Whatcom County Executive Satpal Sidhu declared “the state of the county is strong” in his annual State of the County speech, delivered to the County Council Tuesday evening.
Sidhu, whose two-plus years as county executive have included a prolonged pandemic and historic flooding, said the county’s good fortune despite adversity has come from millions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief, in addition to “an able and dedicated workforce, and sound policy decisions.”
While maintaining an upbeat message through most of his 27-minute speech, Sidhu acknowledged more than 300 deaths in the county from COVID-19, and damage from the November 2021 floods that exceeded $150 million.
“The devastation isn’t over for families even now, more than half a year after the flooding,” Sidhu said.
Sidhu noted the county’s longstanding need for a new “criminal justice and safety facility,” the current parlance for the jail-plus-behavioral-health-services project expected to go to voters in 2023. The estimated cost of the new facility would be more than $100 million, Sidhu said.
The full text of the executive’s State of the County speech is available on the county website.
