Pierce County is spending $300,000 to train 210 people for construction and trades jobs through a new initiative signed Monday, Aug. 31, by County Executive Ryan Mello.

The Building Together Initiative, signed at Clover Park Technical College's Eastside Training Center in Tacoma, splits the money evenly between two programs.

The Lineworker & Arboriculture Scholarship Program gets $150,000 for training in utility linework, electrical distribution and tree management.

The Eastside Technical Bridge Program gets $150,000 for flexible evening and weekend classes in construction trades, helping participants earn foundational industry certifications.

The directive is not a council ordinance.

Mello signed it as County Directive 2026-02, an executive action that also launches a pilot program requiring project labor agreements, or PLAs, on three upcoming county construction projects: the first phase of the Clear Creek Floodplain Reconnection, beginning in 2027, and renovations of the Sprinker Recreation Center and the Pierce County Elections Center, both beginning in 2028.

"We are putting more of our local construction dollars to work by creating opportunities for local workers and local contractors," Mello said in a county statement.

"This is especially important at a time more than 14,000 young people in Pierce County are not connected to education or a job."

The directive also creates a Contractor Outreach, Engagement and Capacity Building program aimed at increasing local contracting on public projects. It establishes standardized data collection to track apprenticeship use and contractor participation, including women- and minority-certified businesses.

Pierce County Councilmembers Dave Morell and Rosie Ayala attended the signing, along with Lester Burkes, Clover Park's Dean of Trades, Transportation and Apprenticeship. University Place Councilmember Frank Boykin, Mike Brown and Marianna Hyke of the North Coast States Carpenters Union, and Tamar Jackson from WorkForce Central also attended.

Nathe Lawver, secretary-treasurer of the Pierce County Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO, said the directive would help workers enter union apprenticeships and connect local contractors with county projects. Lawver said public investment should create value that outlasts the construction itself.

The Eastside Training Center, at 6002 E. McKinley Ave. in Tacoma, opened in January 2025 through a partnership between Clover Park Technical College, WorkForce Central and the City of Tacoma. Programs at the center include HVAC, construction technology, residential plumbing and residential electrical work.

The PLA pilot will conclude with a report on workforce outcomes and recommendations for whether the county should expand project labor agreements to future projects.