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Last week, Executive Somers announced that Snohomish County is awarding $7.6 million to six capital projects that increase high-quality, affordable child care. These projects will create nearly 360 new child care slots across the county, and five of six funded projects are located in extreme child care deserts. These awards are funded through the County’s federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) allocation.
“A major barrier to people joining or returning to the workforce is the lack of available and affordable child care. The effects of child care deserts across our county impact all of us, but they have an even more acute impact on women, who are pushed out of the job market at higher rates due to the extremely high cost of child care,” said Executive Somers. “That’s why we are expanding access for communities across our county, particularly in places where child care is already extremely scarce.”
 All awarded projects originate from submissions to the County’s Child Care Facilities Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA). Increasing child care availability was identified as a top community priority during the County’s communitywide pandemic recovery engagement effort.
Anyone interested can learn more about each project here.
Forecasters are warning of greater than normal wildfire potential from July through September. Breathing wildfire smoke is not good for anyone, but children, older adults, and people with existing lung and heart conditions are more at-risk for severe health impacts during smoke events.
There are key actions each of us can take to protect ourselves and our loved ones:
 For information on extreme heat safety, resources, and Cooling Centers please see Heat/Cooling Centers | Snohomish County Public Safety Hub.
Last Friday, Executive Somers and fellow Snohomish County leaders held a groundbreaking ceremony for the Kayak Point Park day-use improvement project. The renovation project will increase safety, accessibility, and resiliency in the face of sea level rise.
 Construction for Phase 1 of the approximately $20 million renovation project is scheduled to take place through at least December 31, 2023, and will provide additional recreation space, move parking away from the shoreline, improve the boat launch, and make habitat improvements. As part of implementing these changes, park infrastructure (failing water lines and buckling asphalt) will be replaced and the park will be positioned for many more years of enjoyment.
Anyone interested can find more information here.
Recently, Executive Somers publicly launched the County’s COVID-19 Recovery Dashboard, which allows users to learn more about the County’s pandemic recovery programming, including investment areas, impacts, and the geography and demographics of those we serve. The Recovery Dashboard was initially built in partnership with Microsoft and has since been expanded and maintained by Snohomish County.
“We’re using federal pandemic recovery dollars to make generational investments in needed resources for communities across our county, from affordable and accessible behavioral health services, to high-quality child care, to jobs programs that support workers and employers,” said Executive Somers. “We’re committed to accessibility and transparency so residents, businesses, and workers can understand what programs we are launching and the impacts they are having. This COVID-19 Recovery Dashboard is vital for increasing public trust and engagement, and I encourage residents across the county to explore this tool.”
 There are two components of the dashboard:
- The home page where users can learn about budget, expenditures, and notable data including overall outcomes of ARPA investment areas.
- Project detail pages where users can learn more about a specific ARPA program, including impacts, demographics, and geographic distribution.
To navigate to a detail page, select a project under “Programs” and then click “View Program.” To navigate back to the home page, click the back button in the top left corner of a detail page.
Explore the COVID-19 Recovery Dashboard here.
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