Ed Ronco

Microsoft has pledged to contribute $500 million for affordable housing efforts in Seattle and the Eastside. King County Council member Claudia Balducci says this is a significant down payment on addressing the housing crisis. She talked with All Things Considered host Ed Ronco about the announcement.

When someone dies unexpectedly or unnaturally, a medical examiner is often called in to review what happened. A new report from King County shows how the information they gather is used to help public health.

Dear listeners,

We have some news about Going Places. As we close out 2018, we’re also ending our travel segment as a weekly feature.

We all have those people who are impossible to buy holiday gifts for.

“I’m in that situation right now,” said KNKX travel expert Matthew Brumley. “I’m missing a couple key presents for a couple key people in my life – one of them being my wife.” (She knows.)

Gov. Jay Inslee announced his proposed budget Thursday, calling for an additional $10 billion in state spending over the next two years. Olympia correspondent Austin Jenkins breaks down the plan, and state Rep. Bruce Chandler (R-Granger) reacted to it in an interview with All Things Considered host Ed Ronco.

Editor's note: This segment was originally broadcast on May 29, 2014.

Sometimes, people get sick while they're away from home. KNKX travel expert Matthew Brumley certainly has seen that in his decades leading group tours around the world. "I've been probably in 20 different hospitals in 20 different countries in the last 20 years," he said.

Following eight months of meetings, a workgroup on the prevention of sexual harassment in the Washington state House is recommending the formation of an independent office where victims could report misconduct, among other reforms.

In an on-air chat with All Things Considered host Ed Ronco, Olympia correspondent Austin Jenkins said the full set of recommendations is robust.

Editor's note: This segment originally aired on Jan. 19, 2017.

They say reading a book can take you far away. That’s usually a metaphor. But for many, books inspire literal travel, to follow in the footsteps of great authors or stories.

GRAYS HARBOR, WASH.  —  As part of special coverage here last week, All Things Considered host Ed Ronco introduced listeners to a pair of local historical fixtures: the Polson Museum in Hoquiam and the Aberdeen Museum of History. The former focuses on the history of logging. The latter faces a long road to recovery after a devastating fire in June. 

HOQUIAM, WASH. — Stefanie Ask says it's natural to make jokes about where you grew up. But when someone else does it, protective feelings bubble to the surface. "You feel this swelling of rage and sort of pride for this place," she told All Things Considered host Ed Ronco.

GRAYS HARBOR, WASH. — People might not think of Grays Harbor County first as a bastion of progress. But take a closer look at the area's leaders and you might get a different picture. 

ABERDEEN, WASHINGON — If you look at Aberdeen on the satellite view offered by Google Maps, one thing jumps out. From high above, it looks like a quilt with little tiny squares of color, neatly arranged over a huge area. Zoom in and it becomes clearer. The squares are cars. Acres and acres of cars.

Thanksgiving kicks off a holiday travel season that's famously busy and stressful for many. Travelers can face long lines at airports, winter weather delays, difficult drives, and so much more.

So it's become something of a tradition on our weekly travel segment, "Going Places," to reflect on those who make the experience a little easier.

KNKX travel expert Matthew Brumley is in Hawaii this week, exploring the Big Island and learning about its history. 

Editor's note: This segment originally aired Dec. 10, 2015.

The fall and winter are famously gray and drizzly in western Washington. In fact, we’re already seeing some of that weather. And that causes many of us to look for a temporary reprieve.

KNKX travel expert Matthew Brumley says how far you travel to find it depends entirely on what you’re looking for.

Elections are a measure of public opinion. And in part, the opinions of the people who make up the electorate are influenced by their background.

Political scientists and campaign consultants can use factors like a person’s age, race, educational attainment and income level to predict how that person will vote. But demographics can be fallible. Particular people often buck their demographic trends.

KNKX travel expert Matthew Brumley had a busy summer. He was in Switzerland, England, Croatia and Solvenia, just to name a few places. And everywhere he went, it seemed the crowds were bigger than he's seen, even with 30 years experience as a travel guide.

Winter isn't too far away, and KNKX travel expert Matthew Brumley is thinking about where he's going over the next few months.

That includes both holiday travel, trips he plans to take in early 2019. Brumley has one clear message for people planning some travel between now and the spring: Book now.

Inside the Mount Baker Theatre in Bellingham, the crowd had questions: Will there be jobs? What will the housing look like? Can I still get down to the beach? What about traffic in the area?

The redevelopment of Bellingham’s waterfront brings a lot of unknowns. What is clear, though, is that change is happening at the foot of the city’s downtown, where heavy industry once sat for more than a century.

In eastern Whatcom County, right where Highway 542 turns sharply to the east and toward Mount Baker, you’ll find the North Fork Community Library.

A visit to Bellingham likely means a stop at a museum or two. There's the Spark Museum of Electrical Invention, and the Bellingham Rail Museum, to name a couple.

And then there’s the Whatcom Museum, spread over two buildings, chronicling history, nature and art in the Northwest. From now until Jan. 6, the museum’s Lightcatcher building is hosting an exhibition focused on endangered species.

KNKX travel expert Matthew Brumley continues his trip through Croatia.

Last week, he gave us his first impressions of the capital city Zagreb. This week, he's along the Dalmatian Coast, in the southern part of the country.

KNKX travel expert Matthew Brumley has been to Croatia plenty of times, and he's shared those visits with us in his weekly "Going Places" travel segment.

But he's never been to the capital city, Zagreb. Until now.

Editor's note: This segment originally aired Oct. 13, 2016. 

When the weather breaks from summer heat to the gray, cool fall, I always think of a particular scene in the NBC television series "The West Wing," in which President Bartlet (Martin Sheen) is recording his weekly radio address.

Earlier this year, elected leaders in Seattle did a rapid about-face on a tax that would have collected money from large employers like Amazon to fund programs to address homelessness.

At the time, poll numbers showed a majority of voters opposed the idea. While council members and Mayor Jenny Durkan were changing their positions, they were also exchanging text messages -- with each other, and with power brokers in the city. 

People who love nature love to be in the wilderness. The problem is if too many nature-lovers visit one location, it's no longer wild. This conundrum is more likely to happen in the areas around a major population center like Seattle. 

There's one coal-fired power plant left in Washington state. But it won't be burning coal for much longer: It's scheduled to shut down or to switch to natural gas by 2025.

Editor’s note: This story was part of our KNKX Connects broadcast from Lewis County on Aug. 30, 2018. We explored the issues, events and personalities that shaped – and in some cases are still shaping – the cities of Centralia and Chehalis.

The land in west Lewis County is more rolling hillside than steep climb. It’s farmland in a lot of places, forest in others. Centralia and Chehalis sit at the confluence of the Chehalis and Skookumchuck rivers.