2014 was a year of significant accomplishment on behalf of the people of King County. Here are the top 14.

1. Four years to the day after it was closed, thousands turn out to celebrate completion of the new South Park Bridge—reconnecting a critical industrial corridor with communities across the Duwamish River.New South Park Bridge

2. Nearly 200,000 people in King County sign up for affordable health care thanks to the Executive’s 'all-hands-on-deck' approach to enrollment that cuts the county's uninsured rate nearly in half.Health care enrollment

3. A regional voice is raised on the hazards of oil and coal trains, as Executive Constantine convenes a coalition of 150+ state, tribal, and local leaders working together as the Safe Energy Leadership Alliance.Safe Energy Leadership Alliance

4. Executive Constantine and Council implement a reduced fare program for lower-income Metro bus riders, which begins in March 2015. No other major U.S. transit agency has a program of this scope.Metro's reduced fare program

5. With continued gun violence in public places, the Executive and Seattle mayor convene a summit for strategies to treat firearm violence as a public health crisis, backed by shared data and actions for prevention.Firearm violence prevention

6. The Executive directs Metro and Sound Transit to better integrate their services. This will create greater efficiencies, a seamless rider experience, and enable future service expansion in our growing region.Metro, Sound Transit integration

7. Concerted work by Executive Constantine and partners from across the region keep open the Public Health centers in Federal Way, Auburn, White Center, and Northshore, despite the withdrawal of state and federal funds.Saving Public Health clinics

8. Reforms that saved tens of millions of dollars in the cost of employee health care earn Harvard’s prestigious 'Innovations in American Government Award' for our Healthy Incentives program.Government innovation award

9. Executive Constantine launches 'Best Starts for Kids,' a major campaign to ensure every baby born and every child raised in King County reaches adulthood ready to succeed.Best Starts for Kids

10. King County and Seattle launch the Green/Duwamish Watershed Strategy to coordinate work across the 93-mile-long watershed, and the EPA's landmark decision enables Superfund cleanup to move ahead.Green-Duwamish Watershed Strategy

11. The Executive develops a 'farm-to-plate' Local Food Economy Initiative to expand access to healthy foods and get more locally grown and affordable food to kitchen tables and restaurants in our region.Farm-to-plate pipeline

12. Metro's ridership tops a record 120 million, and RapidRide ridership surges 44% with new lines connecting North Seattle with downtown, and east-west connections between Burien, Tukwila, and Renton.Record ridership for Metro

13. Obesity rates drop 17% among youth in several South King County school districts thanks to a Public Health program that increases access to healthy food choices and promotes more physical activity.Youth obesity drops 17%

14. The Seahawks win the Super Bowl! And King County coordinates with the Seattle Emergency Operations Center to safely host hundreds of thousands of fans for the championship parade downtown.Seahawks win Super Bowl!

*Click the text above to read more about King County's 2014 accomplishments.

From the Executive: 

This year, we made remarkable progress toward making this the best-run government in the nation.

We opened the new South Park Bridge, reconnecting our industrial heartland to the rest of King County. We led a coordinated community partnership that helped nearly 200,000 King County residents enroll in affordable health care, dropping the uninsured rate in our county by nearly half. We promoted regional transportation by directing Metro and Sound Transit to better integrate their services, and we created a reduced fare program for low-income bus riders that begins in March 2015.

The work we've done to reform County operations and increase efficiency continues to show results. King County received a “clean audit” from the State Auditor’s Office, and Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government honored our Healthy Incentives™ program with its prestigious "Innovations in American Government Award." Just this month, I spoke at Harvard's Ash Center about our Lean innovations that have brought private-business practices into the public sector.

Each of our major accomplishments in 2014 contribute directly to the health and prosperity of our region. We again demonstrated that we can bring together elected leaders, cities, labor, nonprofits, businesses, tribes, schools, community partners, and our employees to achieve important, ambitious goals.

I look forward to continuing our partnerships in 2015, as we work to advance equity and social justice, confront climate change, increase regional mobility, and provide the best starts for kids.

Sincerely,

Dow Constantine
King County Executive