TagBurien(35)

The Port of Seattle's Airport Community Ecology (ACE) Fund offers a Small Matching Grants Program providing funding to non-profit organizations and community groups in SeaTac, Burien, and Des Moines to support local environmental improvement projects. Applicants must demonstrate a 3:1 match for every dollar of Port funding requested, meaning three dollars of community value must be identified for each grant dollar awarded. The program has distributed over $85,000 to projects ranging from invasive weed removal and community gardens to marine wildlife education and plastics reduction awareness.

The Airport Community Ecology Fund, authorized by the Port of Seattle Commission in November 2016, provides grants and partnership programs to improve the natural environment in communities affected by Seattle-Tacoma International Airport operations, specifically in SeaTac, Burien, and Des Moines. The fund supports environmental projects such as tree planting and green space development to help offset airport impacts through benefits like cleaner air, reduced runoff, and improved neighborhood character. Local non-profit organizations and community groups in the three eligible cities can apply for grants, provided their projects demonstrate measurable outcomes and a local match of three times the grant value.

The Mayor's Roundtable Common Actions and Priorities outlines a cooperative framework between Sea-Tac Airport and four neighboring cities — Burien, Des Moines, Normandy Park, and SeaTac — aimed at ensuring a sustainable future for both the airport and surrounding communities. The document sets out four key actions covering regional transportation connectivity, stormwater impacts, economic development, and mitigation of local environmental and quality-of-life impacts from airport growth. It emphasizes avoiding litigation by requiring the Port of Seattle, FAA, and neighboring cities to work together on policy changes that protect residents, wildlife, and local businesses.

A movement in the early 1970s sought to carve a new 'Evergreen County' from the southwestern portion of King County, pitting suburban communities like Burien, Federal Way, and Normandy Park against the Seattle-dominated urban core. Residents in the proposed area argued that King County was too closely tied to Seattle's interests and was failing to deliver government services proportionate to the taxes they paid. The effort, still in its infancy at the time of this article, required gathering roughly 60,000 voter signatures to compel the state Legislature to consider creating the new county.