OLYMPIA – Washington state and its cities share the goal of improving our interconnected infrastructure to sustain a vibrant economy for future generations. A new report from the Association of Washington Cities (AWC) looks at city infrastructure across Washington to examine the present conditions of our infrastructure system, explore how cities are overcoming barriers to improvement, and illustrate what more can be done to support the statewide network.

The report, titled State of the Cities: Washington’s interconnected infrastructure, was unveiled in January and will be distributed to city leaders and legislators during the association’s City Action Days taking place February 15 and 16 in Olympia.

Year after year, surveys show that Washington’s cities, towns, and their residents list infrastructure and transportation as top community concerns. But cities face a long list of challenges to maintain their infrastructure systems, while the needs only continue to grow. Cities struggle to meet the demands of their aging infrastructure, growing populations, and the impacts of climate change, while coping with funding constraints, a hostile economic environment, and new realities in the workplace.

Recognizing the immense need, city leaders are stepping up to address these challenges, and they're doing it through fiscally sound, equity-driven, and environmentally focused practices. Local leaders are working harder and smarter than ever to prioritize infrastructure projects, make good use of available funding resources, partner with others in the state, and plan ahead to build sustainability and resilience into our shared systems.

The report highlights case studies of the innovative work cities are doing to address infrastructure challenges. One city is building out a water reuse project to adjust to drought conditions in Eastern Washington. Another has created a transportation master plan using a climate lens throughout. Many others are partnering on projects to have a regional impact. The report also shows that productive and reliable partnerships between cities and state-level actors are essential to successfully maintain our shared infrastructure and transportation systems well into the future.

“Investments in infrastructure are investments in the future of our communities,” said AWC CEO Deanna Dawson. “When we invest in our infrastructure, we are connecting communities, addressing the climate crisis, and creating family wage jobs. Strong infrastructure is vital to a healthy economy, and strong partnerships between cities and the state are key to our success.”

The State of the Cities report is part of an ongoing project first conducted by AWC in 2005. The project dives into research topics each year that are of specific interest to cities, such as budgeting, public safety, human resources, infrastructure, transportation, affordable housing, economic development, and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB), among others.

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AWC serves its members through advocacy, education, and services. Founded in 1933, AWC is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan corporation that represents Washington's cities and towns before the state legislature, the state executive branch, and with regulatory agencies. Membership is voluntary. However, AWC consistently maintains 100 percent participation from Washington’s 281 cities and towns.