King County is in good shape and getting better.
That’s the message from County Executive Dow Constantine during his “State of the County” speech Monday. Speaking from the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent, Constantine touted progress in taming the county’s budget problems and making county government more efficient.
Among other things, Constantine pointed to:
- Efforts to move forward with replacing the decrepit South Park Bridge
- Improved animal shelter services
- Avoiding the need for a new county jail
Constantine noted that work on the Howard Hansen Dam had decreased the threat of flooding in the Green River Valley, allowing the county Elections Office to move back into its new headquarters in Renton.
" Build prosperity and get people back to work"
Constantine also sounded a call for getting the economy going again. He supported moving forward on major highway projects, such as the SR 520 bridge and Seattle’s Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement.
"At this hour, on this day ten years ago, we were experiencing the Nisqually Earthquake. it's time to get moving on the deep-bore tunnel for the Highway 99 corridor. A contract's been signed, let's get the job started and put people back to work."
Constantine took a moment to take a swipe at Wisconsin's Governor Scott Walker. He contrasted his approach to improving government efficiency with that of Walker and Wisconsin's Republican lawmakers. Constantine said that rather than going to war with government workers, he’s worked cooperatively with them to trim costs and balance the budget.
