant. So many of our neighbors are burdened by the cost of housing and having affordable housing units like this will help our neighbors have a place to live near where they work and play. If a person is experiencing homelessness and receives a housing voucher, the wait time for a place to become available for them to move in is roughly eight years, and projects like Twin Lakes Landing I and II will help to reduce that waitlist.
I’m committed to finding a bold solution that will help to address the lack of affordable housing in our county. I will be hosting a Housing and Homelessness Town Hall Forum in early December and hope that you will be able to join me. Stay tuned for the date and more details as they come available.
Speaking of town hall events, The WA Tax Structure Work Group comprised of state legislators is hosting a series of town halls to hear from you to better understand priorities and opinions as it relates to taxes. Individuals, business owners, and the extended community is welcome to participate in these free events. The virtual Tax Town Halls are region-specific, with an afternoon and evening town hall for the “Northwest Region” which includes District 2 on October 6. I’m interested in hearing from the public about how the state can restructure our tax system to reduce the burden on low and middle class families. Please join a virtual Tax Town Hall for the Northwest Region on Wednesday, October 6 at 2:30-4p or 6:30-8p. Here is the link for more information and to sign up to participate.
This summer my office hosted a volunteer intern, Vivien Ho, through Everett Public School system. We appreciated having her join the team and showing her the ropes at the county. She had interest in writing and arts, so we tasked her with writing the events sections for the July and August newsletters. She also put together this fantastic video (also linked below) about how to provide public comment at a council meeting! It includes instructions for in-person testimony, so while council has temporarily moved back to virtual meetings only, this will certainly be helpful for future participation.
Vivien also shared this personal statement about her time at the office:
Hello everyone, my name is Vivien Ho and I’m a summer intern working under Councilmember Dunn and her Legislative Aide Paula Rhyne! I wasn’t really sure what to expect when I got assigned to work at the county council since I didn't see myself getting involved in any government related business. But, my experience here was a lot more fun and fulfilling than I thought it would be.
My passion and strength lies in writing and anything English-related. So, I got the chance to write blurbs for local events in the monthly District 2 newspaper! I was also given the task to make a video on how to give public comment during public hearings. I had to rewatch past recorded zooms of these meetings and take notes on them when it came to giving public comment, then make a script for the video. This let me have more fun with my work running around filming things, rather than just sticking to my desk area staring at my computer screen the whole time!
Thank you, Councilmember Dunn for taking me under your wing and letting me experience what it was like working in an office environment. Thank you to Paula for always willing to answer any miscellaneous questions I had about projects, as well as providing me with some many resources to reference and work with. You were both wonderful people that I’m glad I had the pleasure of working with for the summer!
I hope everyone has a great summer and enjoyed the July and August newsletters I got to write for!
Thanks again, Vivien, for all of your hard work! Check out her great public comment video below:
The PUD is offering a $500 rebate to our customers for the purchase and installation of qualifying Level 2 Energy Star EV chargers in their homes. Unlike the Level 1 charger supplied with an EV, which plugs into a standard wall outlet, Level 2 chargers use a 240-volt dedicated outlet providing quicker charging time meeting the needs of longer range EVs. For more information, please check their website.
Great Laughs with Everett Improv
Tucked in the alleyway behind Everett's Sno-Isle Co-Op off of California Avenue is Everett’s own premier improv entertainment group called Everett Improv. They always have a number of great events to attend, so I definitely recommend bookmarking their calendar page. They’re also open for a free show during the Third Thursday Everett Art Wal, so swing through if you’re in the area and need a laugh.
Free First Thursday at Hibulb Cultural Center
The first Thursday of every month has free admission to the Hibulb Cultural Center and Natural History Preserve. This interactive center shares more about the history, traditional cultural values, and spiritual beliefs of the Tulalip Tribes. Learn more about the Treaty of Point Elliott and explore the history of the other tribes and bands who were signatory to the treaty. Paula and I visited last year and would definitely recommend that you visit too, if you haven't yet had a chance.
Everett Station District Alliance Fall Cleanup
Join the Everett Station District Alliance and volunteers on Saturday, October 23 from 9-11am to help pick up litter by the Everett train station to help make it more welcoming and to divert pollutants from our waterways. The focus will be on picking up along Smith Avenue. Gloves, pickers, and vests will be provided. Use this link to sign up today.
Thank you for reading through my newsletter. I hope you’re enjoying these crisp fall days and the start of spider season! As the pandemic anxieties continue and days are starting to get noticeably cloudier and shorter, please take good care of yourself and check in on loved ones as well. We could all use a little extra grace and support these days.
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