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 The Kirkland City Council’s next meeting takes place Tuesday, January 18, 2022 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 January 18 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. Please note: City Council meetings will remain virtual until further notice.
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 upcoming meeting agenda:
Police Use of Force Dashboard: The Council will receive a presentation on the evaluation & analysis of the Police Department’s use of force data that was conducted by a third-party consultant. The presentation will also include discussion of an interactive, public-facing use of force dashboard. This data analysis and dashboard creation is part of the City’s work of Resolution R-5434.
Proclaiming January 18, 2022 as the Day of Racial Healing in Kirkland: The Mayor, on behalf of the Council, will proclaim January 18 as the Day of Racial Healing in Kirkland. The National Day of Racial Healing was established on January 17, 2017 by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and is observed every year on the Tuesday following Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. The annual observance was created with and builds on the work and learnings of the Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation community partners of the Foundation.
Tree Code Amendment – Framework for Completion: The Council will review Part 3a of the draft amendments to Kirkland Zoning Code Chapter 95 (also known as the “Tree Code”). These include moderate/major amendments with a focus on tree retention and replacement related to development activity.
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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This is a great reminder from Public Health – Seattle & King County about how we can all help during this recent wave of cases. The City of Kirkland remains open for in-person services but is encouraging community members to access City services through remote options in January in order to help slow the current surge of COVID-19 brought on by the omicron variant. Find out more here: https://www.kirklandwa.gov/Whats-Happening/News/Community-Encouraged-to-Access-City-Services-Remotely-in-January.
Now that the late December snow storm is behind us, we wanted to take a moment to give some gratitude to the hardworking crews supporting the City’s winter response.
Our Public Works crews worked around the clock de-icing, plowing, sanding, and salting Kirkland’s streets before, during, and after the snow. Some crew members cut short their Christmas holiday weekend and others cancelled planned vacations to come in and support the effort. Following our Snow Response Plan, our crews focused first on the “lifeline” routes in and around Evergreen Hospital, some fire stations, the Kirkland Justice Center, and freeway interchanges in the Totem Lake area. This ensured that critical life safety locations were as accessible as possible and that our first responders – fire and police personnel – could still respond to calls and help keep our community safe.
The snow was accompanied by many days of freezing temperatures, often requiring our crews to return to the same routes for multiple treatments. Despite long shifts and challenging conditions, our crews kept at it and stuck to our Snow Response Plan in service to the Kirkland community. We’re grateful for our crew’s hard work, dedicated effort, and humble service that helped get us all through a prolonged and challenging winter weather event. Thank you!
We also wanted to thank our intrepid police officers and firefighters who respond to calls and keep our community safe everyday, even with challenges of snow and ice.
Thank you to our dedicated Parks crews who cleared around our fire stations and the Kirkland Justice Center, and who attended to our parks so that our community can enjoy the fun of the winter wonderland.
And thank you to our residents for your patience and resilience as we got through this weather event together.
We are mindful that our neighboring communities – especially closer to the mountains – are dealing with snow piles, flooding, and other winter weather implications. Please continue to be cautious, plan ahead, and stay safe!
Although this storm is behind us, our crews are already planning for any other potential storms this winter season. Are you prepared? Take this opportunity to assess your emergency supplies and stock up. Find tips and suggestions by visiting https://www.ready.gov/winter-weather
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Tell us about your priorities for Kirkland's creeks and lakes. Kirkland’s Storm & Surface Water Division works to prevent and solve rainwater runoff-related problems. You can see our team around town as they fix drainage problems, prevent water pollution, and maintain the stormwater drainage system.
Their work is guided by the Surface Water Master Plan - a strategic plan for managing Kirkland’s stormwater, creeks, lakes, and wetlands for our community and for future generations. The City is in the process of updating the Surface Water Master Plan, and we need your input. Help us protect fish and wildlife, keep pollutants out of our local waterways, and reduce flooding impacts.
Please take a minute to tell us about your priorities and complete this survey by January 31, 2022. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SWMP2022
More information about Kirkland’s Storm & Surface Water Division can be found at kirklandwa.gov/SWMP.
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In honor of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., City administrative offices are closed on Monday, January 17. City services normally accessible through email, the Our Kirkland service portal and over the phone will resume 8 a.m., Tuesday, January 18.
On January 4, 2022, the Mayor, on behalf of the full City Council, proclaimed Monday, January 17 as the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service and encourages all Kirkland residents and businesses to serve their neighbors and community on this day and throughout the year. The proclamation was read by Deputy Mayor Jay Arnold. To view the proclamation, visit the City website at: https://www.kirklandwa.gov/files/sharedassets/public/city-council/agenda-documents/2022/january-4-2022/6a_honors-and-proclamation.pdf.
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Have you ever considered becoming an emergency medical technician (EMT)?
Public Health – Seattle & King County, Emergency Medical Services is offering scholarship opportunities for their upcoming Spring term 14-week EMT Class. This scholarship is provided through the Strategic Training and Recruitment (S.T.A.R.) program, which encourages people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, LGBTQIA+, and veterans to apply and help better represent the communities served. Upon completion of the program, attendees will be on a path to obtaining certification and a career as an EMT. The scholarship covers all course expenses. To apply, you must be 18 or older, have a high school degree or G.E.D., a WA state driver license, and must be able to get to and from class. For an application or additional information, contact STAR@KingCounty.gov. The application deadline is Jan 24.
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Kirkland Parks and Community Services is currently reviewing the City’s special event program and seeks community input. Save the date for a virtual listening session on Wednesday, January 26 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Participants will have the opportunity to take part in polls, ask questions, and participate in a question-and-answer period. Additional information, including registration, will be available soon on the City’s website, social media, and sent out through This Week in Kirkland.
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Beginning this week through the end of the month, you can put out your Christmas tree next to your cart for free collection on your regular service day. Trees must be unflocked and undecorated. Trees taller than six feet must be cut down to six-foot segments. Apartment and condo residents can place trees next to your dumpster or carts on your designated collection days (see map for days (pdf)).
Collected trees will be composted. Flocked trees and artificial trees cannot be composted and must be thrown away.
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124th Avenue Northeast - North Rose Hill
Franchised utility operators, such as Ziply and Comcast, are continuing to relocate their utilities this week along 124th Avenue Northeast, between Northeast 116th and 124th streets.
Crews are generally working from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., but may work some nights from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. This work may be impacted by the snow.
After Ziply relocates its fiber optic lines, other utility operators, such as Comcast, will begin relocating their utilities through February.
The City of Kirkland is coordinating the utility relocations as part its ambitious effort to improve the 124th Avenue Northeast corridor.
Visit www.kirklandwa.gov/124thavenue
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 City expects the Totem Lake Connector to be complete by December 2022.
Visit www.kirklandwa.gov/totemlakeconnector
Northeast 120th Street - North Rose Hill
Drivers traveling Northeast 120th Street between Slater Avenue and the Lake Washington Institute of Technology may have noticed the project has not progressed as expected. The concrete workers’ strike has forced the contractor to suspend construction until the strike is resolved.
Visit www.kirklandwa.gov/ne120thsurfacewater
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 through January. During that time, SRM Development will continue to restrict parallel, on-street parking along the north portion of Fifth Place South.
SRM Development expects to open Feriton Spur Park to the public in 2022. 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 at I-405 – Juanita/Kingsgate
The Washington State Department of Transportation’s contractor, Graham Contracting Ltd., expects to be on-site intermittently to conduct pre-construction activities for the site such as potholing, surveying, and clearing vegetation.
Drivers may experience lane-shifts and potential shoulder or lane-closures on Northeast 132nd Street from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. For questions about these closures, call the project hotline at 425-224-2433.
Visit https://wsdot.wa.gov/construction-planning/search-projects/i-405northeast-132nd-street-interchange-project
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