Category: 200 Parks
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Three Programs Getting Kids Outdoors and in the Water This Summer
Last year, the Parks Levy grant programs awarded more than $30 million to support projects large and small that create and improve access to parks and recreation throughout King County. The following programs are just a few of many providing valuable recreation and learning opportunities for youth during the summer and throughout the year: Swim…
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Plan your next adventure with Backyard Fun Finder
Looking for playgrounds to take the kiddos during the last weeks of summer break? Want to find a new-to-you trail? With 200+ parks and trails in the King County Parks system, there’s something for everyone. Explore everything from ballfields, playgrounds, pools, and trails, to lush forests, quiet meadows, and sweeping vistas of mountains, rivers, and…
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White Center Teen Program expands Rec Aide program to Skyway Park
Since 1991, the White Center Teen Program has provided leadership training and first-time employment opportunity to youth in underserved King County communities. Since its inception, the WCTP has hired and trained more than 150 recreation aides to support programs in White Center and Skyway. This summer, 2 teen leaders and 10 Rec Aides supported activities at…
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Parks Mid-Levy update
Four years into our current levy, Parks’ focus on increasing recreational opportunities and making Parks and trails more accessible to all King County residents is reflected in our recent grant-funded projects. Levy Grants in Action Parks Levy Grants are awarded to cities, agencies, nonprofits, and others who are doing meaningful work for the benefit of…
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Connections that bridge: King County Parks’ MET interns
For the second summer in a row, the King County Parks’ Mobile Engagement Team (MET) program is hosting a group of college interns who are passionate about working with parks, government, and community outreach. Galit Berezansky, Malefia Gustafsson, Annabelle “Bee” Kisky, and Luc Tworek have conducted safety and accessibility surveys with pedestrians and disc golf…
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New Dockton Playground Opens October 2023!
UPDATE (11.3.23): Due to scheduling delays with construction, the new playground at Dockton Park is now expected to open in December 2023. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work on making a playground for everyone to enjoy for years to come. —- We’re pleased to announce the new playground at Dockton Park is…
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Blooms and Blossoms at King County Parks
As we head into the peak of summer, it’s a great time to view vibrant and colorful perennials that bloom all summer long. Whether you’re a master gardener or someone who loves bringing home a bouquet from your local farmer’s market, the following parks offer a profusion of flowering and showy plants that are certain…
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Bullfrogs in King County Parks
The creaky calls of American bullfrogs resonate over the water all throughout King County, around White Center Heights Park, Marymoor Park, and Cottage Lake Park. Lithobates catesbeianus is a large-bodied frog found near the water’s edge or sunning itself in the center of ponds. For most people, seeing and hearing these amphibians around signals that…
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Refuge Outdoor Festival returns to Tolt-MacDonald Park
Now in its sixth year, the annual Refuge Outdoor Festival returns to King County’s Tolt-MacDonald Park from Friday, August 18 to Sunday, August 20. Geared towards people of color, this 3-day camping festival is open to everyone, including allies. Participants can come out for a day trip, camp out for a night, or stay for…
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White Center Teen Program impacts teen graduation and college admissions
Since the inception of the White Center Teen Program (WCTP) in 1991, the program has provided White Center youth with a safe, positive environment to get involved in year-round recreation and educational programs and activities. The immediate goal of the program has always been to reduce youth involvement in violent, criminal, or gang-related activities and increase…
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White Center Teen Program celebrates thirty years of programming
The White Center Teen Program (WCTP) will celebrate its 30-year anniversary on June 30. Originally created by former King County Parks staff Shelley Brittingham, the WCTP (based out of the Log Cabin at Steve Cox Memorial Park) exists to create a space for young people to come together and build friendships in a safe space.…
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Three Short Spring Walks
As the spring weather finally heats up, King County Parks offers some great options to explore hiking in scenic, shaded landscapes. Whether making a short daytrip to Vashon Island or birdwatching in Marymoor Park, these short walks will get you immersed back in nature in no time. To be specific by what we mean by…
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Parks Grants Make a Splash at Evergreen Pool
The Evergreen Aquatic Center is home to an indoor pool that has served White Center and unincorporated King County since 1970. The pool is owned by Highline Public Schools and managed by community-based nonprofit Whitewater Aquatics Management. When this well-loved facility began showing its age and needed major repairs, these partners turned to King County…
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Three Great Playgrounds for Families
King County Parks offer great outdoor recreational opportunities for adults, but many parks also feature fun-filled playgrounds and outdoor opportunities for families with younger children. At these parks, you’ll find standout climbing structures, versatile play equipment, and even opportunities to build biking skills for your littlest ones. Dick Thurnau Memorial Park Come safely learn and…
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Enhancing Bird Habitat at Marymoor Park
Fifty volunteers from across King County came together in February, at the BirdLoop overlook at Marymoor Park, to dig in the dirt in support of bird habitat. King County employees walk towards the BirdLoop outlook at Marymoor Park. For this internal event, volunteers came from across the county and included employees from the King County…
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New Artworks at Skyway Park
King County Parks has partnered with the One Roof Foundation and Seattle Kraken to commission public artwork from Seattle-based artist T.R. Miles at Skyway Park. Miles is known for “Sunshine,” the mural of park scenes at Rainier Avenue and 54th Street in South Seattle. T.R. Miles’s mural Sunshine, located at Rainier Avenue and 54th Street in…
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Three King County Parks Off the Beaten Path
Travel beyond Seattle city limits to the furthest reaches of King County, and you’ll be rewarded with a rich diversity of rural parks. These open spaces and natural areas are great places to birdwatch, mountain bike, and observe a variety of unique ecosystems like bogs and wetlands. Moss Lake Natural Area At Moss Lake Natural…
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Groundbreaking along Foothills Trail
On January 18, King County Parks hosted a groundbreaking ceremony to mark the beginning of construction for the next phase of the Foothills Trail, the bridge over the White River that will connect the trail in Enumclaw with the trail in the City of Buckley. When completed, the steel bridge will create a 22-mile-long, paved,…
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MLK Day Events and Volunteer Opportunities
The mental health benefits of volunteering and coming together in community are known to prevent feelings of isolation, build connection, and ignite passion for common causes. On this upcoming Martin Luther King Day, consider devoting a few hours to your community through service or coming together with others with shared interests. Several local volunteer and…
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A Look Back at 2022!
We created a fun video to recap 2022. Please have a look, and thanks for being on this journey with us. Onward to 2023!
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Three King County Lowland Winter Walks
As the winter holidays approach and people reunite to gather together, check out King County Parks for some approachable lowland walks in our many woodland and natural areas. With picturesque views, and everything from gently graded, paved footpaths to unpaved, wooded trails, these lowland excursions make for a great nature break during the frenzy of holiday…
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Soil restoration at Preston Mill Park
World Soil Day takes place on December 5 each year and serves as an opportunity to focus attention on the critical importance of healthy soil and sustainable management of soil resources. Soil is a critical piece of our natural systems and contributes to producing sufficient, safe, and more nourishing food for healthier plants, animals, and people.…
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Three King County Trails With Amazing Views
With wildfire and smoke season in the rearview mirror, it’s time to get out on the trails for some clean air and fresh perspective. Here are some of our favorite vantage points from a few of King County’s parks and trails. Pinnacle Peak Pinnacle Peak is a 335-acre volcanic cone located one mile southeast of…
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Accessibility in King County Parks
October is Disability Awareness Month, where we celebrate contributions to our society by disabled people. It’s also an opportunity to look critically at how far we have to go to provide true access for those with disabilities. Accessibility in our parks is a priority and a core value at King County Parks. Parks has started working…
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Lake to Sound Trail construction updates
Since ground was last broken on the SeaTac segment of the Lake to Sound Trail in April, construction has neared more than 40% of completion. As a multi-municipality and agency collaboration between King County Parks, WSDOT, the Port of Seattle, and the five cities of Des Moines, SeaTac, Burien, Tukwila, and Renton, the Lake to…
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Join King County Parks at the Burke Museum’s International Archaeology Day
King County employs archaeologists, historians, and preservation planners to ensure that work on County land doesn’t violate federal, state, or local laws and regulations related to archaeology, the historical built environment, and traditional cultural places. Archaeologist Brandy Rinck, who works in the Cultural Resources Program at Parks, reviews projects and helps carry out any needed…
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Major updates to Skyway Park, with more changes to come
King County Parks celebrated the end of construction on major updates to Skyway Park with a community re-opening on October 9. Executive Dow Constantine, Councilmember Girmay Zahilay, and Director Warren Jimenez came out for the gathering, along with Andrew Bloom from the Seattle Kraken, Honorable Richard A. Jones and Mari Horita from One Roof Foundation,…
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King County Parks acquires more than 100 acres on Vashon
March 9, 2023 Update: Please join King County Parks at a virtual open house on March 22 at 6 p.m. to hear about this property. Register now. We are elated to announce a 110-acre Vashon property, rich with community events and ecological habitat, has been purchased by King County Parks for stewardship as protected public…
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Celebrating the launch of King County Parks’ Mobile Engagement Team and its first cohort of interns
This past summer, King County Parks launched its Mobile Engagement Team (MET) with a small group of college interns from the University of Washington (UW). Under the supervision of DNRP staff member David Lee, UW students Jaykub Rafael, Nathan Frarck, and Michelle Pollowitz engaged with communities at several parks in unincorporated areas of King County.…
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Checking in on the Jobs and Housing Program
King County launched the Jobs and Housing Program using federal COIVD-19 recovery dollars in 2021 to connect people experiencing homelessness to jobs, case managers, and housing support. Participants spend about a year as a King County employee, developing the experience and skills to then secure permanent employment. Parks was the first division to implement this program…