The Kenmore Top 4: December 15, 2023

Plymouth Housing Proposal Update
The Kenmore City Council held a second public hearing last Monday evening on the Plymouth housing project proposal at 6532 Bothell Way NE. Many people signed up to speak, and the meeting that lasted until the early hours of the morning.

At the end of the public hearing and after several hours of public comments, the Kenmore City Council voted 6-1 to not approve the Plymouth development agreement proposal. Several city councilmembers had questions and comments about the proposal that may be able to be addressed. City staff will be researching whether these questions and comments can be addressed and possible next steps. For information on what was proposed, visit the project website.

Kenmore Recognizes Three Departing City Councilmembers
This week, three departing city councilmembers were thanked and recognized for their service to Kenmore. Councilmember David Baker has served on the council since 2004 (including 14 years serving as Mayor of Kenmore), Councilmember Corina Pfeil has served since 2020, and Councilmember Angela Kugler has served since 2021. At the January 8 meeting, three new councilmembers will be formally sworn in: John Culver, Nathan Loutsis, and Valerie Sasson. 

City Council Adopts "Blake Fix" Ordinance, Making the Possession or Illegal Use of Narcotics Prosecutable in Kenmore
At the December 11 meeting, the City Council unanimously adopted an ordinance to amend the City’s criminal code to make the possession or use of illegal narcotics an offense that is prosecutable in the City of Kenmore. The Washington v. Blake decision was made by the Washington Supreme Court in 2021, effectively legalizing most drugs in the state. In 2023, the Washington State Legislature passed a new law making most future drug arrests a misdemeanor crime. Sometimes referred to as the "Blake Fix", this ordinance updates the code to make it consistent with state law misdemeanors and gross misdemeanors for enforcement within the city. For more information, read the memo from Kenmore's Police Chief.

Listen to the New Let's Talk Kenmore Podcast
The City of Kenmore is excited to introduce “Let’s Talk Kenmore", a lighthearted podcast aimed at connecting citizens to their local government and demystifying the role of government in the city of Kenmore. The podcast is hosted by Amber Clifton and covers a variety of topics. Listen now on the City's website or Youtube channel and stay tuned as new episodes will be added regularly. Have an idea for a podcast topic? Submit it here.