King County Council Vice-Chare Julia Patterson Announces Retirement After 23 Years of Serving South King County Area
After 23 years of pulbic service to the residents of South King County, Julia Patterson announced Friday afternoon that she will not be seeking a 4th term on the King County Council.
Patterson acted as a founding member of the SeaTac City Council before representing the 33rd district in both the State House and State Senate. In 2001, Paterson was elected to the King County Council where she will serve through 2013.
During her time on the King County Council, Julia represented the 33rd district which included the cities of SeaTac, Des Moines, Normandy Park and Kent. In the 2011 redistricting, Southern Burien, also known as the neighborhood of Manhattan, and the areas east of 1st Ave, as well as the neighborhoods of Gregory Heights, Three Tree Point, Maplewild and Lake Burien all became part of Paterson’s district. (more…)
Guns, Stolen Goods and Gang Paraphernalia Recovered by King County Sheriffs Department During Search in South End
The King County Sheriff’s Office has arrested one person and plans to arrest another after they tried to sell stolen goods on Craigslist. $22,000 worth of stolen property was recovered and 17 guns, ammo, outlaw motorcycle gang paraphernalia and robbery kits were seized. The robbery kits consisted of a mask, gloves and large zip-ties fashioned into hand-cuffs.
The case began on 02/13/13 when the owner of a local company in the unincorporated area of south Seattle called the Sheriff’s Office to report the loss of about $10,000 worth of Bluetooth keyboards from a warehouse. There were no signs of forced entry and he believed the theft was an inside job. On 02/18/13, the owner called back to say he did a full inventory and discovered $12,000 worth of tripods were also missing. The owner located items being sold on Craigslist that he believed were the stolen items. A detective set up a buy and at the same time another employee said he thought he recognized where the photos in the Craigslist ad had been taken. The home belonged to a current and a recently fired employee of the company. A search warrant was obtained and the items were recovered from the house which was only a few blocks away from the company. (more…)
King County Property Taxes Mixed for 2013
The following article was published in partnership with the Highline Times.
King County residents received their annual valentine from the county assessor’s office as property tax bills for 2013 were sent out on Feb. 14.
Property taxes are mixed in King County for 2013, with property values and property taxes down for many, according to assessor Lloyd Hara. However, some property owners will see their property values decline while their property taxes increase, and other property owners will see both their property values increase and property taxes increase.
“We are beginning to see a recovery in the housing market in King County,” said Hara. “Though property values continue to decline in most areas, there are also a number of areas where property values are increasing, including in the city of Seattle and the Eastside.” (more…)
Executive Constantine on defeat of proposed annexations in North Highline and West Hill
Press Release: Next Step is up to Residents
“We acknowledge the decision of the residents of the North Highline and West Hill communities to remain in unincorporated King County for the immediate future.
“King County will continue to do its best to provide services to these areas within the resources available. The mandate of the state Growth Management Act remains unchanged– that urban areas should be in cities, which are in a better position to provide urban-level services.
“It’s going to be up to the residents of these urban unincorporated areas and their adjacent cities to decide if and when an annexation vote will come up again. It is certainly in the interest of the cities to act before the sales tax relief provided by the state expires in 2015.
“I want to thank the Mayor, the City Council, and the staff of the cities of Renton and Burien for their work and cooperation throughout this lengthy process.
“In the meantime, King County’s Community Service Area staff will continue to provide support and access to unincorporated area residents and organizations.”
Updated: Local Election Results for Burien and King County
Well the day has come and what’s done is done. While you can check out cable news and local Seattle news for nationwide and statewide election results, we’ll be updating this article with the results of the issues that we think effect Burien voters the most.
Don’t forget, no matter what the results, we will still be neighbors and community members tomorrow.
We will update this article again after 8:15pm when King County Elections is scheduled to next release results. (more…)
Letter to the Editor: Debi Wagner Opposing Annexation
The following letter was sent to Burien Daily by Burien resident, Debi Wagner.
Neighbors and Voters of Area Y/North Highline/White Center there is no law that requires us to annex to a city. No one in King County or in Washington State government claims that such a law exists. Additionally, the King County Library Board has never stated that the White Center and Boulevard Libraries will be closed if we don’t annex to Burien. Both of these libraries are currently in the City of Burien and are not part of this annexation vote.
Independent White Center PAC is registered with Washington State and is a group of concerned citizens from Area Y/North Highline/White Center, Seattle and Burien. We are not just a few wealthy land owners in North Highline; we are many of your friends and neighbors. When surveyed, most Area Y residents/we stated that we wanted to remain independent and not annexed to any city. (more…)
Deadline to Register to Vote in November 6th King County Election is October 8th
Monday, October 8th, 2012, is the King County deadline for online registration for the November 6th State and nationwide elections. King County residents who have never voted, changed their name, or have moved must register with King County Elections to receive their ballot for the next election.
Mailed ballots must be postmarked or dropped in a King County ballot drop box by the end of the business day on November 6th.
King County residents can register online by visiting King County Elections’ website here. Residents can also learn more about the current election by visiting the November 6th election website here. (more…)
Let’s Read campaign encourages parents & children to read together over the summer months
Press Release: New effort launched to prevent summer reading loss
Let’s Read campaign encourages King County parents and children to read together over the summer months.
SEATTLE – As King County area schools prepare for summer break a new effort is being launched to prevent summer reading loss. Let’s Read is a campaign encouraging parents and children to read together over the summer months and being led by the King County Library System, Seattle Public Libraries, United Way of King County, Community Center for Education Results and many other companies and organizations. (more…)