The City of Kenmore will host its annual volunteer park clean up event, Jack V. Crawford "Courtesy is Contagious in Kenmore" Day, this Saturday, October 21. The event will be from 9 am – 12 pm at Log Boom Park with volunteers beautifying one of Kenmore’s most cherished parks. Some of the tasks include mulching, removing invasive plants, beach cleanup, etc. Tools and refreshments will be provided. Mayor Crawford served as Kenmore’s first Mayor from the city’s incorporation in August 1998 through 1999 and served on the City Council until December 2005. It's not too late to volunteer! Sign up using the Volunteer Intake Form or email volunteer@kenmorewa.gov.
Puget Sound Energy Bill Discount Program
Income-eligible customers can now reduce their PSE energy bills by up to 45% a month through the Bill Discount program. Applying for the program is easy. No income documentation or social security number is required to apply. To see if you are eligible before applying, just go to pse.com/discount. By answering three questions, using the program’s widget - household size, county of residency and household income - you will instantly learn if you are eligible for an energy discount.
Northshore Utility District (NUD) Assistance Programs
If you are facing financial hardship and unable to pay your utility bill, you may request utility bill assistance from NUD's Low Income Discount Program or there is assistance available through a variety of local agencies. Learn more here.
Washington State law provides two tax benefit programs for senior citizens and people with disabilities: property tax exemptions (including surface water utility fees) and property tax deferrals. Seniors, persons with disabilities, and disabled veterans may qualify for a reduction in property taxes if they meet the eligibility requirements of age 61 or older or disability status with an income below the limit threshold of $58,423.
The Planning Commission has been very busy over the last several months reviewing several draft elements prepared by Community Development staff for the periodic update of the City’s Comprehensive Plan. Every county and city in the state, whether fully or partially planning under the Growth Management Act (GMA) is required to conduct a periodic update of its comprehensive plan once every 10 years. Updates to comprehensive plans are due for those jurisdictions in Puget Sound region counties (King, Kitsap, Pierce, and Snohomish) by December 31, 2024. This includes Kenmore! The latest news on Kenmore’s Comp Plan update:
- Planning Commission presented their recommendations of approval for the Climate Action Element, Transportation Element, Public Services Element, and Utilities Element of the Comprehensive Plan (Comp Plan) in September and October.
- All of these elements are anticipated to be adopted by City Council by end of November.
- In 2024, Community Development staff will be preparing drafts of the Downtown Element, Community Design Element, Economic Development Element, and Natural Environment elements.
- Staff will also be updating the Housing and Land Use elements to reflect recently adopted State legislation regarding accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and middle housing.
For more information, please see the City’s Comprehensive Plan webpage, or contact Community Development staff at 425.398.8900.
Join the King County Sheriff’s Office, in collaboration with the cities of Kenmore and Shoreline, for a Gift Cards for Guns event. The program, dedicated to reducing the number of firearms in circulation and enhancing public safety, invites community members to exchange firearms for Visa/Mastercard gift cards. The drive-through event will be held from 10 am to 2 pm at Shoreline Community College, 16101 Greenwood Ave N, Shoreline WA 98133.
The City of Kenmore is currently seeking volunteers to serve on a Financial Sustainability Plan (FSP) Task Force from November 2023 to April 2024.
Due to state-imposed 1% limit on property tax growth, high inflation, relatively flat growth in other revenues, unfunded state and federal mandates, and other factors, the City’s operating revenues are not keeping pace with the cost of doing business. As a result, the City of Kenmore faces an upcoming structural deficit in its operating budget (General Fund and Street Fund) and will need to revise the Financial Sustainability Plan that was adopted in 2020.
The seven-member FSP Task Force will review the City’s financial forecasts and budgets and evaluate priorities, services, and revenues to make recommendations to the City Manager on how to resolve the structural deficit. All Kenmore residents, business owners, or employees (over the age of 16) may apply. Learn more and apply by October 30 at www.kenmorewa.gov/fsp.
Climate Action Plan (CAP) staff have been busy over the last year engaging with the Kenmore community to learn more about priorities for CAP implementation in Kenmore. Now, all the feedback that was received has been used to form a path forward for climate action, and recommendations for future CAP initiatives and programming will be reviewed by the City Council at the October 23 meeting. The recommended programs will rely heavily on grants and leveraging existing partnerships. Ongoing CAP programs that will require additional funding will be reviewed as part of the Financial Sustainability Plan.
The City of Kenmore is proud to be one of 15 cities in Puget Sound to participate in the Adopt a Storm Drain program. Residents, businesses, and organizations can sign up to adopt a storm drain of their choosing and help keep it free of leaves and debris. By doing so you will be helping to prevent flooding caused by blocked drains and pollution from reaching our streams and lakes.
A huge thank you to all our current Kenmore Water Stewards! If you’re interested in learning more or seeing if there is a storm drain you can adopt, visit wa.adopt-a-drain.org/
 Photo Enforcement Numbers for Fall Semester ‘23
September was the first month with both Kenmore Automated Photo Enforcement (KAPE) school zone locations fully active for school-zone speeding violations. Over the 15 active days, the Arrowhead Elementary school zone averaged ~50 violations per day, and the Kenmore Elementary school zone averaged ~25 violations per day – both locations had roughly half the frequency of violations seen during the warning period last school year. These violations represent only 3% of all drivers who travel through these school zones each day, which means 97% of drivers are traveling at or close to the school zone speed limit while the school zones are in effect.
Before the KAPE program began, nearly 100% of drivers were exceeding the school zone speed limit by 10 mph or more. The KAPE program is fair, transparent, equitable, and forgiving – the enormous reduction in the rate of violations is a strong indication that the program is successful at giving drivers every chance to self-correct before receiving a ticket. The revenue from the KAPE program is dedicated to pavement preservation and traffic safety. The reduced travel speeds in school zones bring a tremendous safety benefit to our school commuters and the proceeds from the violations that do occur will help bring safer streets to the rest of Kenmore.
Thank you for supporting another fruitful year of the Kenmore Farmers Market! We want to hear from you about what you like about the market and what kind of improvements can be made. Share your thoughts with us via our online survey. The survey will be open through the end of the month.
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