Each year our council offices hear from concerned residents with frustrations over the county’s fireworks policies. For a bit of background, in December of 2019, the county council adopted an ordinance which prohibited the discharge of fireworks in the Southwest Urban Growth Area, however the sale of fireworks is still allowed. Councilmember Peterson recently introduced Ordinance 23-057 which would provide for the corresponding ban on firework sales in “no fireworks areas”.  

At a recent Planning and Community Development committee meeting, Councilmember Peterson suggested expanding both the ban of sales and discharge of fireworks to county-wide, instead of limiting it to just the Southwest Urban Growth Area (SWUGA). Councilmembers shared that the dangers and risks of fireworks are not limited to just the SWUGA so the ban should also not be limited. This matter is still in our Planning and Development Committee to continue discussions and iron out details before it comes before council for a final vote. 

There are a number of possibilities at this point that we are deliberating including a possible modified ban of certain types of fireworks. If you have thoughts on this matter that you would like to share, please email the full council at contact.council@snoco.org so we can all be aware of your input as we continue discussions. 

One of the gaps in our system that became more evident than ever during the pandemic was the lack of affordable and quality childcare slots in the county. When schools moved to remote instruction and childcare centers closed, many of the parents who moved out of the workforce to stay home with their children were women. Now that we are moving to a post-pandemic world, it’s difficult for many people to return to work without access to childcare first.  

To address this gap, the county recently announced $7.6 million from our federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) allocation to fund nearly 360 new childcare slots across the county. Parents and families should not have to struggle to find reliable childcare and our childcare providers should be well trained and supported. I’m encouraged by several new partnerships to expand options and invest in transformational programs.  

To announce this initiative, I joined representatives from the Executive’s Office and local leaders from the childcare sector at the Rise Up Academy in South Everett for the press conference. It was great to feel the excitement amongst the group for this exciting change to our system. Please click here for more information on this allocation and for a list of awardees.  

As mentioned in last month’s newsletter, summer can be tough for families in need to keep food on the table for their children. I’d like to take a moment to highlight the great work of North Counties’ Family Services “Summer Food and Fun” program in Darrington. Over the summer they provided nutritious lunches with take home foods to support families over the weekend. In addition to food services, they have youth counselors available to help their peers with STEAM projects. Their culminating event will be on August 1 for National Night Out where they will have several fun events and even haircuts! Check out this link for more information.  

There are other National Night Out Events on August 1 across the nation to build community and give neighbors an opportunity to meet each other. Here’s the website to find an event near you.  

Forecasters are warning of greater than normal wildfire potential from July through September. Breathing wildfire smoke is unhealthy, but children, older adults, and people with existing lung and heart conditions are more at-risk for severe health impacts during smoke events.  

Snohomish County’s Department of Emergency Management, Health Department, and Human Services Department are raising awareness about ways the public can protect themselves and their families during smoke events by pointing people to the Snohomish County Public Safety Hub. Though we have lucked out so far this summer with avoiding wildfire smoke (fingers crossed!) please refer to this page for updates and information. You can also sign up for life-safety information and alerts for Snohomish County by visiting this page.

Additionally, as Chair of the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency Board of Directors, I would be remiss to not share the PSCAA’s resources as well. The PSCAA works hard to monitor and improve outdoor air quality and reduce our region’s contribution to climate change.  

Another helpful dashboard relating to the county’s opioid overdose and prevention programs is found here through the Snohomish Overdose Prevention dashboard administered by the Snohomish County Health Department. The site is helpful for people looking for accurate information about the opioid epidemic, and for people struggling with addiction and looking for help. The site also outlines the county’s response to this epidemic through the activation of the Multi-agency Coordination (MAC) Group, Rural Communities Opioid Response Program, community presentations, and prevention and response measures.  

The opioid epidemic has touched every community in our county, state, and nation. As the chair of the county’s Board of Health we hear monthly updates on the county's response to this public health emergency and proactively work to prevent and treat substance use disorder. Our region lacks a robust recovery support system to help people gain stability, so as a result many people are funneled through our justice system instead. I’ve been working hard for these past three years to improve the county’s treatment court system so that people who are involved in our court system have better access to restorative justice measures. I was honored to observe Recovery Court with Judge Wilson and see first-hand how these programs help justice involved members receive services, treatment and assistance with housing as they complete each step to graduate from the program. All the members were supportive of each other’s progress and it showed how important community is for recovery. There is more work to be done in this arena. Stay tuned for more as we finalize expanding this program.