The City Council has proclaimed July as Parks and Recreation Month in the City of Kirkland. Join us in celebrating at the Game On! Family Fun Day event, a free, interactive games extravaganza that takes place during the Juanita Friday Market, from 3 to 7 p.m., Friday, July 12 at Juanita Beach Park.
Hosted by the Kirkland Parks and Community Services Department, “Game On!” invites youth and families to come outside and play! Indulge your taste buds with delicious Friday market fare, and then indulge your sense of fun and adventure by challenging your friends and family to an outdoor game or two. Game On! will ignite the child in everyone, with a selection of large yard games including a bean bag toss, giant Plinko, portable volleyball, Jenga, Connect 4 and more!
This exciting new selection of outdoor, portable games was purchased using a portion of the funds awarded by the “Get Active Stay Active” grant, a King County grant program meant to support youth and amateur sports and fitness programs. The City of Kirkland was one of 19 organizations in King County Council District 6 to receive the grant funds, which are awarded every two years.
“Portable games will allow City staff to engage with the community in new ways at a variety of new locations,” said Parks and Community Services Director Lynn Zwaagstra. “We are incredibly thankful to County Councilmember Claudia Balducci for being a leader in supporting programs to get our communities active and keep them active.”
Additionally, “Get Active Stay Active” grant funds are being used to support the City’s scholarship program, which allows children who might not otherwise have the opportunity the chance to participate in the City’s active summer programs.
For more information about Game On! please visit the Facebook event page.
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The pedestrian bridge that spans Interstate 405 to connect South Rose Hill’s 116th Avenue Northeast to Everest’s Kirkland Avenue will be closed from 7 a.m. July 15 to 5 p.m. July 17.
The closure allows crews to replace an aging sewer manhole beneath the sidewalk near the bridge’s western base—one of the most significant tasks in the City’s ongoing project to upgrade the water and sewer mains beneath Kirkland Avenue. The project also includes the installation of a new curb ramp and sidewalk panels to improve access for people who travel by wheelchair. It will also reduce the tendency for stormwater to collect on the sidewalk at the bridge’s base.
Rodarte Construction, the City’s contractor, will establish a walking and bicycling detour around the bridge. That detour will direct foot and bicycle traffic along Northeast 70th Place.
Kirkland Avenue will remain closed between 116th Avenue Northeast and Slater Street from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays until July 12.
Rodarte Construction finished upgrading the water main in early June and is on pace to complete the sewer main upgrade in August. By replacing the old sewer mains, the City of Kirkland is increasing its capacity to serve Kirkland’s residents and, at the same time, simplifying the maintenance process for Kirkland’s staff.
For more information visit http://bit.ly/KirklandWaterSewer2019.
Crews are out this week on the Cross Kirkland Corridor installing a 720 square foot rain garden south of NE 87th Street. Crews will also be removing blackberry, weeds and two poplar saplings on the site. Volunteers will replant in October with plants such as pacific aster, slough sedge and kinnikinnick. Flaggers will be onsite to direct traffic when trucks access the work site. Rain gardens help keep pollutants out of Lake Washington!
Did you know that 1% of the budget for Capital Improvement Projects (CIP) in the City of Kirkland is allocated to Public Arts?
Enhancing and enlivening Kirkland spaces with art that is accessible to and enjoyable by all members of the community is a goal of the City. A committee is formed with members of the Kirkland Cultural Arts Commission (KCAC) and the CIP stakeholders to explore Public Art to be selected. Art is carefully curated by the KCAC and the selection and implementation process is collaborative. This ensures the creative integration of art into each development is aesthetically aligned with the project. You may want to visit City Hall and the Kirkland Justice Center, which are great examples of recently completed projects integrating art for everyone to enjoy. Stay tuned for more exciting work to come soon!
The KCAC is committed to enriching the lives of residents through art.
Whether the emphasis is on team-building, a reprieve from the office or just plain giving back to the community, corporate volunteerism is a win for participants, a win for the environment and a massive win for Kirkland parks and public spaces.
Throughout the month of June, the City of Kirkland benefited from corporate volunteerism initiatives hosted by a variety of organizations, including Symetra Financial, Cisco Systems, Google, Gates Ventures, RootMetrics, Honda of Kirkland and others. From tearing out blackberry brambles at Juanita Beach Park, to leading the first ever invasive species removal effort at Kingsgate Park, corporate volunteers pulled weeds, uprooted ivy, spread mulch and restored habitat in some of the City’s most prized and precious public areas.
“Corporate volunteerism has a hugely positive impact on our community,” said Green Kirkland Partnership Supervisor Jodie Galvan. “We are incredibly grateful for the local companies that make it possible for their employees to get involved, and for the hard-working volunteers who dive into the work wholeheartedly.”
The corporate volunteerism model is more than just a day of service – the City’s corporate partners assist with recruitment by helping employees find a meaningful match to projects in their neighborhoods, improving the areas where they live, work and play. Google hosts GoogleServe, a month-long campaign meant to inspire Google employees to give back, while companies like Symetra celebrate week-long service campaigns.
In a recent event hosted by City partner EarthCorps, motivated GoogleServe volunteers removed over 6,300 square feet of invasive English ivy from Kingsgate Park. For the volunteers, the opportunity to get outside and improve public areas not only provides a fun change of pace, but also gives them the opportunity to do something physically satisfying while building relationships.
“It's nice to take some time to do something different and feel like you're giving back to the community,” said Googler Greg Bickerman.
Kirkland’s network of corporate volunteer projects held throughout the month of June was coordinated by the City’s Green Kirkland Partnership and nonprofit partner EarthCorps. Sponsorships by organizations like PCC Community Markets, King Conservation District, Mercurys Coffee and KIND Bars were integral to the efforts, helping keep our volunteers energized with coffee and snacks.
For more information on how to get involved in corporate volunteerism, contact City of Kirkland Volunteer Services Coordinator Patrick Tefft at: ptefft@kirklandwa.gov or 425-587-3012.
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Free Shredding and Styrofoam Recycling
Saturday, July 13, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
915 8th St, Kirkland
Recycle styrofoam and shred confidential papers for free! Event open to Kirkland residents only. *SHREDDING DETAILS* ACCEPTED: Confidential paper materials. Staples OK. No binder clips. LIMIT: 4 file-size (12”x12”x16”) boxes or equivalent quantity (e.g. paper grocery bags OK). Shredding will be completed by Confidential Data Disposal. Material shredded through the event will be recycled. Shredded paper is NOT accepted in your recycling at home, so using a service to shred is a better environmental choice than shredding at home.
*STYROFEST DETAILS* ACCEPTED: Clean Styrofoam blocks, EPE blocks and sheets, and plastic film. LIMIT: one carload per household. See flyer with photos of accepted items (pdf).
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Juanita Friday Market
Every Friday June 7 to Sept. 27, 3 to 7 p.m.
Juanita Beach Park, 9703 N.E. Juanita Drive
A twelve-year Kirkland tradition, the Juanita Friday Market features fresh produce from local farmers, artisanal breads and desserts, locally-made honey, hot food, cut flowers, sustainable skin care products, hand-crafted jewelry, candles, natural soap, local art and much more. The weekly series is set against the stunning backdrop of Juanita Beach Park, which offers sandy shoreline, restrooms, swimming and a children’s play area.
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Earthquake "Proof" your home
Tuesday, July 23, 6-7 p.m.
Kirkland City Hall
Is your home ready for the Big One? If a major earthquake shook your home today, would you still have a safe place to live?
This class will cover the basics of earthquake-"proofing" your home, from securing furniture to easy ways to check the structural integrity of your building.
Come learn how you can take practical, affordable steps to help protect your household in the event of an earthquake.
Sign up online: bit.ly/EQProof19
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Rockets to Mars: Past, Present and Future
Tuesday, August 6, 7 p.m.
Kingsgate Library
For adults.
Mars has long been of interest to people on Earth, having been identified by the Egyptians as a wanderer on a planet, more than 3,500 years ago.
Mariner 9 in 1971 was the first mission to Mars. Viking 1 and Viking 2 were the first to land on Mars in 1976. Hear all about Mars exploration and the rockets that got the spacecraft and landers there, and future plans for human ventures.
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