And, while the picture is rosy economically, we must aggressively deal with the impacts of that success through SmartGrowth planning, such as transportation, housing, growth management and environmental initiatives. King County is continuing to grow dramatically. In the fall, I will issue a report card on how those initiatives are progressing, and announce what additional efforts are underway to address the issues reviewed in these reports. Findings include that leading indicators, such as permits for expected construction over the next five years, reveal a likely continuation of rapid growth which in many places is outpacing targets. Residential construction is up 10 percent.
Unemployment is at three percent and major industries and retail continue strong.
Wages rose 5.3 percent over the last three years, after stagnating between 1980 and 1994. The number of new businesses is up by 1,249 businesses, after declining in 1996. The 1996 high school graduation rate is 79.9 percent, down from 83.2 percent in 1995. Residential growth is focused in Seattle, and suburban cities like Bellevue, Renton and Kirkland. Unincorporated growth is in the Sammamish plateau and Soos Creek areas.