The Kirkland City Council’s next “virtual” meeting takes place Tuesday, July 7. The meeting uses video conferencing technology provided by Zoom in response to Gov. Jay Inslee’s “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order. The regular business meeting begins at 7:30 p.m. and is preceded by a 5:30 p.m. study session.

The agenda for the July 7 meeting will be available on the City website prior to the meeting at: Kirkland City Council agendas. The meeting can be viewed in real time via the live stream on the City website at: http://www.kirklandwa.gov/depart/council/Meetings/WatchCouncilMeetings.htm and is televised on Comcast Cable Channel 21 and Frontier Cable Channel 31.

Here are a few highlights from the upcoming meeting:

Study Session:

The Study Session begins at 5:30 p.m. and will include presentations on the Police Strategic Plan, police use of force, the School Resource Officer Task Force report, and how the 2018 Proposition 1 is investing in community policing, behavioral health, domestic violence, suicide prevention, and gun safety education. 

Business Meeting:

City Council to Hold Public Hearing on a Draft Resolution Affirming Black Lives Matter and Establishing a Framework for Kirkland Becoming a Safe, Inclusive and Welcoming Community

A framework resolution that is intended to build on all the City's previous initiatives will be discussed.

Shortly after the death of George Floyd, City leaders and staff called upon the relationships that had been built following the Menchie’s incident to get guidance on how the City could be part of the solution to injustice and structural racism. The City received important feedback that it was critical to first listen and learn, especially from members of the Black community, prior to action.  

The framework resolution that will be discussed by the Council is structured to keep City actions limited and focused so that goals and outcomes may be developed in partnership with Black community members from the Eastside.

The City Council and staff have received outreach from notable Black members from the Eastside Race and Leadership Coalition who have formed a new group called the “Right to Breathe Committee,” as well as Black community members, Black youth, other communities of color, religious leaders, neighborhood leaders and interested stakeholders, all of whom desire to be part of creating overdue societal change.  Staff may also identify additional non-profits, community-based organizations and expert advisors who can contribute. The framework resolution provides funding and authorization for City staff to develop a comprehensive community engagement plan that may include town halls, further public hearings, social media campaigns, small group discussions, training, mailings, surveys and more.  

The dialogue with the Black community, non-profits, community-based organizations, experts and other community members will be used to inform the Council’s budget deliberations in the fall of 2020 as the Council considers specific policies and programs to be funded as part of the 2021-2022 Biennial Budget. The community engagement will also highlight potential legislative actions that could be taken by the Council or the state legislature.

The draft Resolution articulates the initial strategies to becoming a safe, welcoming and inclusive community:

Transparency strategies:

1. Develop police use of force dashboard
2. Implement Body Camera pilot
3. Develop Human Resources dashboard
4. Develop Human Services dashboard
5. Other strategies identified by the community and the Council

Accountability strategies:

1. “8 Can’t Wait” police use of force policy review
2. Contracted third party policy use of force review
3. Use of force data evaluation and analysis
4. Council use of force policy discussion
5. Police body camera pilot
6. Staff review of national best practices for alternatives to police for serving those experiencing homelessness, behavioral health issues, drug addiction and other community challenges
7. Contracted organizational “equity assessment” to identify gaps in diversity, inclusion and proposed action steps to address gaps
8. Other strategies identified by the community and the Council

Community Engagement strategies:

1. Community engagement process centered around Black people
2. Targeted stakeholder engagement
3. Town Halls, virtual meetings and small group discussion
4. Surveys, graphics, mailers and social media campaigns,
5. Council retreat
6. Other strategies identified by the community and the Council

Funding strategies:

1. Fund outside review of police use of force
2. Fund body camera pilot
3. Fund community engagement strategies
4. Reserve funding to implement ideas from community engagement, national best practice review, and equity assessment
5. Meet other funding needs identified by the community and the Council

The draft resolution is presented as a starting point for very important, complex and difficult community discussions about police, structural racism, and actions the City can take to be a leader for change on these issues.   The public hearing is intended to solicit comments from any member of the community on these challenging topics or on changes to the resolution itself.   The public hearing is scheduled for one hour on the Council agenda, with no restriction on the number of speakers during that time frame. Comments from individuals will be limited to three minutes. If many people wish to speak, the time limit may be adjusted to two minutes to accommodate as many speakers as possible. 

Following the public hearing, staff will be seeking Council input and direction on any changes to the resolution. A final resolution and funding options will be brought back for discussion at future Council meeting. 

Fire and Emergency Medical Services Ballot Measure

The City Council will be finalizing edits to the proposed ordinance/ballot title language and appointing community members to the pro and con committees. The City Council will make their final decision about placing the measure on the ballot during their meeting on Tuesday, July 21. 

Public Participation

As always, the Kirkland City Council welcomes public involvement at its meetings and would like to encourage community members to take advantage of its available options for remote participation. Comments can be provided through Zoom, voicemail at: 425-587-3090, and email at: councilmeetingcomment@kirklandwa.gov. Voicemail and email comments must be provided by 3 p.m. on Tuesday, July 7.

For the public hearing on police and racial equality issues:

• Up to one hour for public comment
• Three minutes will be allowed per speaker (this may be limited to two minutes per speaker to allow for more people to make public comment).
• There will not be a “three person per viewpoint” limitation for the public hearing

For issues that are not quasi-judicial or set for a public hearing :

• Three minutes per comment, no more than three speakers per side of an issue 
• The City Manager will no longer read emails received by the City Councilmembers during the Council meeting. Emails that are submitted will be provided to, and read, by the City Council. 
• Speakers will be prioritized in this order: (1) ZOOM video; (2) ZOOM audio; (3) voicemail messages left with the City by 3 p.m. on July 7; and (4) emails with attachments that include audio or video that can be displayed

Community members may also attend the meeting via Zoom. Instructions to participate via Zoom will be provided on the City Council webpage prior to the meeting. For more information about the Kirkland City Council, please visit the Council webpage. 

In an effort to support downtown businesses during the coronavirus pandemic, the City will begin closing the west end of Park Lane between Lake Street and Main Street to vehicles from 6 p.m. to 7:00 a.m., seven days a week.

“With the weather getting better and our county slowly reopening, we’ve seen our community members coming out in larger numbers to support our downtown shops and restaurants,” said Mayor Penny Sweet. “By opening ‘Evenings on Park Lane’ to pedestrians, we’re giving our community members space to stay six feet apart to continue to slow the spread of COVID-19.”

The night-time closures of Park Lane to vehicles is set to begin at 6 p.m. on Thursday, July 2, 2020 and last through Labor Day. The City will continue to evaluate all options to support downtown businesses and help keep community members safe.

The decision to close the west end of Park Lane in the evenings to vehicles was informed by considerable outreach to the businesses on Park Lane and collaboration with community groups.

“We want to thank everyone who contributed ideas or feedback about this plan,” said Mayor Sweet. “There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to supporting small businesses during a pandemic. We appreciate everyone’s flexibility, patience, and goodwill as we try our best to support our business community and their patrons during these challenging times.”

The City will post signs indicating that the street is closed to vehicles, as well as parking signs at each parking stall to inform visitors to Park Lane of the overnight closures.

As is available to all Kirkland businesses, several of the restaurants on Park Lane have applied for permits to use the parking stalls directly abutting their storefront as extended food service space. Businesses interested in applying for a parklet permit to use parking stalls in front of their storefront can download the application on the City’s website: http://www.kirklandwa.gov/BusinessSupportCOVID

In addition to the overnight closures, the City is also planning to close Park Lane to vehicles during the day for July 25-26 and August 9. These weekends were previously scheduled to be closed for special events that had been planned on Park Lane.

The City of Kirkland is seeking input from the community to help guide the development of a new City website.

Community members are invited to take a short survey to share their experience with the current City website, and assist staff in developing a new City website that better meets the needs of the public.

The City of Kirkland is working with consultant OpenCities to develop a new City website that is focused on optimizing the user experience for community members. The new site will prioritize giving the public quick and easy access to the services that they use most. Another primary goal of the new site will be to increase accessibility for all users, including placing a priority on ADA accessibility and site translation capabilities.

“We know that we live in an age where many people want to be able to access services, pay bills and participate in civic life online,” said Councilmember Neal Black. “The COVID-19 pandemic has put a spotlight on the importance of having technology that is accessible and easily useable for all. We need your input to make sure the City’s new website best meets the community’s needs.”

The current City website platform is near the end of its functional life and must be replaced. The City is using this opportunity to ensure that the new website is functional, secure and offers the features and services most desired by the community. The City will be launching a test site later this year and will also be seeking input from the community at that time.

The deadline for the survey, which can be accessed at https://us.openforms.com/Form/01c2ec4d-efd6-40d5-a2fa-1ab6688a117b, is 5 p.m. on Monday, July 13.

The City of Kirkland is pleased to announce that City traffic cameras are now available to the public on the City website at https://trafficmap.kirklandwa.gov/.

Community members can visit the webpage and click a camera icon to display an image from the traffic camera at that location. Visitors to the page can then click on the image, or use the maximize window button at the top of the pop-up, to open a larger version of the image. The images are refreshed approximately every minute.

“We hope that this new feature on our website will be a helpful tool for community members looking to plan their trips to avoid traffic,” said Councilmember Jon Pascal. “We also believe that this will be a valuable tool for community members to check road conditions during winter storm events.”

The traffic map is currently live and available to the public at https://trafficmap.kirklandwa.gov/.

Kirkland Parks and Community Services is proud to present the Kirkland Creates Virtual Art Gallery. Our call for local artists received 37 pieces from 11 artists! Our mission is to connect people through art by highlighting local artists and showcasing how creative our community is.

Please view the Kirkland Creates Virtual Art Gallery here: https://rb.gy/gbfvka

A big thank you to all of the artists for allowing us to display their work.