April 29, 2025
By Dave Kaplan, Port Local Government Relations Manager
The cities of Burien, Des Moines, Federal Way, Normandy Park, SeaTac, and Tukwila make up what is known as the Highline region of Washington state. Named after the well-known High Line Road that connected Tacoma and Seattle in the early 1900’s, Highline has since been used to describe the diverse and thriving region in southwest King County that sits between two of the state’s largest cities.
Located among those six cities is one of the largest gateways to the Pacific Northwest, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA). In fact, much of the Highline region’s population growth has in part related to the airport and other major aviation industry activity. To that end, the Highline Forum has been a key venue over the last two decades for facilitating connection between the airport and the local community through open dialogue about priorities, issues, and concerns — ranging from aircraft noise and land stewardship efforts to workforce development and economic opportunity for residents.
Building a forum
The need to dedicate time and space for these discussions was very apparent in the aftermath of the construction of the third runway at SEA. The contentious conversations around that project highlighted the clear need for a predictable, consistent way for community and Port leaders to meet and talk about airport issues and other local concerns. In response, elected city officials and Port Commissioners began the work of creating the Highline Forum.
In January 2005, officials and administrators from the Port of Seattle, the six Highline cities, Highline College, and the Highline School District gathered for the first ever meeting, kicking off what has been 20 years of dialogue and engagement. The Highline Forum provides members with a regular and constructive venue for both aviation and non-aviation issues alike.
In recent years, the bi-monthly forum has covered a range of topics including:
- third runway usage
- noise mitigation programs
- air quality initiatives like the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency’s monitoring program
- State and federal legislative agendas of members
- airport capital improvements and master planning
- transportation updates from regional agencies
- anti-human trafficking efforts
- workforce and tourism development opportunities
The Forum has also been a central location for elected-to-elected discussions on initiatives like the South King County Community Impact Fund, the Sound Insulation Repair and Replacement Pilot Program, and coordination leading up to the 2026 Men’s FIFA World Cup. Joint efforts on addressing the need for more affordable childcare options in this area is also a part of ongoing conversations at the forum.
Additionally, members of the forum helped lead the charge on creating the SEA Stakeholder Advisory Round Table (StART) to bring community voices to the table and work on way ways to minimize airport impacts on surrounding airport communities; StART maintains a dotted-line reporting relationship to the Highline Forum.
What’s ahead this year?
This year kicked off with discussions of each member’s 2025 state and federal legislative priorities including StART’s shared legislative priorities for the 2025 state legislative session. Those policies include:
- Ensuring state regulations on noise insulation programs complement the Port’s program and keep pace with federal regulations
- Making tangible progress toward identifying additional regional airport capacity
- Sustaining existing state programs to enhance air quality
- Maintaining and expanding Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) production and use in Washington
- Pursuing decarbonization of ground transportation, reducing transportation emissions, and promoting electrification
Staff members from Washington’s congressional delegation also shared their legislative focuses for this year:
- Megan Utemei of U.S. Senator Patty Murray’s office spoke about immigration issues, funding secured for a King County Metro Rapid Ride line, and support of community focused aviation legislation
- Chirag Vedullapalli of U.S. Representative Adam Smith’s office talked about reintroducing the Aviation Noise and Emissions Mitigation Act and the Aviation Impacted Communities Act
- Marielle Trumbauer of U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal’s office talked about their office’s support of the above Acts, in addition to their committee assignments and focus on pro-worker and pro-consumer legislation
Other important topics to be covered this year include updates and discussion on next steps for the Sound Insulation Repair and Replacement Pilot Program – especially now that the assessment phase is complete and related community outreach is underway. Future meetings will cover the Part 150 Noise Study, an update on the Sustainable Airport Master Plan Near-Term Projects environmental review, the South King County Community Impact Fund Environmental Grant program, workforce development, regional transportation agency updates, Economic Development Partnership Grant opportunities, and the StART Annual Report. As has been proven over the past two decades, there are plenty of subjects to cover that matter to Highline constituents.
Stay informed
Highline Forum meetings are held both in-person and virtually, and the public is welcome to attend. You’ll hear real-time updates and dialogue about work happening in your community.
Find the upcoming meeting agendas and locations or sign up for meeting notifications.
Subscribe to SEA Airport Neighbors newsletter to receive email updates.
