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The Kirkland City Council met on April 19, 2022. This was a hybrid meeting and the first in-person opportunity for members of the public to attend in the Council Chamber since the beginning of the pandemic. Here’s a brief overview of some of the items from the meeting:
Study Session – Development Services Fee Update: City staff presented recommendations to Council on various changes to development fees. The City conducts a development fee study every three to four years comparing permit and plan review revenues against development services costs. This current fee study will inform the creation of the City’s 2023-2024 Budget and to update the 2023 fee schedules, and changes to some development fees will likely be implemented in a phased approach.
Study Session – 2022-2044 Comprehensive Plan Update: City staff presented an overview of the Comprehensive Plan update scheduled for 2022-2024. This is a major update to the City’s Comprehensive Plan, which sets forth the vision and goals for Kirkland’s future of the next 20 years. Council provided feedback to staff on the scope of work, key themes, and objectives for the process. More information on the 2044 Comp Plan process can be found on the City’s website.
Proclamations: The Mayor, on behalf of City Council, issued two proclamations as part of the meeting:
Changes to City Council Policies & Procedures: The Council updated their policies and procedures to provide for an option for Councilmembers to participate in Council meetings remotely. The Council will also be considering other policy and procedure items for potential review and potential update at a future Council retreat and/or Council meetings.
City Owned Unmanned Aircraft System Policy: The Council approved a one-year Public Safety Unmanned Aerial System (“UAS”) test program. During the proposed one-year testing period, the UAS program would be utilized by three departments: Fire, Police, and Public Works. The Council discussed the importance of balancing public health and safety needs with the privacy and other constitutionally protected rights of community members.
Gun Buy-Back Program: The Council approved moving forward with a gun buy-back program for Kirkland residents. This program would be funded by the firearm safety element of Police Prop 1, approved by Kirkland voters in 2018. This program aims to reduce gun violence within the community and to reduce the likelihood of accidental injuries and suicides by firearms by providing residents an opportunity to voluntarily relinquish ownership of unwanted firearms in exchange for pre-paid gift cards. Firearms sold through this program that are not stolen or linked to other crimes will be melted as part of the Police Department’s annual firearm destruction process.
Sustainability Master Plan First Annual Report Card: City staff presented a progress report on the City’s Sustainability Master Plan. The Sustainability Master Plan was adopted by the City Council in December 2020. The Plan has eight focus areas that include over 200 possible actions to implement with suggested timelines, beginning over a 10-year timeline. This annual report to the Council provides an update on actions the City has taken thus far and will help the community understand ongoing projects and how they can be involved.
How to watch:
Kirkland City Council meetings are streamed live and can be watched after the fact 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.
To watch the Council discussions on the specific agenda items outlined above, visit the City’s website. The full agenda packet with information on each item is located on the City’s website.
The next regular City Council meeting is on May 3, 2022.
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 Join an upcoming small group meeting on delivery robots
Autonomous Personal Delivery Devices (APDDs) are wheeled machines designed to deliver products to customers. The City is studying these devices and considering any concerns from the community. City staff will be facilitating small group meetings for deeper discussion around APDDs. Sign up and learn more at on the City’s website.
What’s new at Cedar Hills Regional Landfill?
King County’s Solid Waste Division is hosting an online meeting on Wednesday, April 27 from 6 – 8 p.m. via Zoom. The community will learn and get to ask questions about current and planned construction projects, environmental monitoring activities, and operational activities. More information about our regional landfill can be found on King County’s website.
For more opportunities to provide feedback to the City, please visit our Community Conversations page.
Have other questions or requests for service? You can always contact City staff through the Our Kirkland service portal, available on the web and mobile app.
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 Community Invited to Provide Input on Terms for the Future Housing Site at the Former La Quinta Inn
The City of Kirkland and King County will host a virtual town hall meeting on May 9, 2022, at 5:30 p.m. on the topic of the future permanent supportive housing site at the former La Quinta Inn in Kirkland as part of King County’s Health Through Housing program. This community meeting will focus on the terms and conditions necessary to maintain City support of La Quinta Inn as a Health Through Housing site. Meeting information and registration can be found online.
The town hall will be an opportunity for the community to ask questions, offer ideas, and talk more about the project. The feedback from the community will inform upcoming implementation decisions, including a safety plan, referral process for tenants, and ongoing community communication. Additional small group meetings are being scheduled for after the town hall for any community members that want to discuss the project in more depth and provide additional input.
Last month, King County announced that it closed on the purchase of the former La Quinta Inn & Suites in Kirkland for a permanent supportive housing site under the Health Through Housing Initiative. This initiative aims to assist residents who are not supported through other housing program models, and each site includes 24/7 staffing, case management, employment counseling, and medical and behavioral healthcare. Supportive housing serves a different need along the continuum of care than shelters provide, and the County’s purchase of a hotel in Kirkland for supportive housing fills a gap in Kirkland’s services. King County is allowed under state law to acquire property for this purpose.
The May 9 town hall will be a special meeting of the Kirkland City Council. By registering for this event, you will receive email reminders about the town hall and the Zoom link when available. The Zoom link for the meeting will also be posted to the City’s website prior to the meeting.
For more information on King County’s permanent supportive housing site at the former La Quinta Inn in Kirkland, please visit City’s comprehensive informational Health Through Housing webpage. Members of the public can also provide feedback through the City’s Our Kirkland web portal.
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 At Fire Station 22 and Fire Station 27, the City of Kirkland will commission art installations that honor people of the fire service and their unwavering daily commitment to community. Fire services play a significant role in all communities, whether as first responders to major events like 9/11, or as front-line workers during global events such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
In particular, the City wishes to honor the men and women who played a critical and unwavering role protecting the health and safety of the community during the COVID-19 global pandemic, acknowledging that the first U.S. fatality of a COVID-positive person in the U.S. at the time was believed to have occurred at Evergreen Health, adjacent to the Fire Station 27 site.
This art commission provides a unique opportunity to honor the fire department history, the legacy of community services, and to promote a bright future with themes of hope, resiliency, positivity, and inclusivity. Visual elements within the art installation can reinforce the unconditional response and community support that is emblematic of fire department services.
For more information about the art call, including the application and selection process, visit the art commission webpages for Fire Station 27 and Fire Station 22.
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 The City of Kirkland has several exciting positions open across our organization. Now’s the time for you to find your next role doing great work with great people. Here’s a sampling of some of our open positions:
Deputy Fire Chief
The Deputy Chief is a civil service employee, reporting to the Fire Chief. Our ideal candidate is a skilled leader with excellent communication skills. Experience in the application of incident command, code enforcement and conflict resolution are a must for the high-performing Kirkland Fire Department (KFD) of 109 staff.
The ideal candidate will demonstrate support for other employees, including command staff, uniformed staff, and the local bargaining unit leadership. Important management attributes include the ability to make timely and informed decisions, skill in delegating assignments, approachableness, and maintaining accountability.
The City of Kirkland provides an exceptional work environment that is marked by employee excellence, outstanding customer service and high levels of resident satisfaction.
Applications will be accepted until the position is filled. For more information or to apply, go to: Kirkland Fire Department Deputy Fire Chief
 Parks and Community Services – Day Camp Leaders
and Day Camp Directors
Would you like to get paid for playing all day? The City of Kirkland is looking for fun, motivated day camp staff to supervise children in a variety of camp activities. For more information, current opportunities, and to apply, visit our open positions.
For more employment opportunities with the City, visit our Government Jobs page.
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 Under the sink, in the garage, tucked in with your crafting supplies – many of the products we use in our homes can be hazardous to us and the environment if they are not used, stored, and disposed of safely. You can spot hazardous products by finding these words on their labels: caution, warning, danger, or poison. Here are some ideas on how to best handle hazardous household products:
Safely dispose of hazardous products
If spring cleaning has you clearing out old products, be sure to safely dispose of hazardous products since they can’t go in the trash or down the drain. These products should be taken to a no-cost drop off site. The Factoria Hazardous Waste facility, 13800 SE 32nd St. Bellevue, is the closest permanent location to Kirkland.
On the weekend of May 6 through May 8, the roving Wastemobile will be set up at Kirkland Fred Meyer, 12221 120th Ave NE Kirkland, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. to take hazardous materials. Check out the King County Hazardous Waste program for more details and what to bring: https://kingcountyhazwastewa.gov/en/households-disposal
Choose safer products
The best choice to keep your family and planet safe is to find safer household products—ones that are not labeled with caution, warning, danger or poison and have a Safer Choice label. Always store household hazardous products away from children, pets, and food.
Switch to safer household cleaners
Even cleaning supplies, the products we use to keep our homes healthy and clean, can contain chemicals that irritate skin, create noxious fumes if used together with the wrong products, and can poison. To keep your family safer, start with the least hazardous cleaning products. You can also create your own safer cleaning products with a handful of household ingredients, like vinegar, baking soda, and dish soap. See simple recipes for green cleaners: https://kingcountyhazwastewa.gov/en/households-disposal/households-safer-home-products
Every year, Kirkland recognizes April as Earth Month to honor the value of our environment and natural spaces. The City, partner organizations, and community volunteers are offering many opportunities for the Kirkland community to contribute to our city's environment and learn about more sustainable ways to live. Join us to celebrate Earth Month and visit the City of Kirkland Earth Month website for more information!
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 In most disasters, survivors provide the most immediate assistance to those in need. Professional responders like firefighters and police officers might not be able to get everyone who needs help in a large disaster.
Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) teaches you how to respond when others look to you for help. Are you ready? You can learn skills like disaster first aid, fire suppression, utility safety, personal preparedness, search and rescue techniques, responding to suspected terrorist incidents, reducing survivor stress, and more.
This class is a combination of online lecture and hands-on training to get you ready to help yourself and your community in a large disaster.
Class Schedule
- Tuesday, May 3 from 6 – 9 p.m. via Zoom
- Thursday, May 5 from 6 – 9 p.m. at City Hall Peter Kirk Room
- Tuesday, May 10 from 6 – 9 p.m. via Zoom
- Thursday, May 12 from 6 – 9 p.m. at Fire Station 26 Conference Room
- Saturday, May 14 from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. at Fire Station 26 Conference Room
To sign up, visit the registration page. Learn more at kirklandwa.gov/cert.
Can’t make it? There will be more classes in the future. To be notified when we have new classes and learn about other emergency preparedness plans and events, sign up for the Kirkland Emergency Management newsletter.
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 It’s not too late to apply for small business relief! If your business is still struggling from the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, you may be eligible for up to $8,000 in grant funding from the City of Kirkland’s ARPA Small Business Relief Program (SBRP). Applications will be accepted through April 21 at 5 p.m. Detailed eligibility requirements and application can be found at www.kirklandwa.gov/SBRP.
The City is working with administrative consultant LiveStories for this program. If you have questions or need assistance, contact KirklandBusinessRelief@livetories.com or call 1-855-582-FWRD (3973) between 8:30 a.m. – 5 pm PDT.
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The City is hosting a BloodWorksNW blood drive on May 4 and 5 at City Hall, Peter Kirk Room (use lower south entry). The gift of an hour of your time and a pint of blood is needed by our Pacific Northwest hospitals. Your donation will be used by those fighting cancer, those surviving traumatic accidents, and by organ transplant patients.
Someone’s tomorrow needs a blood donor today!
What to remember for your blood donation:
- Drink water and eat a healthy meal beforehand
- Please arrive with a photo ID
- Fill out a Donor QuickPass on day of appointment
- Masks and appointments required
- No guests or people under age 16 permitted onsite
- See COVID safety measures
- Please do not donate if in the past 14 days you have had any symptoms of COVID-19 or a positive diagnosis of COVID-19
For questions, call 1-800-398-7888 or email schedule@bloodworksnw.org. To book an appointment, click here.
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 The City of Kirkland is encouraging drivers to use caution this week while navigating through three Rose Hill intersections that have changed recently—two in South Rose Hill and the third in North Rose Hill.
The City recently converted to a four-way stop what was previously a two-way stop at 128th Avenue Northeast’s intersection with Northeast 95th Street.
At Northeast 75th Street’s intersections with 122nd and 124th avenues northeast, the City ‘flipped’ the stop signs so traffic on 122nd and 124th avenues northeast must stop. Traffic on Northeast 75th Street, meanwhile, can continue through the intersection without stopping.
These planned changes are part of the City’s plan to transform the Northeast 75th Street and 128th Avenue Northeast corridors into Neighborhood Greenways, where walking and bicycling are the priority transportation modes and driving is the alternative. Learn more at: www.kirklandwa.gov/greenways
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NEW-Northeast 132nd Street at 132nd Square Park – Kingsgate
Drivers will encounter lane shifts on Northeast 132nd Street beginning Monday, April 25 as the contractor building 132nd Square Park investigates then builds the new water line that serves the Park. The contractor will maintain one-lane in each direction between 132nd Avenue Northeast and 130th Place Northeast, and flaggers will assist in maintaining a safe work zone. Bicyclists will merge with traffic, and pedestrians will detour to the north side of the street.
The 132nd Square Park project updates the 9.76-acre community park with a lighted, multi-use synthetic turf field, expanded parking, new restroom, additional picnic shelters, and new playground while also building a stormwater facility underneath the multi-use field.
Visit https://www.kirklandwa.gov/132ndsquarepark
Northeast 124th Street – Juanita
Drivers will continue to encounter construction on 116th Avenue Northeast at Northeast 124th Street, where a Kirkland contractor is improving traffic flow at the intersection.
Interwest Construction is working from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m., Sunday through Thursday to create a new southbound right-turn lane from 116th Avenue Northeast onto Northeast 124th Street.
The contractor is also building a wide sidewalk with street trees and street lighting along the northside of 116th Avenue Northeast.
Visit https://www.kirklandwa.gov/Government/Departments/Public-Works-Department/Construction-Projects/116th-Ave-NE-RTL
Northeast 132nd Street – Juanita
Drivers will continue to experience lane-shifts and uniformed police officers controlling the intersection this week and next at Northeast 132nd Street’s intersection with 108th Avenue Northeast, where a Kirkland contractor is building a new right turn lane.
Kamins Construction has established a pedestrian detour that will direct people who are walking around the construction. People who are riding bicycles will merge with traffic.
The City is building this right turn lane to increase vehicular capacity at the intersection to support effective functionality of the new Interstate 405’s Northeast 132nd Street interchange.
Visit www.kirklandwa.gov/ne132ndstreet
Northeast 132nd Street at I-405 – Juanita/Kingsgate
Drivers will encounter additional lane-closures between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. beginning the week of April 25 on and around Northeast 132nd Street at Interstate 405 as the Washington State Department of Transportation’s (WSDOT) contractor begins work to install temporary signals for the first phase of construction.
WSDOT is building a new on-ramp for northbound Interstate 405 traffic and a new off-ramp for the interstate’s southbound traffic. The project will enhance sidewalks and bicycle lanes and will create roundabouts at the ramps’ Northeast 132nd Street intersections.
For questions about these closures, call WSDOT’s project hotline at 425-224-2433.
Visit https://wsdot.wa.gov/construction-planning/search-projects/i-405northeast-132nd-street-interchange-project
Market Street – Moss Bay
All aspects of the Market Street and Central Way intersection remain open to pedestrian and vehicular traffic while a Kirkland contractor awaits the end of a labor dispute that has halted the delivery of concrete to construction projects throughout the region.
Visit www.kirklandwa.gov/2020nsp
Cross Kirkland Corridor – Totem Lake
Kirkland’s Totem Lake Connector contractor will maintain the detour around the Cross Kirkland Corridor between 120th Place Northeast and 128th Lane Northeast while construction on the pedestrian and bicycle bridge remains in suspension.
Maintaining the detour helps the City of Kirkland avoid the costs it would incur if it ordered Kraemer North America to restore the Cross Kirkland Corridor’s permanent route during the work-stoppage and then to re-establish the detour when work resumes.
Visit www.kirklandwa.gov/totemlakeconnector
Sixth Street – Moss Bay
Drivers can expect intermittent delays on Sixth Street, east of Kirkland Urban, while private developers prepare Sixth Street’s intersection with Fourth Street for improvements that include traffic signal upgrades and a new right turn-lane. The concrete drivers’ strike is likely to delay completion of the work.
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 until the park is completed. The concrete drivers’ strike is delaying completion of the park. 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 open 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.
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State Parks Free Day
Enjoy a visit to a State Park for free on April 22 in honor of Earth Day. On State Parks Free Days, visitors are not required to display a Discover Pass which is normally required for vehicle access to state recreation lands.
Kirkland has two nearby state parks!
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Bridle Trails State Park is a 482-acre park and a favorite for its horse trails. Parking is located at 5300 116th Ave NE, Kirkland, WA. The park is open 6:30 a.m. to dusk.
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Saint Edward State Park is a 316-acre park along Lake Washington and was once a Catholic seminary. Parking is located at 14445 Juanita Dr NE, Kenmore, WA. The park is open 8 a.m. to dusk.
Washington State Parks offers 12 State Parks Free Days per year. More information about Free Days, including 2022 dates, can be found at Washington State Parks news.
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Stewardship Events with Green Kirkland Partnership
Join Green Kirkland Partnership this Earth Month and help our parks and natural areas thrive. Volunteers will help restore critical habitat by removing invasive plants such as blackberry or ivy, planting native plants, and pitching-in with stewardship tasks like mulching and weeding.
All experience levels and ages are welcome following the safety and event. Tools and training are provided. Events are 100% outdoors and occur rain or shine!
Check out the Green Kirkland Partnership Event Calendar to find a date that works for you!
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Hazardous Wastemobile
Date: Friday, May 6 through Sunday, May 8
Time: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Location: Kirkland Fred Meyer Parking Lot, 12221 120th Ave NE Kirkland
Dispose of common household hazardous materials at no cost at this drive-through event in Kirkland. Bring hazardous items like household cleaning products, automotive fluids, fluorescent tubes, propane tanks and more. See accepted items and event details.
Here are some tips:
- Keep products in their original containers whenever possible. Label products that are not marked.
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Don’t mix or combine products.
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Secure products so they won’t tip or leak.
- Don’t transport products in the passenger compartment of your vehicle. Cover and tie down items in truck beds.
- Please stay in your vehicle - staff will remove items from your trunk or back seat.
The Wastemobile holds one collection event in Kirkland each year.
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