City Council takes action on Fire Station 27, Car-Free Sundays coming to Park Lane, and more!

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this week in kirkland

April 17, 2019

city of kirkland washington

Council Action: Fire Station 27, Park Lane, Neighborhood Safety Projects

Fire Station 27 location

In today's edition of This Week in Kirkland, we'd like to highlight three actions that the City Council took during their April 16 Regular Business Meeting:

1. City Council authorized the City Manager to execute a Purchase and Sale Agreement for the acquisition of the property located 13118 121st Way NE., Kirkland, WA for future relocation of Fire Station 27. Studies conducted since the annexation of Kingsgate, North Juanita Hill, and Finn Hill have determined that this property is a necessary location for a new fire station to replace the aging existing Station 27 (currently at 11210 NE 132nd St.). See a recent press release for more information. 

2. The City Council adopted the recommended Neighborhood Safety Projects for 2019. Top Priority projects include the following:

1. Raised sidewalk on corner of N.E. 134th Street at 87th Avenue N.E.
2. Rapid flashing beacon on N.E. 132nd Street at 129th Place N.E.
3. Traffic median island on Slater Avenue N.E. at N.E. 119th Street
4. Intersection improvement on N.E. 87th Street at 114th Avenue N.E.
5. Walkway on N.E. 120th Street between 93rd Place N.E. and 96th Avenue N.E.
6. Crosswalk on Lakeview Drive north of 64th Street
More information on the 2019 Neighborhood Safety Projects can be found in the April 16 City Council packet. More information on the Neighborhood Safety Program can be found on the City website. 

3. The City Council approved a pilot program for car-free Sundays on Park Lane throughout the summer of 2019. Starting on May 26 through September 22, Park Lane will be closed on Sundays to vehicles. The street was built to be a pedestrian-friendly, festival space, with built-in bollards to regularly close the street for pedestrian/bicycle use only. Background information is available in the April 16 City Council packet

Park Lane

Recognizing our Neighborhood Association Volunteers

As part of National Volunteer Month, we're continuing to recognize volunteers that are working hard to make our community a great place to live, work and play. This week we'd like to recognize our neighborhood association volunteers. Kirkland Neighborhood Associations are your connection to sustaining and improving the sense of community that Kirklanders enjoy. Associations represent the neighborhoods in communication with the City Council and staff, provide input to the City on neighborhood planning in areas like future and existing park improvements, land use, traffic, and sidewalk and roadway improvement projects, and function in a true partnership with the Police and Fire Departments in addressing local enforcement issues and emergency preparedness.

More information about neighborhood associations is available on the City website, or watch the video below.  

Kirkland Neighborhood Associations

Meet the Kirkland Wildland Firefighting Team

Wildland Firefighters

For our firefighters, the desire and willingness to serve extends well beyond jurisdictional boundaries. While the safety of the Kirkland community is always our top priority, we welcome opportunities to assist other communities in situations where local resources simply aren’t enough.

This desire to serve on a broader level spurred the recent formation of our Wildland Firefighting Team, which is poised for rapid deployment in times of need.

The team was organized by 12-year Kirkland Fire Department firefighter Jon Hernandez, who has over two decades of experience in wildland firefighting. In 2016 he and others began laying the groundwork for the new team, which was implemented in 2018 with a total of 22 members.

The team experienced swift growth and is currently 28 members strong.

Wildland team members are certified with a “red card,” the state’s official Incident Qualification Card required for wildland incident response. The initial training consists of 40 hours of classroom work plus a “field day” to test the firefighter’s physical abilities. Field day exercises include a fire-shelter setup drill and a grueling test of fitness known as the “arduous pack test,” in which firefighters must travel three miles in under 45 minutes carrying a 45-pound pack. Red card certifications require an annual refresher training regimen, which includes both the pack test and the fire-shelter setup drill.

Kirkland firefighters complete the arduous pack drill on the Cross Kirkland Corridor.

The team was vastly effective in its inaugural year, serving on a total of eight deployments to different largescale incidents in Oregon, California and eastern Washington. Deployments generally last for two weeks and require teamwork, coordination and flexibility. The team is nimble, able to easily partner with firefighters from other agencies and work together seamlessly.    

Deployments by Kirkland’s Wildland Firefighting Team are cost-neutral to the City – meaning they do not cost the City money. Deployments are paid for with state mobilization funding, put in place by the legislature to assure ease of interagency cooperation in times of emergency.

The wildland team was inspired by our firefighters, who took the initiative to build the team from the ground up. The City is proud and honored that its firefighters are ready to respond and help our state and other states should an emergent need arise. Thank you Kirkland firefighters!  

Wildland Fire Team

Upcoming Events

Coffee Talk

Coffee Talk: Getting Around Kirkland

Peter Kirk Community Center 

Wednesday, April 24 2 - 4 p.m.

Join us to chat about new and fun ways to get around Kirkland. Enjoy light refreshments and participate in a raffle for door prizes. We encourage everyone to participate, regardless of ability.

For more information please contact:

David Lynch, Program Manager, Mobility Management, dlynch@hopelink.org.


Sunset
 

 

 

Shoreline Master Program update public hearing

Kirkland City Hall, 123 5th Ave. 

Thursday, April 25, 7 p.m. (open house starts at 6)

A public hearing jointly hosted by the Kirkland Planning Commission, the Houghton Community Council and the Department of Ecology takes place 7 p.m., Thursday, April 25, at Kirkland City Hall (123 5th Avenue) in the Council Chamber. An open house will precede the hearing at 6 p.m. to give attendees the opportunity to learn more about the SMP and the proposed amendments. Community members are invited to give public comment at the hearing or submit written comments.

For more information on the Shoreline Master Program update process, please visit our website at: Shoreline Master Program news release.

 


Repair cafe

 

 

 

 

Kirkland Repair Café

Kirkland Library, 308 Kirkland Ave. 

Saturday, April 27, 12:30 - 3:30 p.m.

Bring your small household items including clothing and we'll work on them! We want to keep stuff out of the landfill, conserve resources and save you money. Free to the public!

You must be present during the repair. Our experienced general "fixers" and sewing fixers will try to repair or mend your items, and can often also give you useful advice. There are no guarantees an item can be fixed, or that attempting to fix it won't break it even more.

Please only bring items small enough to be easily carried in by one person. Do not bring any items that are leaking, dangerous, contain gasoline, or have a strong odor. Clothing and other textiles you bring in for mending should be washed first.

All King County repair events are first-come, first-served, with no appointments or set times. But please contact us in advance if possible to let us know what you plan to bring, so our fixers can be prepared. For specialized repairs (which many are), please bring any specific parts or materials needed for your repair.

To ask about your repair, or if you have questions about this event or any King County repair events, contact Tom Watson by email or at 206-477-4481, or post a comment or question on the Facebook event page for this Kirkland event. Thanks!

 


Map Your Neighborhood

Map Your Neighborhood

Fire Station 22

Tuesday, April 30, 7 - 9 p.m. 

Is your neighborhood ready to work together in case of a disaster? If professional first responders are unable to reach everyone who needs assistance, do you have a plan to respond with your neighbors?

Map Your Neighborhood (MYN) teaches you to organize with your neighbors and develop an emergency plan to respond and help each other. This facilitator training will teach you how to host your own MYN session, get to know your neighbors, and make a community plan tailored to your neighborhood.

The class is free, but registration is required. Sign up online at: http://bit.ly/Apr2019MYN

For more information email KirklandEM@kirklandwa.gov or call (425) 587-3691. 

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