The King County Library System (KCLS) has reciprocal borrowing agreements with multiple library districts in western Washington. The agreements allow library patrons from one system to obtain library cards and freely use the services of the other system. To measure this circulation cross-use and its corresponding costs, we conducted studies of the cross-use between KCLS and The Seattle Public Library, and between KCLS and the Renton Public Library. The two studies involved development of new data collection methods and analytic frameworks to determine levels of patron cross-use at specific facilities and systemwide, and financial analysis of the costs to each system for maintaining the agreements. The results of our work have been policy changes to library system operations and business practices, and new interagency cost-sharing agreements.

For the Washington State Department of Health (DOH), we conducted a feasibility analysis of alternative governance and organizational models for a public health information technology coordinating board. The study focused on determining what systems, processes or structures would improve the coordination, integration and interoperability of public health information technology in Washington. Work included conducting stakeholder interviews with DOH and local health jurisdiction staff; researching and analyzing best practices in other states; a national literature review; and evaluating various models in terms of their financial, logistical, and political feasibility.

As part of our long-standing analytic and advisory services to the City of Burien, we analyzed potential impacts to the City of annexing the unincorporated North Highline area of King County. This is an important decision for the City, since with a population of 32,000, annexation of the entire area would double the City's size. The project involved detailed financial modeling of the City's cost and service structures, and development of a flexible software model to allow the City to examine a range of annexation scenarios. The analysis and model enabled the City to evaluate alternative policy choices and to test the implications of various assumptions about the future. Elected officials and the public now have reliable, accessible information to serve as a foundation for dialogue and decision-making.

We are collaborating with City staff to provide strategic analysis, outreach and communications assistance on this highly visible and important urban planning project for the City. Our multiple responsibilities include demographic and market analysis to understand the City's economic profile, and preparation of two reports synthesizing the history and facts behind Town Center planning efforts. We designed and facilitated community forums in three City neighborhoods, developed supporting public meeting notices and website content, and staffed a property owner/developers forum of key stakeholders. Finally, our team of information designers prepared a project folio the City will use in communicating and marketing the Town Center to interested developers and others.

Working with the Kitsap Regional Coordinating Council (KRCC), in partnership with Kitsap County, the City of Bremerton, the City of Poulsbo, and the City of Port Orchard, we analyzed urban service delivery challenges for the unassociated Urban Growth Areas (UGAs) in Kitsap County. Through a collaborative process with the project partners, two reports were prepared: The Association Analysis Template Report is an adaptable template to provide guidance in understanding, analyzing, and decision-making on urban service delivery for unassociated UGAs, including the fiscal implications for jurisdictions. The template report is expected to inform decision-making and interjurisdictional negotiations in the County, and possibly the State of Washington. The Central Kitsap UGA Association Analysis pilot-tested the template. The report analyzed options for urban service delivery and their fiscal implications, and recommended that the area be formally associated with the City of Bremerton. Our work is expected to provide the foundation for a joint resolution and future negotiations between the City and Kitsap County.