Announcer: King County Council.
As the legislative branch
of county government,
the nine members of the
Metropolitan King County Council
set the policies,
enact the laws,
and adopt the budgets that guide
the largest jurisdiction
in Washington state.
The council's mission
is to protect public health
and safety,
enhance quality of life,
and ensure public trust.
Council positions
are nonpartisan,
and council members are elected
to four-year terms.
This year, five of the nine
council positions will appear
on the general election ballot.
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Hi. I'm Sally Caverzan.
I'm very new to politics,
but I am not new to King County.
I came to Seattle in 2005
to do direct service work with the unhoused.
The 10-year plan to end homelessness
had just been unveiled,
and I wanted to be part of the solution.
I come from privilege and trauma,
along with an internalized notion
of coping and healing through service work
and by connecting to nature.
I worked for years in nonprofit and government services,
including long-term care, home-visiting social work.
I have seen it all, folks.
I know the daily hardships
that our most marginalized and vulnerable residents
and their families face.
I understand the realities
of housing and unemployment barriers.
Like many of you, I see the direct correlation
of our drug and mental health crisis,
crime, and an overburdened system
in our escalating social disorder.
The creation of a King County regional treatment facility
is my highest priority.
There is a lack of access to inpatient treatment beds.
Our hospitals, our jails have become revolving doors.
We need reintegration housing.
There must be a realistic porch light
at the end of the tunnel.
With the climate crisis,
our solutions must be more than rapid transit,
expensive cars, and localized solar.
We need systemic infrastructure
towards underground cables
to keep our tree canopy
and to prevent wildfires,
natural drainage projects
and rainwater collection approaches
that will save our beloved Pacific Northwest salmon
and orca populations.
We need to build up
a King County Conservation Corps.
We can keep people in their homes.
We can find stability for self and others
through contributing to the public good.
I'm Sally C.
And now for something completely different.
Hi, my name is Rod Dembowski, and it's a privilege
and honor to represent you on the King County Council.
I represent District 1,
which is North Seattle,
and the cities of Shoreline,
Lake Forest Park, Kenmore, Bothell,
Woodinville, and North Kirkland.
I chair the Mobility Environment Committee
and serve as vice chair of the Budget Committee.
In my time on the council, I've prioritized work
in the environmental space,
helping secure new parklands at Bothell,
the Wayne Golf Course, preventing its development,
a new waterfront park in Lake Forest Park,
and expanding Big Finn Hill Park in Kirkland.
I've also made a priority to invest in our urban streams,
from Lyon Creek to McAleer Creek,
Bear Creek, Denny Creek.
We've got to restore their health.
Housing and human services
have been a major piece of the work I've done.
I led the effort to form
the Behavioral Health Institute at Harborview
to have the best behavioral health program in the country.
The pandemic -- we're coming out of that.
I'm very proud of King County's response.
And we've led the nation in reducing infections,
deaths, the spread,
and reopening our economy.
Going forward, there's lots of work to do,
but a couple priorities.
First, the environment and climate change.
We have the best climate change plan
from a local government in the country.
We've got to implement it and speed it up.
I've proposed a climate bond
to make investments in greening our transit fleet,
preserving the last 60,000 acres of open space in King County,
and decarbonizing our built environment.
We can't wait any longer.
Second, homelessness.
I'm very proud of our Health Through Housing initiative,
where we're acquiring 1,600 units.
We got to quadruple down on that
and move faster and more effectively.
Very proud of the endorsements I've received for reelection.
The Washington Conservation Voters,
King County Democrats,
all of the mayors in my district outside of Seattle,
the Alliance for Gun Responsibility,
the Labor Council, and many others.
My time on the council, I've never missed a vote,
not in committee and not at full council.
I'd like to continue working for you,
and I ask for your support.