In addition to choosing members to serve on four of Vashon’s public boards, islanders this general election will also be tasked with deciding whether to renew King County’s Veterans and Human Services Levy — at a doubled rate.
The property-tax levy, which was first approved in 2005 and renewed in 2011, currently collects 5 cents per $1,000 of assessed home value. The Metropolitan King County Council earlier this year unanimously approved legislation to place the levy on the Nov. 7 ballot at a rate of 10 cents per $1,000. It is expected to bring in $342 million over its six-year span.
But the rate is not the only change that has been made to the measure which provides funds for programs that serve veterans and vulnerable populations. If approved this year, seniors and services catering to the county’s aging population will receive levy funds for the first time in the measure’s 12-year history. Leo Flor, King County’s Veterans and Human Services Levy renewal manager, said 18 percent of King County residents are age 65 or older and “the trend is growth.”
According to King County Executive Dow Constantine’s Transitional Plan — the proposed plan that would govern the levy’s first-year expenditures if the measure is approved — among new funding for senior services is $3.5 million for the county’s senior centers. Funds will be used to help senior centers expand capacity, extend hours, reach new groups of seniors and offer new services for seniors and their caregivers.
“This allocation recognizes the cherished role that senior centers play — and the even greater role that they could play — in helping to build better health and stability for King County’s residents as they age,” Constantine’s plan states.
At Vashon’s senior center, finding funding became more difficult after November 2015 when United Way of King County — Vashon Senior Center’s largest funder — announced it would no longer support senior services. Vashon Senior Center Executive Director Ava Apple said that with that decision, senior programs throughout the county lost nearly $1.8 million in funding. Vashon’s center alone lost a total of $45,000 over two years.
“We are struggling to continue (and expand when needed) the services we give the wonderful island seniors,” Apple said in a Monday email.
The potential benefits of the levy’s passage “could go a long way,” she said.
“Of course if passed (and I’m crossing my fingers that it will) the potential benefit to senior programs and services on the island will be great,” Apple said. “If the good people of King County pass this levy which finally includes the county’s largest growing demographic, it could go a long way in offsetting the United Way loss.”
Additionally, Constantine’s Transitional Plan outlines allocations for more than $25 million in first-year levy funds to address new capital facilities and regional health and human services that promote housing stability for veterans, seniors and vulnerable populations. There is also $525,000 proposed to “support small organizations, partnerships and groups that provide (levy)-funded services for veterans, seniors and vulnerable populations.”
The addition of senior services funding comes after 43 meetings held throughout the county last year to gather feedback on human service needs. Flor said the Vashon meeting held at the senior center last October was one of the most well-attended, and concerns raised during that meeting included the importance of preventing social isolation and the issue of affordability for seniors. Flor said there are two main programs in the proposed Transitional Plan to address these issues:
1. A senior housing repair program where the county can provide grants or loans to help homeowners fix parts of their home they may not be able to afford otherwise.
2. An age-in-place home modification program where the county can provide funds for equipment such as ramps, grab bars and converting door handles so seniors can continue living in their own homes as long as possible.
“The goal is to keep people in their networks and in their communities,” Flor said. “These relatively small investments to allow them to stay. That’s something we’ve heard really strongly. Seniors have this desire to stay in their homes on their terms.”
If passed, the measure will cost $45 next year for the owner of a $452,000 house – the median assessed home value on Vashon next year — up from the $18 that homeowner paid this year.
In addition to new senior funding, the levy will continue to fund ongoing programs and services that help veterans, the homeless and other vulnerable populations.
According to the county, levy funds have helped build more than 2,000 units of affordable housing and have saved at least $7 million since 2012 in jail and emergency-room costs by providing housing, health care and substance-abuse treatment through a levy-funded database and housing-placement program.
