TagCity of Burien(240)

The Green Burien Partnership 2025 Snapshot highlights the City of Burien's urban forestry and environmental stewardship efforts, including planting 607 trees on city property, distributing over 800 free trees to the community, and protecting 516 trees during development. The program, funded entirely through external grants and partnerships with organizations like King Conservation District, also engaged youth and volunteers through 12 community events and a paid youth stewardship program at Hilltop Park. Burien was recognized in 2025 as an Evergreen Community with 25 years as Tree City USA and 8 years of Growth Award.

The City of Burien's 2025 State Legislative Agenda outlines the city's priorities across three main areas: healthy and thriving communities, quality of life and economic development, and behavioral health. Key goals include supporting affordable housing and childcare, revising the property tax cap to keep pace with inflation, investing in aging local infrastructure, and expanding behavioral health co-responder programs. The agenda also advocates for resources to support migrant and asylum seeker arrivals and funding for gang prevention and law enforcement training.

The Burien Airport Committee held a meeting on December 17, 2024, to discuss topics related to Sea-Tac Airport noise and expansion policy, including a wrap-up of public comments on the Sustainable Airport Master Plan (SAMP), a possible multi-city response to the SAMP, and potential state-level mitigation legislation. The committee also considered expanding its membership from five to seven members and reviewed a StART (Sea-Tac Airport Roundtable) committee update. Members of the public were invited to participate in person at Burien City Hall, via Zoom, or by submitting written comments in advance.

Four cities near Seattle-Tacoma International Airport — Burien, Normandy Park, SeaTac, and Des Moines — submitted formal comments in December 2024 objecting to the airport's Sustainable Airport Master Plan Environmental Assessment. The cities warn that planned growth will increase annual flight operations by nearly 20% by 2032, expanding the noise impact zone and exposing an estimated 22,000 residents to significant aircraft noise, up from about 14,000 in 2022. They call on the Port of Seattle to extend public review periods, improve its sound insulation program, and take proactive steps to protect the low-income and minority communities most burdened by airport noise.

The City of Burien submitted formal comments in December 2024 arguing that the Port of Seattle's Sustainable Airport Master Plan (SAMP) for Sea-Tac International Airport contains serious flaws, including an unrealistically narrow study boundary that ignores noise and air pollution impacts on surrounding neighborhoods. The city contends that the plan fails to account for cumulative impacts such as the SR-509 highway extension, the 2008 opening of the airport's third runway, and emerging science on health risks from ultrafine particles and aircraft noise. Burien is calling for a full Environmental Impact Statement rather than the less rigorous Environmental Assessment currently underway.