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Table of Contents:
The Kirkland City Council’s next meeting takes place Tuesday, September 7, 2021 via Zoom. 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 September 7 meeting will be available on the City website prior to the meeting at: Kirkland City Council agendas. You can also receive meeting agendas in your inbox by subscribing to City Council Agendas on the Kirkland email lists subscription page.
More ways to watch! Kirkland City Council meetings are streamed live on the City of Kirkland Facebook page and the City YouTube channel, in addition to the livestream on the City website. Meetings are also televised on Comcast Cable Channel 21 and Ziply Cable Channel 31.
Here are a few highlights from the meeting:
Study Session: Solid Waste Contract Procurement Update
The City Council will receive a presentation about the status of the solid waste contract procurement process and provide direction regarding the proposal submitted by Waste Management, Inc. Council discussion and direction about options related to the resulting rate increase will follow at future Council meetings.
Business Items:
Community Responders Program: The City Council will consider approving the conversion of 4.0 Limited Term Employee (LTE) Community Responder positions to Full Time Employee (FTE) status, the conversion of two ongoing contract Mental Health Professional positions into 1.0 FTE Community Responder positions, and the addition of 4.0 on-going FTE EMT positions for 24/7 coverage in the Mobile Integrated Health Unit. This action creates a total of 10.0 on-going FTEs to aid in recruiting these critical new positions. City Council will also receive a program execution plan update.
Affordable Housing Targets: The City’s Housing Strategy Plan, adopted in 2018, identifies a number of monitoring activities to follow up on policies identified in the plan including tracking general housing supply and costs; monitoring City regulations and policies that support affordable housing; and identifying new affordable housing best practices and trends in other communities. The Council will consider approaches to establishing interim affordable housing targets for the City and provide staff with direction on adopting a target, if desired. Staff would return to a future meeting with a resolution for adoption if Council decides to adopt a specific interim approach.
Purchase of Village Plaza: The Council will consider approving a resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute a purchase and sale agreement in the amount of $2,250,000 to acquire property located at 11825 100th Ave, NE., also known as the Village Plaza. The intent is to then sell the complex to the King County Housing Authority, with the City utilizing the Real Estate Excise Tax (REET) budgeted for housing to subsidize the price. Once both transactions are complete, the complex will remain dedicated affordable housing owned and operated by the KCHA.
Transportation Impact Fees: Council received a briefing on the draft results of the Transportation Impact Fee study at their April 6, 2021 meeting and had a discussion of policy issues on July 20, 2021. At this meeting, Council will finalize the policy discussion and provide staff with direction to allow an ordinance to be drafted for Council consideration at the September 21, 2021 meeting.
The full agenda and details will be available on the Kirkland City Council agendas page. Council will accept live spoken commentary under 'Items from the Audience' or ‘Public Hearings’ at regular meetings via Zoom audio/video on a computer or telephone connection. The connection links are provided on each individual meeting agenda. Please see www.kirklandwa.gov/council for more information on how to provide spoken comments. Written comments can be submitted to CityCouncil@kirklandwa.gov. For additional questions, please call the City Clerk’s Office at (425) 587-3190.
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 Kirkland is a great place to live – and not just for humans! A variety of fish and wildlife call Kirkland’s lakes, creeks, and wetlands home. These areas provide ideal habitat for finding food, making a home, and raising young.
Rainwater runoff flow and water quality impact stream habitat conditions. Everything that we do in our neighborhoods has downstream impacts on the health of our creeks, lakes, and the wildlife living there.
We created a short video to share Kirkland’s Storm and Surface Water Division’s efforts to improve aquatic habitat conditions and protect natural resources.
Are you interested in protecting in-stream habitat for our local fish and wildlife? The Storm and Surface Water Division is updating the City’s Surface Water Master Plan and would love to hear from you. Learn more at www.kirklandwa.gov/SWMP.
Take advantage of Community Van, one of our region’s most innovative transportation services. The Kirkland-Kenmore Community Van program provides six- and 12-passenger vans that are available for use 24 hours a day, seven days a week for prescheduled trips. Community Van relies on volunteer drivers and we are working to grow our pool of people approved to drive the vans. So, if you’re enthusiastic about being behind the wheel, this is a great opportunity.
Whether you intend to drive the vans to serve other community members, or mostly to benefit a group of people you know, we’d like to get you signed up as a volunteer driver. Almost anyone with a driver’s license will qualify. The driver of a Community Van trip always rides free, and passengers pay only a standard bus fare. This is a great deal, considering you can use the vans for trips to places as far away as Everett and Olympia. Take the vans pretty much wherever you want, whenever you want, with some exceptions. Trips must be requested at least 48 hours in advance and destinations can be anywhere within two hours of Kirkland. The vans are ADA accessible too!
Community Van is made possible through a partnership between the City and King County Metro. For more information about the Community Van program, visit: kirklandwa.gov/CommunityVan. For all questions, including how to take advantage of the vans for your personal transportation needs or how to become a driver, contact Blair Daly at commvan@kirlandwa.gov or 425-587-3924.
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Effective Thursday, September 2, 2021, the Kirkland Fire Department has terminated the Stage 2 fire safety burn ban which prohibited small recreational fires.
Recent precipitation and cooler weather have reduced wildland fire danger to a level where the responsible burning of small recreational fires may resume. While the burn ban has ended, wildland fire danger remains elevated, and the Fire Department asks that residents continue to use extra care when burning and disposing of ashes. Kirkland remains under a permanent Stage 1 burn ban that prohibits the burning of yard waste, trash and other debris, and limits the size of outdoor fires to 3-feet in diameter by 2-feet high.
For more information about the Kirkland Fire Department Fire Prevention Bureau, please visit our website.
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 On August 31, 2021, the Kirkland Fire Department deployed four Kirkland Firefighters to El Dorado County California to help battle the Caldor Fire near Lake Tahoe. With only about 12 hours’ notice, Captain Ivan Huld, and Firefighters Robby Holmes, Shawn McDougall (not pictured) and Brett Christiansen packed their gear and departed in Kirkland Fire Engine 128. These first responders are all members of our Wildland Firefighting Team and will be deployed for approximately 18 days before making the long journey home.
Huld, Holmes, McDougall and Christiansen join a force of more than 15,000 firefighters from several other states who have mobilized to help subdue these devastating fires. This is an example of how mutual aid between fire service agencies not only performs as a force multiplier for Kirkland and its neighboring communities, but extends beyond state lines as needed. Our Wildland Firefighters undergo a rigorous certification process to become eligible to deploy on wildfires and it is the Kirkland Fire Department’s honor to serve our friends in California.
Thank you Captain Huld and Firefighters Holmes, McDougall and Christiansen!
Learn more about the Kirkland Fire Department, including information about our upcoming recruiting process, on their website.
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Saturday, September 18, 2021
Virtual presentations will start at 10 a.m.
Register
Be part of creating a more equitable Kirkland where everyone has a sense of belonging. City Hall for All 2021 features important and collaborative discussions about how communities are shaped through planning and how to lift up all voices and get involved in these processes.
Our virtual event features a keynote address by Mr. Delbert Richardson starting at 10 a.m.
"He who tells the story controls the narrative.”
Mr. Richardson is a self-taught Community Scholar, Second Generation Storyteller, of the National Award Winning The "Unspoken" Truths American History Traveling Museum. With the use of authentic artifacts, storyboards, and the ancient art of "storytelling,” Mr. Richardson teaches American History through an Afro-centric lens which centers those voices of Black people who often are omitted and erased. This unique interdisciplinary approach to teaching challenges and inspires participants of all ages to be curious regarding their beliefs and perceptions as they relate to American History. Some sensitive images will be displayed.
City Hall for All will also include an Equity and Planning Forum which will be a facilitated discussion over Zoom starting at noon. Much of how a city is formed and changes through time is determined through long-range planning. Parks, transportation, commercial areas, residential neighborhoods, public safety, water infrastructure, and local actions to protect the environment are all determined through planning processes, which are ultimately envisioned by members of the community. Come be a part of a facilitated discussion with James Lopez, Deputy City Manager for External Affairs, on how the City is incorporating equity into its planning processes and documents. The conversation will feature three planning efforts that are currently underway:
See you there, and please share this information with your friends and neighbors! www.kirklandwa.gov/CityHallforAll
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People who live in, work in, or visit Kirkland are invited to participate in an online survey by September 10, 2021 to help identify strengths and growth opportunities related to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging across the city. Over the course of the past year, the City of Kirkland has been engaged in critically important actions to assess our efforts to improve as both a municipal government and employer. Read more.
To help answer your general development and permitting questions, the City of Kirkland Development Services now provides virtual appointments with Planning and Building, and Public Works staff. This is a pilot program that provides an additional opportunity to meet directly with staff from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
You can receive answers to basic questions regarding Kirkland zoning, building, and development requirements... All right from your own living room! Visit our Planning and Building webpage and find the "Virtual Appointments" link on the right side of the page.
Virtual appointments are 15 minutes and are conducted using Microsoft Teams with the ability to choose from available meeting times and services.
If you'd like to learn more, please check out our video!
North Rose Hill
124th Avenue Northeast
Minor delays are likely along 124th Avenue Northeast, between Northeast 108th and 115th lanes, where Kirkland’s street paving contractor is preparing the street for its new surface.
Northeast 120th Street
Drivers traveling Northeast 120th Street between Slater Avenue and the Lake Washington Institute of Technology between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. will encounter lane-shifts through the end of September.
A Kirkland contractor is upgrading catch basins to treat stormwater before it reaches Totem Lake.
Visit www.kirklandwa.gov/120thstormwater
112th Avenue Northeast – Highlands
Minor delays are likely along 112th Avenue Northeast, between Northeast 87th and 97th streets, where Kirkland’s street paving contractor is preparing the street for its new surface.
Totem Lake Boulevard – Totem Lake
Totem Lake Boulevard’s slip-lane remains closed while Kirkland’s Totem Lake Connector contractor continues the process of building the pedestrian and bicycle bridge that will connect the two ends of the Cross Kirkland Corridor that are separated by its intersection with Northeast 124th Street and Totem Lake Boulevard.
The City is detouring commercial trucks around the intersection.
Visit www.kirklandwa.gov/totemlakeconnector
Cross Kirkland Corridor – Totem Lake
A detour around the Cross Kirkland Corridor between 120th Place Northeast and 128th Lane Northeast remains in effect while Kirkland’s Totem Lake Connector contractor uses the corridor to build the pedestrian and bicycle bridge.
The Totem Lake Connector is expected to be complete in fall 2022.
Visit www.kirklandwa.gov/totemlakeconnector or www.kirklandwa.gov/totemlakepark.
Cross Kirkland Corridor – Everest/Moss Bay
Cross Kirkland Corridor travelers will continue to encounter a short detour around the trail between Seventh Avenue South and Sixth Street South as construction of the Feriton Spur Park expansion continues.
The short detour is directing travelers to a protected pathway along Fifth Place South. The park’s developer, SRM Development, expects the detour to continue for five months. During that time, SRM Development will restrict parallel, on-street parking along the north portion of Fifth Place South.
SRM Development will restrict parallel, on-street parking along the north portion of Fifth Place South.
SRM Development expects to open Feriton Spur Park to open to the public in September. The new park will extend the developed section of the Cross Kirkland Corridor to Sixth Street South with 14 improvements, including a pickleball court, urban farm and the corridor’s first bathroom.
Northeast 132nd Street - Juanita
Construction continues on Kirkland Fire Station 24, which is scheduled to be completed this fall. Remaining items of work include sidewalk restoration, a new multiuse path, roadway paving and restriping, and a new signal. This work is located along Northeast 132nd Street between 97th Avenue Northeast and 100th Avenue Northeast. Drivers should expect to see flaggers and changes to traffic due to construction activity. Please be sure to allow plenty of time when dropping off or picking up students, and thank you for exercising caution and patience in this area.
Visit www.kirklandwa.gov/firestation24
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RainWise and Salmon See-son Webinar
Wednesday, October 13, 6-7:30 p.m.
Learn about human influence on local and regional salmon runs, and what role a
RainWise installation at your home may have in supporting local fish and the marine mammals that count on them as a food source. Time and interest permitting, discuss salmon ecology, how to identify between salmon species, and our recommendations for Covid-responsible salmon viewing locations to visit, and recent findings linking Coho Salmon die-off to a little known product in car tires.
With every storm, rain carries pollutants off our roofs, driveways and other hard surfaces to local creeks, Lake Washington and Puget Sound. Rain gardens and cisterns can help control this storm water, but we need your help!
In selected areas of Seattle, the City of Seattle and King County will pay up to 100% of the cost of installing rain gardens and cisterns on homeowners’ properties through the RainWise program.
Sponsored by the KCLS Social and Wellness Programming Team and
King County Wastewater Treatment Division.
Please register at kcls.org.
To learn about the City of Kirkland's program, Yard Smart Rain Rewards, go to www.kirklandwa.gov/yardsmart.
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Have you registered for See Spot Splash?
Kirkland Parks and Community Services is hosting See Spot Splash at the Peter Kirk Pool and Park (352 Kirkland Avenue) 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, September 11. Bring your dog to splash and play as we celebrate the end of the season at the pool. There are five sessions to choose from, including sessions for large, small, and mixed-sized dogs.
Register today at: www.kirklandparks.net.
The cost is $10 per dog, with up to two humans per dog on the pool deck. The pool consists of a large pool and a wading pool, with the wading pool recommended for small dogs. Enjoy some fantastic BBQ from HP Smokehouse BBQ, then visit vendor booths representing dog rescue groups and dog businesses. After every session, participate in the cake walk and best trick contest for fun prizes.
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Accelerate Your Business Growth with Our October Innovation Lab
Startup425 has partnered with Bellevue College’s Tombolo Institute to offer the Startup425 Innovation Lab, an intensive, four week program held in October designed to help business owners acquire the support and knowledge necessary to take their businesses to the next level. Sound interesting? Click here to view an informational video about the program.
Innovation Lab classes are held weekly on Saturdays and Thursdays in October:
- 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, October 9
- 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Thursday, October 14
- 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, October 23
- 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Thursday, October 28
For more information, including testimonials from Innovation Lab graduates, visit the Startup425 website.
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