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The discharge of fireworks has been banned in Snohomish County in the Urban Growth Area since 2019. At our May 15 Public Hearing Meeting, Council heard Ordinance 23-057 which would also ban the sale of fireworks in this same area. After hearing lengthy public comment and deliberation, the council voted unanimously to enact this restriction on sales to match the ban on releasing fireworks. I voted in favor of this policy because it is a commonsense measure that will bring clarity to the community and provide safety to individuals, their households, and the local environment. We heard from the local fire departments about the need for messaging and education and it should also help the Sheriff’s Department with enforcement.
I encourage every household to exercise good judgement as they celebrate holidays responsibly. Even after the sales ban goes into effect in 2025, there are still some areas and cities in the county where it is legal to discharge fireworks on the 4th of July or New Years Eve. The county’s website on this topic can give further details of where and when you may do so. To report the illegal discharge of fireworks, please call our area’s non-emergency line at 425-407-3999, or call 911 if there’s an immediate threat to life or property.
At our Public Hearing Meeting on May 1, council voted 3-2 to pass Ordinance 24-011 with myself and Councilmember Peterson as the two dissenting votes. This Ordinance requires the testing county-owned housing facilities for drug contamination with the intent to protect the residents and staff who are placed at these facilities. But after a thorough analysis with input from subject matter experts, it was clear that the unintended consequences of the ordinance is the unnecessary displacement of vulnerable individuals and confusion over the implementation process. I thoroughly acknowledge the need to safely house individuals in need, and to provide a safe workplace for the staff who are providing services and facility management, which is why I have been supportive of initiatives that provide housing with dignity. However, this Ordinance does not meet these shared goals and here is a list of why I voted against it:
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Neither our State Department of Health nor Federal Center for Disease Control Offices have guidelines for contamination levels or testing in housing. For some drugs, there isn’t scientific data to determine thresholds for contamination. An ordinance of this type should be based on sound science and best practices.
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Our County’s own Board of Health has not yet reviewed the Ordinance or been given a chance to provide input. Any policy that is based on public health data should be reviewed by public health officials and this proposal should have been considered by our balanced board of directors, made up of local elected leaders and subject matter experts.
- With the State Department of Health guidance finalized in the coming months, a discussion on this matter scheduled for the county’s upcoming Board of Health meeting, and our county’s supportive housing facilities not opening for a year, it is completely premature to require testing results be submitted to council when we have no set guidelines for contamination in housing.
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The testing requirement only applies to county-owned supportive housing, not other housing spaces like our jail or overnight accommodations at our campgrounds. We should be treating all housing the same and not targeting housing based on it’s residents.
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The Ordinance does not outline what would happen if a test comes back positive, only stating that test results would be transmitted to council “upon request.” It also does not identify a funding source for any remediation efforts, if needed. At the very least, the ordinance should require testing results be sent to the Health Officer, but council was not willing to consider that amendment. Additionally, the County is already testing these buildings so the effect of the ordinance is to simply send results to council, and we do not have expertise in interpreting these results.
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Without standards for contamination and remediation, people could be unnecessarily displaced from their residence which sharply increases their likelihood of relapse, health outcomes, and death (with an increase of 4-9x higher mortality rate and between 15-24% of additional deaths). Residential relocation is correlated with higher odds of experiencing violence and life-threatening adverse outcomes (nearly 1/2 as likely to engage in substance use treatment, 2.5x higher odds of nonfatal overdose, 1.6x higher rate of arrest, and 1.9x higher rates of jailing).
Because of my above concerns about the inadequacies of the ordinance, I presented two common sense amendments. My first amendment would have an implementation date of after we receive results from the State DOH or Federal CDC establishing guidelines and thresholds for contamination so our ordinance could be rooted in science – this was voted down 3-2. My second amendment was to allow for testing between residencies or annually if a residency was longer than a year to minimize displacement of vulnerable individuals. This was also voted down 3-2.
Though this ordinance ultimately passed, I will continue to work with our local Board of Health and other public health officials to make sure that when our county’s “New Start Centers” come online, we will house people with dignity and ensure that no one is subjected to arbitrary requirements that block their road to recovery and stability.
The New Start Center in Everett slated to open in 2025
You are cordially invited to join for the 4th Annual Pride Flag Raising Event at the Snohomish County Campus on Wednesday, June 5 from noon-2p. I spearheaded efforts to raise the Pride Flag on the County Campus for the first time in county history in 2021, and this year, I’m pleased to coordinate with the County Executive’s Office to include food trucks and a resource fair for attendees. The event will be held at the flag poles located near the Carnegie Building on Oakes between Pacific and Wall Street on the county campus. The flag raising ceremony will begin at noon, and food trucks and a resource fair will be onsite until 2p. I hope you are able to join.
Here is a link to a Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/810705677647116/ - please feel free to share this event with your networks. Staff have also put together Pride Guide 2024 – Snohomish County listing events across Snohomish County.
As a proud ally and supporter of the pride community, I wish everyone a safe and happy Pride Month!
Juneteenth is celebrated on June 19th each year to commemorate the emancipation of enslaved black people in the US. It marks the day in 1865 when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to share the news that all enslaved people should be freed. Though the Emancipation Proclamation had been signed two and a half years earlier, Texas slave owners continued the practice and news of this event was purposefully withheld from the people they enslaved. After federal troops arrived in Galveston to free the last of the slaves, June 19th was originally celebrated as “Jubilee Day” and is considered the longest-running African American Holiday.
Juneteenth became a federal holiday in 2021 and the county has celebrated through a flag raising event at the county campus. This year, the Juneteenth flag raising ceremony will be on Tuesday, June 18, at 11am and the public is welcome to join.
The NAACP of Snohomish County is hosting a Juneteenth Celebration at Willis Tucker Park on Saturday, June 22, from 11-3p. More info to come on the event.
At last year's Juneteenth Flag Raising Event
Every year, each councilmember hosts an evening time Administrative Session Meeting in our District in an effort to make our council meetings more accessible to the public. This year I’m hosting our May 28 Administrative Session at Hibulb Cultural Center in Tulalip. The meeting starts at 6p, is open to public, and I encourage you to join. There will be cookies! 🍪
If you haven’t recently visited Hibulb Cultural Center, I encourage you to stop in to tour the facility and exhibits. It’s a great way to learn more about the original inhabitants of our county, their heritage, culture, and history.
Earlier this month, I joined Snohomish County Parks staff and tribal members and partners from the Sauk-Suiattle, Stillaguamish, Swinomish and Snoqualmie Tribes, and County Executive Dave Somers for a blessing ceremony of the Tribal Area at the SR 530 Oso Slide Memorial. It was an incredibly moving ceremony that included stories, drumming, songs and blessings. I was honored to be one of the supporters given a tribal blanket from the Stillaguamish Tribe, a symbol of community warmth and friendship. It was a gift and experience I will always cherish!
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With Executive Somers at the event after being presented with a Tribal Blanket |
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Totem or story pole in the background telling the story of the coyote; and in the foreground is the stump of the Oso grandmother tree, which later had to be felled due to safety concerns after the slide and flood caused permanent damage. |
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I recently attended the National Association of Counties’ Western Interstate Region Conference in Mariposa County, California, which is home to Yosemite National Park. This conference brings together officials from the western states to discuss public land issues, economic development and issues affecting west coast (best coast!) states. I attended informational sessions, and also had the opportunity to go on “Mobile Tours” to explore the park and their sustainable tourism industry – lessons I will take with me as chair of our county’s Lodging Tax Advisory Committee. Here are two pictures from the mobile tour and a hike I took on the last day. The first is a picture with me at the Tunnel tree, a giant sequoia with a tunnel walkway and the other is from the national forest pilot project which uses slash piles for controlled burns to reduce damage from large wild fires.
At the Tree Tunnel
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A controlled burn site to mitigate wildfire damage
I enjoyed the first annual “Spring Into Recovery” resource and community fair at Funko Field, hosted by the Snohomish County Recovery Coalition. There were over 50 booths supporting people in recovery and their loved ones. There were also dental, veterinary, haircut, and social services booths to help people get connected to services. I appreciated meeting many of the vendors and hearing about the great work in our community to address the impacts of the opioid crisis. We are all affected by this epidemic and I continue to work on policies that address the whole spectrum of needs – from preventing substance use disorder to community recovery. There’s more work to be done and it’s critical that we all work together to help make sure we all are on a stable life path.
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With Gina from First Clinic |
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On the mobile bus classroom from Evergreen Goodwill |
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Assistance with child care is available for eligible low-income Snohomish County families while taking part in job-related activities. Together with the Opportunity Council, Snohomish County provides temporary child care tuition to eligible families participating in job training, seeking employment, at risk of losing child care due to non-payment while employed, or in jeopardy of losing a job due to lack of child care. A navigator works side by side with families to determine eligibility for the Child Care Choice Voucher Program and provides help with the child care enrollment process. For more information, contact Liz Steele at (564) 565-0235 or Chelsey Cragin at (564) 565-0237. You can also email: cc_navigator@oppco.org or visit: https://www.ccanorthwest.org/child-care-choice-snohomish-county/.
Whether you drive, walk, bike, or roll on or near the US 2 trestle, the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is interested in hearing from you. WSDOT’s online open house and survey is now live for people to provide their input on the US 2 Trestle Capacity Improvements and Westbound Trestle Replacement project. The goal is to gather input about what people are experiencing in this area, including traffic issues. If you’d like to participate in the survey or leave a comment, you have until June 7 to do so. Please visit https://engage.wsdot.wa.gov/us2trestle/ or call (425) 233-8970 to leave a voicemail.
Since early in my first term, I have been working to support and evaluate our county’s treatment court system. Our current treatment court system allows people who have been charged with certain crimes to participate in treatment services as an alternative to incarceration. If they complete the programs, their charges will be dismissed. The county offers Adult Recovery Court and Family Recovery Court and I’ve been working to add a Veterans Treatment Court for services catered to justice-involved veterans. The efforts to revamp our treatment court system continues with more information to come, but in the meantime council recently recognized May as Treatment Courts Month in Snohomish County. Judge Fraser and staff from our treatment court system joined for the presentation and during remarks, Judge Fraser called the treatment court system “compassionate accountability.” Many thanks to all who are involved in our treatment court system to help people access restorative justice.
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Honoring our amazing Therapeutic Courts Staff!
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