COMMISSION 
AGENDA MEMORANDUM                        Item No.          11b 
BRIEFING ITEM                            Date of Meeting        May 11, 2021 
DATE:     April 21, 2021 
TO:        Stephen P. Metruck, Executive Director 
FROM:    Alison Beason, Senior Policy Data Analyst, Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion 
Andy Gregory, Sr Program Manager Environmental Engagement, External Relations 
SUBJECT:  South King County Fund Recommendations Briefing 
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 
The successful first cycle of the South King County Fund (SKCF) was launched in the summer of
2020 with $250,000 in support for WMBE small business development and $1 million for
Economic Recovery Grants and then followed shortly thereafter in the fall with $250,000 for
Environmental Grants. After the success of awarding twenty-seven contracts totaling $1.4 million
between, External Relations, Economic Development Division, and Office of Equity, Diversity, and
Inclusion, this briefing is to share recommendations and insights to carry into the next cycle. 
Staff recommend the following programmatic updates: 
Refine the eligibility criteria by further defining Near-Airport Communities within the
application process to include communities that live, work, play and worship near the
airport and to prioritize funding to those groups based on the Port's Equity Index. 
Update the fund timeline to align with the five years following the actual launch of the
program in 2020. 
Maintain interdepartmental staffing commitments and institutionalize program policies
and best practices to avoid losing hard-earned gains. 
Commit up to 5% of the South King County Fund to support Community Capacity building
through an expanded community liaison model, continued  community reviewer
participation, and support for language access. 
Conduct a "Theory of Change" program evaluation over the next year to develop long-
term strategic focus that will best align the fund with the communities' needs and the
Port's authority as a funder. 
BACKGROUND 
The South King County Fund was created in November of 2018 to provide $10 Million in resources
to near-airport communities for projects that address airport noise, environmental health and
sustainability. The statutory authority in which the fund was rooted in (RCW 35.21.278) is the
same one that dictates the parameters on the (sunsetting) Airport Community Ecology (ACE)
program which was newly minted as the SKCF Environmental Grants Program. 

Template revised April 12, 2018.

COMMISSION AGENDA  Briefing Item No. __11b__                            Page 2 of 5 
Meeting Date: May 11, 2021 
In 2020, the South King County Fund (SKCF) launched a successful cycle for Economic Recovery
in the summer and Environmental Grants in the fall. This resulted in the first cycles funding
twenty-seven projects leveraging over $1.4 million. 
RECOMMENDATIONS 
There is much to celebrate in after the first year of SKCF. A new program was designed and
launched in a matter of months to support economic recovery efforts in a region economically
devastated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Port leadership, interdepartmental collaborations and
committed, hard-working staff all contributed to getting this new program off the ground. Now,
as we look towards the next program cycle, there is much to act on to more fully realize the intent
of the Fund. 
The Port's SKCF team has reviewed how to make South King County Fund most effectively fulfill
its vision of being an equity-driven, community-centered program for developing equity-based
partnerships and providing resources and support in historically underserved near-airport
communities. 
The recommendations that follow are organized by themes the staff feel are vital for the growth
and success of the SKCF. 
EQUITY: 
Eligibility: 
Currently, the eligibility description for the South King County Fund is: "Defined as near-airport
communities, with other locations considered on a case-by-case basis, depending on the merits
and type of program or project." This description, with the six Highline Forum cities cited in the
Economic Recovery RFP as examples, was the most agreeable description when the motion was
passed. 
Recommendation: 
Within the Economic Recovery and Environmental Grants, the first criteria evaluated will be
Organization and Community Served.  Both programs will emphasize this criteria to focus on
giving the greatest weight to near airport community and organizations led by, located in, and
serving these communities. Both programs will utilize the OEDI Equity Index to help educate the
decisions and criteria among the applicants  and further target the South King County
communities furthest from justice. This will root the Index in this way would also better center
equity as the driver for what the Fund supports. This strategy would require no further action on
behalf of staff or Commission to refine the definition of "near-airport communities." It allows for
organizations to self-identify as serving near-airport communities and then for the evaluation
panel to examine and rank the quality of those answers. 
Language Access: 
At its essence, language access means that communities understand what we are saying, that we
understand what they are saying and that they can participate in the fullest possible way. There

Template revised September 22, 2016.

COMMISSION AGENDA  Briefing Item No. __11b__                            Page 3 of 5 
Meeting Date: May 11, 2021 
must be commitments not only to translate materials and provide interpretation, but also to
understand how communities prefer to receive information. Translators sometimes default to
literal or academic translations, and community reviewers (professional translators who are also
steeped in community work) are able to correct for that and ensure that the words being used
have appropriate cultural meaning and context. 
Recommendation: 
The SKCF staff will make a commitment to financially support a robust language access plan and
include community reviewers to check for accuracy, tone and syntax in translated materials. 
ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE 
Timeline: 
In the 2018 motion, the SKCF Fund was scheduled to fund $10 million over five years starting in
2019. The program did not launch until 2020 with the first contracts signed in 2021. 
Recommendation: 
Due to the delayed launch of the program, the recommendation is to extend the program to
2024. 
Interdepartmental Core Team 
The SKCF is a new program that required a lot of attention to details and institutional knowledge.
The early weeks of the development of the 2020 cycle were hectic, with many people involved in
myriad conversations. Being a new program and process for the Port, it required several full time
FTE's to develop, maintain and continue the program. 
Recommendation: 
Within the Economic Recovery/Development and Environmental Grants there should be
continuity and communication for the duration of the five year program. Keeping a core team
within CPO, OEDI, Legal, ER, and EDD helps the team keep abreast of updates, changes and
problem solving. In addition, a core team helps the two program managers ensure consistency
across  the  full  South  King  County  Fund  program.  Processes  and  policies  should  be
institutionalized through good record-keeping and documentation to account for the inevitable
staff turn-over that occurs on longer timescales. 
Conduct Program Evaluation: 
In the first year of implementation, staff learned many important lessons about how to operate
the SKCF at the nexus of the Port's statutory authority and the communities' needs. There is still
work to be done to build a comprehensive theory of change to maximize the impact of the
program and set measurable numeric metrics for programmatic success. 
Recommendation: 
Port staff will begin conducting a program evaluation and developing a theory of change in 2022.
This is a best practice in the community grant-making world and one that identifies program

Template revised September 22, 2016.

COMMISSION AGENDA  Briefing Item No. __11b__                            Page 4 of 5 
Meeting Date: May 11, 2021 
strengths, community needs, and sets metrics against which the program success can be
evaluated in the future. Staff will report back to Commission in late 2022 once the theory of
change is developed to identify long-term plans for the SKCF. 
COMMUNITY CAPACITY BUILDING 
Community Engagement: 
The Port has been investing in building up a community engagement program for the Fund, and
the strategy was modified last year because of the pandemic. For the Environmental Grants
Program, multicultural liaisons were trained and deployed to conduct virtual outreach and to cocreate
grant outreach materials. Due to time pressure to get the Economic Recovery funding out
as quickly as possible, little community engagement was conducted to support that program. 
As we embark on the second year of the Fund, staff needs to be intentional and strategic about
engagement and the critical role it plays in moving the Fund closer to its intent of being
community centered. The team developed a shared understanding of community engagement,
its  continuum  and  how  to  authentically  engage  community  members.  Staff  have  seen
tremendous success from the liaison model both in developing authentic community
relationships and driving high-quality applications from diverse communities. There is now an
opportunity to replicate and expand this model to support the Economic Recovery Grant
Program. 
Recommendation: 
Community Liaisons should be utilized across both programs. While circumstances in
2020 necessitated that the liaison model was focused on the Environmental Grants
program, for 2021 and into the future, engagement planning and activities need to be
approached holistically. Engagement should be meaningful, consistent and continual,
throughout the year. Liaisons should receive stipends for their work. 
Community reviewers were vital to the panel process for both programs. These panelists
helped Port staff expand their understanding about community needs, priorities and
organizations, and provided insights about the impact proposed projects would have in
the community. Continuing the process to incorporate community reviewers help
diversify the panel perspectives and experience while keeping the commitment to equity
and community focused work. Community reviewers should receive stipends for their
work 
A portion of the South King County Fund, up to 5% should be allocated to support these
community capacity building programs. This will ensure a steady source of funding to
support deep community engagement work, language access, and community reviewer
stipends. The Port should engage in a contract with a South King County based community
organization to support community members and provide fiscal agency to pay stipends. 
Annual Budget Status and Source of Funds 
The expenses have been included in the annual operating budget, which is $1.5 million for 2020
and $2.0 million for 2021. The funding source is tax levy. 

Template revised September 22, 2016.

COMMISSION AGENDA  Briefing Item No. __11b__                            Page 5 of 5 
Meeting Date: May 11, 2021 

ATTACHMENTS TO THIS REQUEST 
(1)   Presentation slides 
PREVIOUS COMMISSION ACTIONS OR BRIEFINGS 
April 28, 2020|Motion 2020-10 
The Commission to add economic development to the permissible uses for the South King
County Fund, in support of local recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. 
June 25, 2019|Motion 2019-10 
The Commission adopting principals to guide outreach and development of the South
King County policy. 
November 27, 2018|Motion 2018-14 
The Commission directing the Executive Director to . designating funding in the 2019-
2023 plan of finance for South King County communities; 













Template revised September 22, 2016.