Washington's Ninth Congressional District includes
parts of King, Pierce and Thurston Counties. Approximately 50
percent of the Ninth District's population resides in King County,
40 percent in Pierce County, and 10 percent in Thurston County.
The Ninth Congressional District is a classic suburban district,
covering the cities and other communities of the South Puget
Sound region. It's geography is diverse, including many miles
of Puget Sound shoreline, lush valleys carved by ice-age glaciers,
and all with a stunning view of the majestic Mount
Rainier, standing tall at 14,410 feet.
Bordered by the Puget Sound to the west and Highway 167 in the
Kent valley to the east, the Ninth District covers most of southwest
King County's suburbs. The district contains portions of Renton,
Kent,
Auburn,
and the Muckleshoot
Indian Reservation as well as Des
Moines, SeaTac,
Normandy
Park, Federal
Way, Algona
and Pacific .
Once primarily farmlands, the Kent Valley has become an growth
center for the County. Of all of the many businesses that call
southwest King County home, the Boeing Company has perhaps most
shaped the region. Boeing's commercial airplane division is
based in Renton, where it produces the 737. Other major employers,
however, have helped to diversify the regional economy. Federal
Way, for example, serves as Weyerhaeuser's global headquarters
as well as the international development organization World
Vision. The nation's 17th largest airport, Seattle-Tacoma
International Airport, is also located in the district and
serves as the headquarters of Alaska Airlines, whose corporate
headquarters are just a half-mile away.
Running through the valley are the Interurban
and Green River Trails, forty-six miles of biking, jogging
and rollerblading paths traversing the industrial heart of the
valley from south Seattle through Auburn, connecting to a number
of neighborhoods and community trails. The Ninth District is
also home to Emerald Downs, the premier horse racing track in
the Pacific Northwest that boasts a spectacular view of nearby
Mount
Rainier.
The Ninth District covers much of central Pierce County. The
deep water Port
of Tacoma contributes significantly to the Northwest economy
and Pierce County's position as a major regional trade and service
center. The manufacturing sector produces lumber and wood products,
chemicals, metals, food, clothing, and airplane parts. While
companies like Simpson Timber and Milgard Windows have been
the mainstay of the region, the County is also increasingly
becoming a high-tech and financial service hub, due in part
to the presence of the Frank Russell Company, Columbia Bank,
Intel, and Sagem Morpho.
The Puyallup Valley, in the heart of the 9th District, has contributed
to the County's rich agricultural heritage. Notable agricultural
products include berries, lettuce, beans, cabbage, and daffodil
bulbs. In addition to being the nation's number one producer
of rhubarb, it is also home to the sixth largest fair in the
United States: the Puyallup
Fair.
Underlying the strong economy is the stabilizing influence of
three major military installations: Fort
Lewis (the Army's only power projection platform west of
the Rocky Mountains), McChord
Air Force Base (home of the Air Force's workhorse, the C-17),
and Madigan
Army Medical Center.
The Ninth District includes the Pierce County communities of
Edgewood,
Dupont,
Fife,
Milton,
Puyallup,
Roy, Spanaway, and the Puyallup
Indian Reservation, as well as portions of the cities of
Tacoma,
Lakewood,
and .
The Ninth District contains the mostly rural eastern half of
Thurston County, and is bordered by the Nisqually
River to the northeast, Lewis County to the south, and Interstate
5 to the west. The cities of Yelm
and portions of Lacey
are in the Ninth District, as well as the Nisqually Indian Reservation.
To the north is the Nisqually
National Wildlife Refuge, an important stop over for migratory
birds at the mouth the Nisqually River. Meanwhile, the Yelm
prairie to the east has served as a crossroads for humans: first
for Native American trails leading north from the Cowlitz River
and the Bald Hills trail leading to Naches Pass over the Cascades.
These trails were utilized by the Nisqually Indians, then fur
traders, the British operators of the Hudson Bay Company, American
settlers and eventually the Northern Pacific Railroad.
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