Sims promises responsive government and vigorous leadership on key issues

Dec. 7, 2005

King County economy starting to recover

2005 Annual Growth Report demonstrates that growth is resuming

King County Executive Ron Sims today released the 2005 Annual Growth Report, which provides a richly detailed portrait of the growing strength of King County's economy.

The document provides a multi-faceted statistical snapshot of the region's growth and its impact on transportation, the economy, the environment, and housing. Among its findings, the report shows that, in the wake of the deepest recession in 30 years, the county's population, income and number of jobs are beginning to grow again.

"For the first time since 2000, we are creating jobs again in King County," noted Sims, who cited a strong technical sector and recent improvements in Boeing's outlook as playing key roles in ending the recession. "We still face economic challenges, but I'm pleased to say that over the last year our economy has finally taken a decisive turn for the better."

One of King County's most significant challenges is to continue smoothing the pathway towards annexing remaining urban unincorporated areas to nearby cities. King County's planning policies call for all urban areas to be absorbed into cities by 2012, so the county can focus on its priorities as a provider of regional services and local services in rural areas.

Significant progress on that front has already been made. Since 1994, six new cities have been created, and other cities have annexed large territories, shifting more than 200,000 King County residents into city limits over that time. At the same time, King County has been faced with lower revenues, a result of declining sales taxes and a voter initiative capping property taxes.

"Nearly 227,000 residents still live in urban unincorporated King County, a population which would constitute Washington's second largest city," said Sims. "As the cost of providing services in unincorporated urban areas continues to rise faster than revenues, our ability to provide regional services will be compromised without further annexations. The good news is our strong growth management policies should help communities accelerate that ongoing process." Sims went on to say, "It's essential to continue with the annexation effort so King County can focus on regional services while we let the cities focus on what they do best, municipal services."

First published in 1983, the King County Annual Growth Report provides statistical data on each of the county's cities, the unincorporated areas, annexations, land area, growth capacity and housing. It is a fact book that helps track and forecast growth, and is used by both public and private sector decision-makers. Included in the document is a summary of recent bulletins from the King County Benchmark Report.

The findings in the Annual Growth Report and Benchmark Report offer information to help elected officials and residents evaluate our progress, implement better programs and develop an encompassing vision for the region's future.

Highlights of the 2005 Annual Growth Report include:

Countywide population growth increased slightly in 2005

After three years of slow population growth, King County gained 20,000 persons between 2004 and 2005, up just over one percent. State data sources indicate that more people are moving to King County from other parts of the United States and the rest of the world.
Results from the 2000 Census show that King County gained 230,000 persons or 15 percent from 1990 to 2000.
With a 2005 population of 1,808,300, King County now ranks 14 th in population among the nation's 3,100 counties.

Housing Growth Continues in Urban Areas

Since 1994, King County has increased the share of growth going into urban areas, now 95 percent.
Since 1999, rural area growth has accounted for less than five percent of total new construction in King County, an indication of the success of the county's strong growth management policies, which focus on concentrating development in urban areas while preserving the traditional character of rural communities from the encroachments of sprawl.
In 2004, the level of new residential building permits remained stable at more than 11,500 new units, underscoring the strength of the housing construction sector. Nearly 6,900 new single family homes were authorized by King County and its cities in 2004.
Multifamily construction increased slightly to about 4,700 new apartments and condo units – a robust level, although still only a bit more than half the 1998-2000 average.
Most of the residential growth was in cities, which accounted for 69 percent of new single-family houses, while only 31 percent of new housing starts were in unincorporated areas. Fully 89 percent of King County's new apartments and condo units were built in the cities.

Affordable housing is still in short supply

Housing affordability is a complex issue subject to oversimplification. Single family house prices continue to rise, but apartment rentals are relatively affordable.
Creating sufficient affordable housing for the King County workforce continues to be a difficult challenge. Median single family house prices increased 15 percent in 2004, while median household income barely grew. There is an adequate supply of rental housing for those above 50 percent of median income, but below that level a shortage of affordable units continues to exist.
Rental vacancy rates have remained high, easing the supply of rental housing and stabilizing rents at affordable levels.
Buying a first home remains extremely difficult for those under 120 percent of median household income, making less than $72,500 in 2004. The median price for a single family home or condominium was $336,000 in 2004.

Dramatic population shift into cities

In the 1990s, about 330,000 people "moved" from unincorporated areas into cities through ten new incorporations and many large annexations.
The remaining 227,000 unincorporated urban area residents increasingly occupy "islands" surrounded by cities.
The cost of providing King County services to unincorporated urban areas is rising faster than revenues, jeopardizing our ability to maintain current levels of service.
King County is focusing annexation efforts on ten large communities, which together contain the majority of the unincorporated population.

For more information about the 2005 Annual Growth Report, contact Chandler Felt , at 206-205-0712. For more information about the 2005 Benchmark Reports, contact Lisa Voight, at 206-296-3464.

Additional information

The 2005 Annual Growth Report is available online.
The 2005 Benchmark publications will also be available, as they are published.