Site Logo

Community celebrates new local light rail stations in Kent| Photos

Published 3:15 pm Wednesday, December 10, 2025

By Keelin Everly-Lang

t
1/12
t
Photos by Keelin Everly-Lang / Sound Publishing Crowds board the light rail at Star Lake station on opening day for the most recent three stations.
Community members enjoy the festivities at Star Lake station during the grand opening of that light rail stop on Dec. 6. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / Sound Publishing
Project Feast led festivities at the Star Lake light rail station during the grand opening on Dec. 6. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / Sound Publishing
The Star Lake station hosted food vendors with a variety of dishes and treats at the Star Lake station. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / Sound Publishing
The Star Lake station hosted performances and vendors at the grand opening. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / Sound Publishing
Guests joined in the performance to learn a dance from members of the Anokye Agofomma group at the Star Lake station on Dec. 6. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / Sound Publishing
Community members enjoy food from Project Feast at Star Lake station during the celebration of the new light rail station.
Crowds stream down from the light rail at Star Lake station on opening day.
DJs pose in front of a celebratory banner at the new Kent-Des Moines light rail station on Dec. 6. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / Sound Publishing
Children's inflatable games were just one family-friendly activity at the Federal Way station during the grand opening of the most recent light rail stations. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / Sound Publishing
Community members celebrated the opening of the new station Kent-Des Moines on Dec. 6. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / Sound Publishing

A multi-stop celebration in South King County marked the historic opening of three new Sound Transit Link light rail stops on Saturday, Dec. 6, including Kent-Des Moines, Star Lake (Kent) and Federal Way.

A ribbon cutting started off the day’s festivities at 9:30 a.m. at the Federal Way Downtown Station, located at the Federal Way Transit Center, 31911 23rd Ave. S. The station features 400 new parking spaces in addition to existing garages, public restrooms, and a rebuilt street grid with pedestrian and bicycle improvements.

Speeches from community leaders and the ribbon cutting finished up around 11 a.m. when passengers were welcomed on board for the first time.

From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., community members had the chance to win prizes by participating in the “Discover. Play. Win!” challenge and enjoyed a different community celebration at each stop.

With a map from a Sound Transit ambassador in hand, many attendees headed to the Star Lake stop, where they joined Project Feast’s event titled “Feast for Trains.”

Project Feast is a Kent-based social-enterprise nonprofit that focuses on empowering refugee and immigrant cooks through culinary job training. Their event featured multicultural stage performances, curated food vendors, live cooking demonstrations, commemorative giveaways, kids’ activities and more.

Participants could then wait the 8 to 15 minutes to catch a train to the Kent-Des Moines station to enjoy a free family-friendly celebration featuring seven themed “gardens,” each one “highlighting local culture, innovation and community, including interactive art and history exhibits, food trucks, live performances, and youth-led activities,” according to Sound Transit.

This event was hosted by the Success Foundation and presented by Sound Transit in partnership with the City of Kent and the City of Des Moines, as well as local community organizations.

Sound Transit staff estimates the new Federal Way Link will draw an average of about 25,000 daily riders along the extension that will connect to Seattle and Lynnwood and eventually to Bellevue. Riders will come from the three cities where the stations sit and draw from Fife, Milton, Tacoma and Auburn, according to Sound Transit spokesperson David Jackson.

You Might Like