August 6th, 2018 Tracy Posted in Election, White Center newsComments Off on VOTE! Primary-election ballots due Tuesday
Tuesday is your last chance to get your ballot into either a dropbox or a mailbox. It’s not a long ballot (here’s what it looks like) but you have three major decisions:
–34th District State Senate: 11 people are running in this district that includes White Center and vicinity as well as West Seattle, Vashon and Maury Islands, and part of Burien. Which two will advance to November? Here’s the order in which they’re listed on the ballot, with party preference – the names link to their infopages on the state website:
–U.S. Senate: Incumbent Maria Cantwell has 28 challengers. Which two of the 29 candidates (all listed here) will make it to the general election?
–King County Prop 1: Replacement levy for Automated Fingerprint Identification System Services
TO VOTE: This is the first election with prepaid postage, so if you send your ballot via US Postal Service mail, you do NOT need a stamp. (Be sure it’ll be postmarked by Tuesday night.) You can also use a county dropbox up until 8 pm Tuesday – there’s one at the White Center Library (1409 SW 107th). The full countywide list is here.
July 25th, 2018 Tracy Posted in Election, Politics, White Center newsComments Off on VIDEO: Six candidates for 34th District State Senate share stage in White Center Chamber of Commerce-presented forum
By Tracy Record and Patrick Sand
White Center Now co-publishers
Six of the 11 candidates vying for the open 34th District State Senate seat shared a stage last night in a forum presented by the White Center Chamber of Commerce.
As moderator Aaron Garcia was careful to point out in the early going, it was not a debate – more an opportunity for community-building. Toward that end, no sparks flew; the participants differ more in style than in substance. Those participating were, from left on the stage as seen in our video above:
Schipper lives in White Center; Aragon lives in Burien; the other four live in West Seattle. All are on your ballot as Democrats except for Shaw, who filed with “no preference” regarding party. They are running to succeed Sen. Sharon Nelson, the Maury Island-residing Democrat who decided not to run for re-election.
The forum was held outdoors at TommySound studios in South Delridge. Note that in our summary below, what you’ll read is not the entire answer each candidate gave, but rather our highlights, noted as it went on, and we paraphrase rather than quote (unless you see something in quotation marks); to get the entire response, watch the video.
This is the only forum we’ve ever seen where candidates were given a test – in this case, to complete one side of a Rubik’s Cube-style puzzle – to determine who would go first. After about five minutes, nobody had done it yet, so Garcia went with whomever was closest – Schipper.
First, each candidate was challenged to include in their opening statement how they would support the Duwamish and Coast Salish people.
Schipper talked about her work as a nurse, her status as the only WC resident on the panel, and said she’s currently working on a program that includes support for Native families. She said her priorities include support for early childhood education.
Nguyen talked about his status as the child of immigrants and a former resident of what is now Seola Gardens. He said health care is one of his biggest concerns, especially with memories of a family crisis years ago. Regarding supporting Native people, he said housing affordability, health-care availability, and economic opportunity are vital.
Braddock – who ran for Seattle City Council three years ago and lost to Lisa Herbold by a handful of votes – talked about her status as a mother of three and longtime community advocate, including work with WC-headquartered WestSide Baby. She has worked in recent years for County Executive Dow Constantine and County Councilmember Joe McDermott. She mentioned support for “reasonable gun laws.” And she voiced concern about the hate-crime attack against Burien’s Mayor Jimmy Matta. She did not address the question about supporting Native people.
Aragon said she is a registered nurse, moved here from the Philippines and attended law school before working as a policy advocate in Olympia. She grew up in South Seattle. Health-care is a major concern for her too, as is inclusivity. She also did not address the Native-support question.
Shaw said she helped found West Seattle’s Fairmount Park Elementary PTA and has often been to Olympia to advocate for public schools. She is concerned about tax reform and school funding. She did address the question about Native support and said that, having worked in schools, honoring the cultures of families and receiving equity training were among her experiences.
Charleston opened by expressing his condolences for the family and friends of the Kent police officer who died this week. He made a point that he is “not a Democratic party insider” and he thinks things can be done better – he was the first to mention the problems of homelessness and drug abuse. He mentioned his background as a minister and said creativity needs to be applied to deal with problems. He did not answer the Native-related question.
First question by Garcia following the opening statements was about how the candidates would advocate for policies to support small businesses in White Center.
Nguyen said he has started businesses and cultural competence is vital to help people doing that.
Braddock opened her reply by saying she realized she hadn’t answered the Native-related question; she said environmental equity would be important. Regarding businesses, recognizing barriers, incentivizing “women and minority-owned businesses” would be important, she said.
Aragon said small-business owners share concerns with other residents – maintaining “a good quality of life,” including good schools, infrastructure, law enforcement. Building relationships will be important, she said.
Shaw said she is a small-business owner (albeit without a bricks-and-mortar storefront) and that tax fairness would be vital.
Charleston said he’s the son of a small-business owner and he thinks it’s important to educate business owners about everything “that’s available to them.”
Schipper suggested that patronizing the small businesses in the community are a vital first step, as would be having the four Chambers of Commerce in the 34th District team up to get things done.
Next question: Should the hotel-motel tax go to help with homelessness or Safeco Field?
Braddock said that the stadium is a public facility and does have legitimate maintenance needs but some money should be bonded for affordable housing.
Aragon talked about the housing crisis in general before saying it’s important to look at who’s benefiting from state fees and how that could be “more fair.”
Shaw said she’s not very familiar with the issue but “at the state level, there needs to be adequate funding for homelessness.”
Charleston said, “We teach our kids to get their work done before they go play,” so, applying that, “taking care of a stadium is trumped by taking care of homeless people…. Take care of the homeless people and then go play.”
Schipper noted that the Kingdome wasn’t paid off when it was demolished, and pointed out that three Board of Health members declared a “disaster” related to homelessness. Rather than bonds from tax dollars, money, she said, should be applied to emergency relief to keep people from becoming homeless.
Nguyen said he hasn’t heard any support for “upgrading the suites at Safeco Field” and that doing it is “tone deaf.” But “taking on debt for housing when we already have money” doesn’t make sense to him either.
Next question: Do you support a statewide $15/hour minimum wage?
Aragon said yes, and she doesn’t support staggering it.
Shaw said “a livable wage is super-duper important but it’s important and essential to have a conversation with business owners.”
Charleston said $15/hour isn’t even a livable wage – in this district, he said, a livable wage is about $29/hour, and businesses need breaks so they can pay their employees what it takes to live in Seattle.
Schipper said she supports $15/hour and agrees it’s not enough for livability.
Nguyen said he supports $15/hour and he would eliminate B&O tax for “small and medium sized businesses” so that they could support it. He said he would not take money from organizations that don’t support it.
Braddock said she supports it and also supports making the tax system less regressive, figuring out “how to tax wealth and not work.”
Next question: Annexation. Where do you stand regarding having White Center (and the rest of unincorporated North Highline) being annexed by Seattle or becoming a standalone city or becoming part of another community?
Shaw said it’s not up to her, she would want to help the community discuss it.
Charleston said he’s talked to people in White Center and it has pros and cons. But it’s unsustainable as it is.
Schipper said as she understands it, about half the people don’t want to be annexed at all, the other half support Seattle.
Nguyen said the community should vote “and decide where they want to go.” He talked about gentrification and said it’s making it hard for his relatives to stay.
Braddock said she would support a community vote on annexation; a state role is in providing a tax credit for annexation, and access to that needs to be maintained. She believes the community needs the type of resources that are available through Seattle.
Aragon said displacement needs to be addressed at the state level underlying the community discussion/decision.
Next question was about education funding and the declaration that the state has fulfilled the McCleary requirements – though not everyone agrees they’ve been fulfilled – so what’s your message to educators?
Charleston said people need to lean on legislators. It’s shocking what parents have to buy for their kids that the schools should supply, he said. He also brought up fair teacher pay. “You always get what you pay for.”
Schipper said she’d been a longtime Highline Public Schools parent and teachers aren’t getting what they need, so the McCleary situation isn’t settled yet. Teaching is a tough job and needs a fair wage, she said.
Nguyen said his wife has been a special-education teacher and he also knows what parents are being asked to do. Educators should reflect the diversity of the community; a loan-forgiveness program would help many educators, and he too said teachers should be able to get to a livable wage sooner.
Braddock said she agrees that schools still aren’t fully funded and that teacher salaries and special education funding “need to be addressed.”
Aragon said that changing communities mean teachers need to adjust to those communities’ needs too. She would support talking to school districts to find out what barriers and challenges were getting in the way of implementation.
Shaw said this was her “laser-focus issue” and an issue she could “talk about for hours” and that basic education is “nowhere close to being funded. … Our public schools are the foundation of a healthy democracy and we are failing them.”
At that point, there was a break to hear from Southwest Precinct Operations Lt. Steve Strand about last Friday’s deadly stabbing nearby, and other South Delridge crime issues. (That too is included in our video.)
After Lt. Strand spoke, Garcia asked about public safety.
Schipper that she believes guns are at the root of “some of the problems that are erupting.”
Nguyen noted that he and some others put together a forum after a deadly shooting in Burien. He talked about going on a ridealong and seeing that most calls had to do with mental health or homelessness, and that officers need different training to cope with that.
Braddock said that overall, “we need resources for training and tools” to effectively enforce laws.
Aragon said she helped found a racial-equity team among lobbyists when she was in Olympia and recognizes the “need for communities of color to be engaged in the legislative process.”
Shaw said she supports de-escalation
Charleston too but said that as a person of color, he has more concerns about being pulled over than “many of those in the audience.” He serves as a chaplain for public-safety and SPD has ‘reached out to the community’ to try to help “squash the misunderstanding between the blue and the black and brown folks.”
Next question: What specific gun-safety legislation will you author?
Nguyen: Age limit, ban assault rifles/high-capacity weapons, require insurance to buy guns/ammunition. He also said mental-health services are vital because many gun deaths are suicides.
Braddock said, all of those plus safe storage.
Aragon said Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense has endorsed her and that “anything we can do to narrow down the availability and the risk” would be important.
Shaw said she too is a “Candidate of Distinction” as labeled by Moms Demand Action and that she supports “common sense gun laws.”
Charleston mentioned that he served in the US Marine Corps and that he recognized how vital it was to understand a weapon. Society has a “large amount of ignorance” about the dangers of firearms, he said.
Schipper said safety, including gun storage, is what will make a difference. “I’m not (saying) people should have their guns taken away, but they need to be secured.”
Next question: How would you address mass incarceration and do you support the “No New Youth Jail” movement?
Braddock spoke about the importance of keeping youths from getting into the criminal-justice system in the first place. She said she supports the work of the activists ‘because they are making the facility better’ but she said the facility is being built because it’s required by the state, and she said it’s needed because youth who commit serious crimes shouldn’t end up in adult jail.
Aragon said her law school, Loyola, “was the birthplace of youth justice.” She said some places in Chicago are “lawless” and she doesn’t want to see that happen here. She didn’t address her stance on the “no new youth jail” movement.
Shaw said that resources for youth would be important in heading off problems “down the road.” Regarding “no new youth jail,” she wasn’t entirely certain about the movement’s goals.
Charleston said,”If you’ve got the money to build a multimillion-dollar correctional facility for children, you have the money to prevent them having to go to a facility” like that. He said it takes a supportive community “to take care of the kids.”
Schipper said more money for restorative justice is important but she also thinks it’s important to have a facility when youth have to be held, so that they don’t get sent to adult jail.
Nguyen was the only one to declare, “No youth jail. Right off the bat.” He spoke about trauma at young ages leading to trouble for youth and said the money for a jail should be “invested in actual people.”
Next topic: Housing and homelessness. What’s the state’s role and what does each candidate plan to accomplish?
Aragon said she’s on the low-income-housing board and mentioned a trust fund whose budget wasn’t passed in time last year so, she said, the state lost $200 million in funding. She said she supports permanent housing.
Shaw said she helped homeless people as part of a volunteer program in New York but has never seen anything as bad as it is in Seattle now. “We have so many resources, we need to find a solution.”
Charleston said, “If you really want to end homelessness, you need to stop making it a business … it’s big business right now. All the volunteer agencies set up around homelessness cost a lot of money.” Same way that President Eisenhower warned war would become big business, he elaborated. So it needs to be managed, he said.
Schipper said “look(ing) at the drivers on homelessness” is key – such as income inequity, mental and physical health services. She said regional solutions are needed.
Nguyen said he serves on the Wellspring Family Services board, dealing with family homelessness, and that you can’t treat homelessness “like a monolith.” Women often become homeless while fleeing a domestic-violence situation, for example, he said. Seniors, renters, distinct groups need distinct help in staying in their homes.
Braddock talked about building the Housing Trust Fund back up to fund affordable housing. She also supports using surplus properties to build/provide housing. “Treatment on demand” also is needed and can make a difference, she said.
Closing statements:
Shaw said she welcomes having conversations about “how we can improve.”
Charleston took up the Native question that had been asked earlier and said that the Duwamish Tribe needs to be federally recognized. The city named after Chief Seattle “has a whole lot of problems.” But he said it’s good that none of the candidates has been elected before, so they’d be coming in with fresh eyes.
Schipper noted that the Legislature “is a citizen legislature” and pointed out that she’s done work “on the ground” in communities for 20 years – “in the community, with the community.”
Nguyen said, “This community raised me,” helped his family in its time of need, “gave me a voice.” He also noted that the 34th has never been served by a legislator of color, and he thinks what’s wrong is that the people have never been reflected by their representatives.
Braddock said the citizen legislature needs a perspective like hers, “a single mom of school-age kids who works outside the home” She mentioned child-care, education, income inequity, and her experience working with King County government.
Aragon recalled a line from “Hamilton” – “winning a war is easy, governing is harder.” She said she’s seen a lot in her years of advocacy, and she considered the tough work when she was asked to consider running. “A lot of good things can be done.” She, like Nguyen, said she’s proud that she would represent the “diverse community.”
And after more than an hour and a half of Q&A, the forum ended. Again – voting goes until 8 pm August 7th. Ballot postage is now prepaid so if you choose to use the US Postal Service to send yours, no need to use a stamp. Or you can put it in the dropbox at the White Center Library.
One last mention in case you haven’t voted yet in the 11-candidate 34th District State Senate race – six candidates have RSVP’d for tonight’s White Center Chamber of Commerce-presented forum just across the line in South Delridge, 6-8 pm at TommySound, 9409 Delridge Way SW: Sofia Aragon, Shannon Braddock, Lem Charleston, Joe Nguyen, Lois Schipper, Hillary Shaw. All welcome.
It appears the Highline Public Schools levy measure will pass, with early results showing 57.67 percent voting in favor of renewal.
“I am grateful to voters for their support of our students and schools. Local funding for our schools is critical,” said Superintendent Susan Enfield. “It allows us to provide the quality education our community expects for our children, which goes beyond the minimum funded by the state.”
The levy bridges the gap between what the state funds and the education Highline provides students. The approved levy pays for critical needs, including teachers, staff, school nurses, safety and security officers, counselors, social workers, special education, Camp Waskowitz and athletics.
November 7th, 2017 Tracy Posted in Election, White Center newsComments Off on ELECTION NIGHT RESULTS: After the first vote count, here are the toplines
King County released its Election Night vote tally just after 8 pm. Here are notes of local interest:
KING COUNTY SHERIFF: Johanknecht 52 percent, Urquhart 48 percent
KING COUNTY EXECUTIVE: Constantine 75 percent, Hirt 24 percent
KING COUNTY PROPOSITION 1: Yes 66 percent, No 34 percent
SEATTLE PORT COMMISSION POSITION 1: Creighton 51 percent, Calkins 49 percent
SEATTLE PORT COMMISSION POSITION 3: Bowman 67 percent, Abdi 33 percent
SEATTLE PORT COMMISSION POSITION 4: Steinbrueck 63 percent, Shridhar 37 percent
NORTH HIGHLINE FIRE DISTRICT COMMISSION POSITION 1: Giba 56 percent, Maples 44 percent
November 7th, 2017 Tracy Posted in Election, White Center newsComments Off on LAST HOUR TO VOTE: Get to the dropbox by 8 pm
Patti, Liz, and their canine companions posted for us at the White Center Library ballot dropbox late this afternoon. Also there, volunteers from the White Center Community Development Association, cheering for everyone who brought in their ballot. The dropbox at 1409 SW 107th is open until 8 pm – so if you are voting at the last minute, get there as soon as you can. First results are due by about 8:15 pm.
February 9th, 2016 Tracy Posted in Election, White Center newsComments Off on White Center scene: Ballot van at Greenbridge
No voting for this area today, but the King County Elections ballot van is at Greenbridge as usual, until 8 pm – just over the line in the Seattle Public Schools district, today is a special election for two levies. We stopped by to photograph Joe and Mary at the van, 9720 8th SW; as of noon, they had received 49 ballots.
November 2nd, 2015 Tracy Posted in Election, White Center newsComments Off on VOTE! Ballot van at Greenbridge until 5 pm today, 10 am-8 pm on Election Day
Voted yet? Until 5 pm today, and again 10 am-8 pm tomorrow (Tuesday), you can drop your ballot off, NO POSTAGE REQUIRED, via the King County Elections ballot-dropoff van outside Greenbridge Library, on 8th SW, south of SW Roxbury. We photographed Mark and Marvin there with the van on Saturday.
Though the August ballots are still being counted, the November campaigns are on, including a countywide levy that will be on your ballot: Best Starts for Kids, aka King County Proposition 1. The campaign for your “yes” vote began with a Thursday media event in White Center – here’s the news release shared by the campaign afterward:
The proposed six-year levy would invest in prevention and early intervention strategies to increase the number of children in King County who reach adulthood healthy and ready to contribute to the region’s prosperity
King County Executive Dow Constantine and other elected officials and community leaders from throughout King County urged voters to approve the Best Starts for Kids initiative that will appear on the November 3rd General Election ballot.
Best Starts for Kids is an initiative to improve the health and well-being of King County by investing in prevention and early intervention strategies based on the latest brain science that identifies key developmental milestones.
“Best Starts for Kids is our opportunity to transform the way we invest in our children’s future by focusing on what works,” said Executive Constantine. “This is how we will transition to effective upstream solutions that can prevent negative outcomes, including mental illness, substance abuse, domestic violence, and incarceration – and put every child in King County on a path toward lifelong success.”
Executive Constantine was joined by King County Councilmember Joe McDermott, campaign co-chairs Matt Griffin and Michelle Sarju, and many more. The event was hosted at Educare School of Greater Seattle, an innovative Head Start program in the White Center neighborhood of unincorporated King County.
“Investing in children early in their lives provides the best opportunity to help them make the right choices and achieve their full potential,” said Auburn Mayor Nancy Backus. “The earlier the investment, the greater the return. Healthy kids are more likely to become productive adults, avoiding issues that can put them into the criminal justice system.”
Best Starts of Kids is informed by research by James Heckman, a Nobel Prize-winning economist who found that investing early in a person’s development – starting with prenatal services – delivers the greatest return.
Heckman, Director of the Center for the Economics of Human Development at the University of Chicago, has devoted his professional life to understanding the origins of major social and economic problems related to inequality, social mobility, discrimination, skill formation and regulation, and to devising and evaluating alternative strategies for addressing those problems.
“The aim is to make the latest research and tools available to every parent and caregiver, and ultimately to produce talented, creative and successful adults who will help us remain a prosperous region,” said campaign co-chair Michelle Sarju.
The Metropolitan King County Council voted overwhelmingly across party lines to support Best Starts for Kids and place the issue before the voters this November. Approval of the initiative would make King County one of the first metropolitan areas in the nation to adopt a unified, comprehensive plan, based on science, to ensure all children can develop the cognitive, emotional, and social skills necessary to succeed in life.
“This is a great investment opportunity not only in kids but in our community,” Councilmember McDermott said. “Increasing the percentage of healthy children who become successful adults can help reduce spending on criminal justice, reduce homelessness and enable us to target mental-health and drug-treatment options to those who need them.”
Best Starts for Kids will complement Seattle’s preschool program and similar efforts by increasing the number of children who arrive at school each day healthy and ready to learn.
Half the proceeds from the levy will be invested in early childhood development, from birth through age 5 when 92 percent of brain growth occurs. That includes early intervention services that can prevent developmental delays from becoming lifelong disabilities and nurse home visitations that help at-risk mothers deliver healthier babies.
Current community-based programs in King County that increase the likelihood a baby is born at a healthy weight and that help prevent developmental delays from becoming lifelong disabilities are limited in part because the vast majority of the County’s General Fund budget must pay for the criminal justice system, including law enforcement, courts and jails.
The six-year levy, at 14 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value, would cost the average King County property owner an estimated $56 per year, or about $1 a week. The levy would be overseen by a citizen’s oversight board and generate an estimated $58.3 million in 2016 for the following allocations:
• 50 percent to early childhood development, from birth through age 5, when research shows that 92 percent of brain growth occurs.
• 35 percent to sustain the gain by providing early intervention services to address problems such as depression and developmental disabilities as the brain continues to develop through age 24.
• 10 percent to reinforce a child’s progress by improving the health, social, and economic outcomes in the communities where they live.
• 5 percent to pay for evaluation, data collection and program improvement.
The levy would immediately fund a program designed to help survivors of domestic violence from becoming homeless. It will be based on a successful pilot project created by the Gates Foundation.
“We all want to live in a place where every child has the chance to succeed,” said campaign co-chair Matt Griffin. “This is a chance to move our community forward and ensure that our children have the fair start to life that they deserve. It’s just the right thing to do.”
August 1st, 2015 Tracy Posted in Election, White Center newsComments Off on VOTE! Ballot van is at Greenbridge until 5 pm today
Quick reminder – if you haven’t voted yet, do it! And get your ballot over to David and Jeffrey with the King County Elections ballot-dropoff van, which is at Greenbridge today until 5 pm (again Monday 10-5 and Tuesday 10-8), on 8th SW south of Roxbury.
We found Fred and Joe at the ballot-dropoff van outside Greenbridge Library on Monday, and you’ll find the van there from 10 am-8 pm today – your last chance to get the ballots in for the levy to raise money to replace the area’s emergency-radio system. In the first of its nine years, the rate will be 7 cents for every thousand dollars of property valuation, so if you have a house valued at $400,000, this will cost you $28. If you’re mailing your ballot, remember you need to provide a stamp, and get it postmarked by tonight; if you use the drop van (or another county dropoff spot), you do NOT need a stamp.
February 10th, 2015 Tracy Posted in Election, Schools, White Center newsComments Off on Highline Public Schools special-election results: Prop 1 passing, Prop 2 with less support (so far) than first time around
Construction/renovation Proposition 2 needs 60 percent to pass, and while it was close in the last election, it’s further back this time, at least so far:
* 18 years old by election day, Feb. 10
* A United States citizen
* A legal resident of the state of Washington
* Not under the authority of the Department of Corrections
Questions?
If you live in the Highline school district and haven’t yet received a ballot, or if you have questions, call King County Elections at 206-296-VOTE (8683). Ballots must be postmarked by Feb. 10 or returned to a drop-box or Accessible Voting Center by 8 p.m. on Feb. 10.
It appears that the Highline capital improvement bond — now at 58.03 percent approval — will not reach the 60 percent needed for passage. Though yes votes have been trending upward, it is unlikely the ballots yet to be counted will push the final count above the 60 percent threshold.
School Board President Michael Spear acknowledged that a majority of voters did vote to approve the measure. “We are grateful for the support of the many, many citizens in our community who expressed their support for our schools by voting yes,” said Spear.
With failure of the bond, the district has limited options for meeting the challenges of overcrowding and aging, deteriorating schools.
This fall enrollment is up 400 students over last year, causing crowding in elementary schools. Enrollment is expected to grow by over 2,000 in the next eight to ten years.
Bond failure also means replacement and major repairs to the district’s aging and outdated schools will have to wait.
“We will do our best to serve our students, knowing there are physical and financial limitations to what we can do to improve the learning environment in our oldest buildings,” said Superintendent Susan Enfield. “We will work with our community to determine a plan for moving forward.”
October 31st, 2014 Tracy Posted in Election, Politics, White Center newsComments Off on Election 2014: Ballot-dropoff van at Greenbridge three of the next four days
Tuesday is Election Day. If you haven’t sent in your ballot yet, three of the next four days bring visits by the King County Elections ballot-dropoff vans. Same White Center spot as recent elections – on the street outside Greenbridge Library (9720 8th SW). The van will be there 10 am-5 pm Saturday and Monday, 10 am-8 pm Tuesday. No postage needed if you’re taking your ballot to a van or to the 24-hour dropboxes elsewhere in the county, but you DO need correct postage if you’re mailing yours. If you’ve already sent in/dropped off your ballot, track it online. Two other links of potential interest: Sample ballot here; pamphlet info here.
August 5th, 2014 Tracy Posted in Election, White Center newsComments Off on Election Day: Get your ballot in by 8 pm
Today is Election Day and for your vote to count, your ballot needs to either be in the mail by tonight – and postmarked with today’s date, with postage on the envelope – or turned in at a dropbox or dropoff van by 8 pm, which does NOT require postage. There’s a van in White Center, on 8th SW in Greenbridge, all the way up until that last moment at 8. If you still need a reason to vote, there is one big measure to be decided today, the North Highline Fire District benefit charge, which requires a 60 percent “yes” vote to pass. Whatever and whomever you’re voting for, don’t let your ballot go to waste.
The August 5th election is just a month away – and it includes the important North Highline Fire District ballot measure. So don’t miss the chance to vote – here’s the reminder from King County Elections:
Citizens who want to vote in the August 5 primary election have until Monday, July 7 to register to vote or update voter registration information online or by mail. King County Elections will mail primary election ballots to all registered voters on July 16, so it’s important that citizens register to vote and keep their address and other information, including their signature, updated.
Voters can check to make sure their registration information is current by:
* Using My Voter Guide online
* Calling the Voter Hotline at 206-296-VOTE (8683)
* Visiting King County Elections, 919 SW Grady Way, Renton. Weekdays 8:30-4:30
* Visiting the Voter Registration Annex, 500 4th Avenue, Room 440, Seattle. Weekdays from 8:30 am to 1 pm and from 2 pm to 4:30 pm
Voters who miss the July 7 deadline to update their registration should still contact the Elections office to update their information for future elections. King County residents not currently registered in Washington can register in person at the Elections office through July 28.
Who can register?
To be eligible to register to vote, you must be:
* 18 years old by election day (August 5)
* A United States citizen
* A legal resident of the state of Washington
* Not under the authority of the Department of Corrections
Lt. Ray Pettigrew stood in for Chief Mike Marrs, who he said couldn’t make it because of illness. With maps and a PowerPoint, he explained the money proposal, as well as some basics about the NHFD itself:
*Each station has 1 engine staffed with three firefighters at any given time, he said – sometimes a bit more because of volunteers.
*Vast majority of the job is going on aid calls
*278 false alarms – “almost one per day”
*42 hazmat calls
*526 “other” calls – illegal burns, barbecues mistaken for fires
About 12 calls a day between the two stations, so “they’re pretty busy.”
He says it’s a matter of financial need – “we’ve done everything we can to try to cut expenses
… we’ve used reserves … we’ve contracted to have Burien chief also be the North Highline chief,” but they’re about out of reserves if no new funding is found. In addition, he noted, the district has gotten smaller, with the 2010 Burien annexation, for example.
Proposition 1 on the August ballot needs a simple yes/no vote. If passed, it sets up a six-year run for the charge – with potential renewals thereafter. It’s not a tax, Pettigrew stressed, “it’s a fee,” and it’s charged based on factors such as square footage and whether a building has sprinklers or not.
For the average owner of a 2,000 square foot home worth $250,000, their tax/fee bill would go up $6/month, he said. It would only be charged for structures, not for empty land. Other districts with a “benefit charge” include Kent, Auburn, Woodinville, and Eastside Fire.
“It allows us to stabilize our funding so we’re not subject to property values going up and down, more ability to plan long range,” he said.
Tuesday is Election Day. If you haven’t sent in your ballot yet, three of the next four days bring visits by the 