Dear friends and neighbors,

I started this week with a heavy heart as another member of our community lost their life on the stretch of highway 18 near Tiger Mountain. I extend my sympathies to the family and friends of those close to her. We all know how dangerous this highway is. Improving safety and traffic flow on SR 18 to prevent such tragic loss has been and will continue to be my top transportation priority for our community.

As the highway 18 project remains on the top of the mind in our community, I wanted to make everyone aware of another project I am working on in North Bend.

In the Interbay area of Seattle, there are 25 acres of land currently home to the Washington National Guard Armory. This is where the National Guard deploys from during emergency situations, but the current location has a few problems. The Armory could be cut off during natural disasters, and can be difficult to access because of traffic from Downtown Seattle. This means that quick response times could be slowed down when they are needed most.

For these reasons, there have been ongoing discussions about moving the National Guard to North Bend for better access to areas around the state. I see this as a win-win for both our community and Seattle for many reasons:

  • This project will create construction jobs, and bring a great deal of economic development to our community.
  • Seattle needs more housing, and the vacated site in Interbay can be used as a site for new facilities with access to transit.
  • North Bend and many other communities will have quick access to the National Guard in case of flooding or other events, such as the extraordinary snow experienced last year.
  • The required training for the National Guard only takes place a few times a year, so there will be minimal impact on nearby residents.

While this project is still in the early stages, I think it speaks to what our community has to offer for the rest of the state, and I am excited about the possibilities it brings us.

As always, I welcome you to reach out to me with feedback on these, or any other issues.

Best regards,