Councilmember Nehring's 2023 Year In Review

On January 12th, 2023, nearly 150 students from across the county descended on the Snohomish County Campus in Everett for our first annual Civic Education Day. Councilmember Jared Mead and I worked together to organize the event and invite students to learn about County government, meet elected officials and County staff, and tour the campus. Guest speakers from various county departments spoke with students about their jobs and roles within county government. The students had great questions and were very engaged throughout the day. 

The second annual Civic Education Day is set for January 2024 and we are anticipating around 300 high school participants! You can read more about the 2023 event in the Everett Herald’s coverage here. 

Last year, Councilmember Jared Mead and I launched the Building Bridges Tour in Snohomish County. The tour included quarterly town hall-style events and brought community members together to identify causes and solutions to political polarization as well as discuss ways that we can promote more healthy political discourse in our communities.  

The first event was held on February 21st at the Mill Creek YMCA. We had over 40 community members join us to discuss the rise of political polarization. It was inspiring to see community members come together despite their political disagreements and put a face to people who they might not always agree with. Many of the attendees walked away with a renewed sense of hope for our political discourse and ability to work through difficult issues facing our communities. I learned a lot from these discussions and could not have hoped for a better outcome.  

You can read an op-ed from Councilmember Mead and I at this link and the Everett Herald’s editorial here. 

This year, we commemorated the 9th anniversary of the tragic Oso Slide that claimed the lives of 43 of our friends, family, and neighbors along SR 530. I joined community members and family of those lost at a memorial event at the location of the slide on Wednesday, March 22nd.   

Next March, on the 10th anniversary of the Oso Slide, the Slide Memorial project will be completed and will provide a permanent place for families and community members to remember the legacies of those who were lost in the Slide. This annual memorial event is a touching tribute to the lives lost and the efforts to keep their memory alive through the memorial project. 

The Regional Apprenticeship Pathways (RAP) program was established in 2019 and has been providing education and opportunities for high school students interested in the building and construction trades. The program provides hands-on learning opportunities for students across Snohomish County where they graduate the program after mastering core competencies and certifications in safety training. Many of these students have gone on to have successful careers in the trades. 

During the 2023 legislative session, the Washington State Legislature fully funded the RAP Program and approved ongoing funding moving forward. This was a critical step to ensure the sustainability of the program and the success of students in the future. State Senator June Robinson and State Representative Mary Fosse were instrumental in securing this funding. Senator Robinson was recognized during a RAP Open House event as the 2023 RAP Champion for her steadfast support of the program. 

Some of the most profound experiences I have had during my time on the Snohomish County Council have come from ride-alongs with the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office. My experience on May 16th was no exception to that. I joined the Sheriff’s Office of Neighborhoods (OON) Team, including social workers from our Human Services Department, in South Snohomish County to see firsthand what they are dealing with when it comes to drugs and addiction on our streets. What I saw was nothing short of tragic. The despair and suffering we witnessed during that shift put real faces on the issue of addiction and what it will take to address it. Multiple times, when we stopped and talked with addicted individuals, they said their biggest fear wasn't death from overdose but the pain of withdrawals if they did not get their next fix.  

This was eye opening for me and helped me better understand the condition of these individuals on our streets. The deputies and social workers with the OON Team do a great job attempting to connect these individuals with treatment and a better way of life. It is clear to me that we are going to need a focused and intentional approach to detoxing these individuals and connecting them with treatment to make progress on this front. From what I heard during that ride-along, simply offering housing or services on a voluntary basis is going to make very little progress, as we have seen over the past couple years. These experiences help inform my votes on the County Council and have inspired legislation to help address these issues in our community. 

In June, I was honored to be recognized by the YMCA of Snohomish County and the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties (MBAKS).  

The YMCA selected me as their 2023 “Volunteer of the Year”. It has been an honor to work alongside so many great people who give back to our community. The YMCA does phenomenal work serving families and individuals of all ages.  

I was also selected as the MBAKS “Housing Champion” for 2023. MBAKS advocates for pro-housing policies, and I have enjoyed working with their members over the years to  introduce and pass local ordinances to improve housing affordability. I greatly appreciate the recognition and look forward to continuing our work in Snohomish County to promote housing affordability and home ownership. 

On July 7th, I joined County Executive Dave Somers, County staff, and community members at the Groundbreaking Ceremony for the upgrades and improvements to Kayak Point Park. This project has been years in the making, and I am excited to see these critical improvements become a reality.  

Snohomish County is investing approximately $20 million into this North County project. Phase one of the improvements will include replacing the boat launch, installing a new parking pare, and reconstructing the backshore berm. These upgrades will help improve accessibility to the park and allow more residents and visitors to enjoy this great natural asset.   

In August, the Stanwood Camano-Community Fair and Evergreen State Fair in Monroe welcomed tens of thousands of visitors to Snohomish County.  

The Stanwood-Camano Community Fair (The “Best Lil Fair in the West”) took place August 4-6 at the fairgrounds off Pioneer Highway. My family and I attended the fair and we had a great time exploring the exhibits, eating great fair food, and talking with other residents who were enjoying the day with their families. I also had the opportunity to join the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new restroom facilities at the fairgrounds. These new facilities were a much-needed project to improve the experience for all fairgoers and will be able to be used year-round as the venue is rented out to various community groups.  

Later in the month, the annual Evergreen State Fair in Monroe ran from August 24th-September 4th. This year’s fair was another great event with a variety of exhibits, great food, concerts, rodeo, rides, and much more. I would like to thank all of the fair staff, volunteers, vendors, and exhibitors who put so much effort every year into the fair. My family and I enjoy the fair every year and can’t wait for another great event next year! 

On September 11th, the North County Regional Fire Authority officially opened its Regional Fire Training Center. This new, state of the art facility will give local firefighters and other first responders a regional center for critical training. It is a great investment for our region and will be used for years to come.   

I was honored to attend the ceremony and the opportunity to tour the new facility afterward. Snohomish County supported the project by investing a portion of our American Rescue Plan Act funding toward the center. Congratulations and thank you to North County Regional Fire for this facility and for the work they do every day keeping our communities safe.