The next regular meeting of the Kirkland City Council is on September 6, 2022. The regular meeting on the third Tuesday, August 16 is cancelled for summer break.
More information about the September 6 meeting will be included in an upcoming edition of ‘This Week in Kirkland.’
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After a two-week closure due to elevated bacteria levels, Public Health – Seattle & King County has recommended that the City reopen Juanita Beach Park for swimming, wading and other water activities.
Water quality staff from the King County Water and Land Resources Division tested the water on Monday, August 8, and notified the City on Tuesday, August 9 that the waters were again safe for recreational use. King County crews will return weekly to the beach throughout the summer to take samples to ensure that the water is safe. City lifeguards will be back on duty on Thursday, August 11.
For additional details, visit King County’s Lake Swimming Beach Data webpage. For more information about Juanita Beach, please watch our video which explains the science behind what causes these perennial closures and provides all of us with suggestions on what we can do to help avoid closures like this in the future.
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The City of Kirkland announces the next chapter in its Community Responder Program with the hiring of Robert Rebecca. Rebecca joins Interim Community Responder Program Supervisor, Renee Cox, who was hired full-time to the program in January 2022.
“I’m excited to join Kirkland’s new Community Responder Program,” says Rebecca. “The support from community members, our public safety partners, and City leaders for this program is really inspiring, and I’m eager to leverage my experience in the mental health field to help those experiencing crisis here.”
Rebecca joins the Community Responder team as the latest hire under the new program. As a mental health professional (MHP) who is licensed in the state of Washington, he brings experience managing a permanent supportive housing program, establishing a medication-assisted treatment program for people who use drugs, and worked at a crisis center. Most recently, Rebecca served on the co-responder team for Pierce County, a similar role he will serve on Kirkland’s nascent program. He has a master’s degree from The Adler School of Professional Psychology in Chicago and serves on the board for the North American Society of Adlerian Psychology.
“Robert brings the skills, passion, and know-how to hit the ground running in assisting those in crisis,” says Cox. “He gets what we’re trying to do here, and he will be a great asset to our community.”
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Cox transitioned into the City’s Community Responder Program in January 2022 after more than eight years working with the Kirkland Police Department as a contracted mental health professional. As Interim Community Responder Program Supervisor, Cox utilizes her extensive experience in community mental health and direct client support to shape this brand new program, with a particular emphasis on building the new team. She’s an MHP who has held an independent license for 21 years and has a master’s degree in Community Counseling from City University of Seattle. Cox has also trained thousands of Washington state law enforcement officers in verbal de-escalation through the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission (WSCJCT).
“Creating this new program from the ground up and forming this new team has taken an incredible amount of coordination, creativity, and commitment,” says Mayor Penny Sweet. “The Council appreciates the leadership of Deputy City Manager Beth Goldberg and Renee for their tenacity and leadership in making full time community responders a reality. This truly is a giant leap for serving community members experiencing crisis in Kirkland. It is wonderful to see the City Council’s vision for this critically needed program building momentum.”
The City’s new Community Responder team responds to 9-1-1 calls in coordination with Kirkland police officers and/or firefighter / emergency medical technicians when a call for service has an underlying behavioral health component. Although responding with public safety personnel, the innovative new Community Responder Program is housed in the City Manager’s Office. One of the objectives of the program is to reduce over-reliance on police as a primary response to 9-1-1 calls involving community members in behavioral health crises. The Community Responder Program was initially funded in the City’s 2021-2022 budget as part of the Community Safety Initiative.
For more information on the City’s new Community Responder Program, please visit the City’s website.
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The City of Kirkland is now accepting proposals for operators for the Kirkland Teen Union Building (KTUB). Proposals will be accepted until Friday, September 30, 2022, at 5 p.m.
The City desires to operate the KTUB building as a model teen center, offering comprehensive youth programming for youth in sixth to twelfth grade with expanded service levels.
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We need your help! Kirkland is updating our Surface Water Master Plan and we want your feedback. Join us at one of two virtual open houses on Wednesday, August 31, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.
Are you interested in protecting creeks and wetlands for our local fish and wildlife? Do you want to ensure that pollutants stay out of our local waterways? Are you concerned about flooding issues in Kirkland? Then we want your input!
The Surface Water Master Plan is a five to ten-year strategic plan for managing storm and surface water in Kirkland. The plan was last updated in 2014 and is being updated to reflect current community, environmental, and infrastructure needs.
For more information about the Surface Water Master Plan and to RSVP for the online open house, visit www.kirklandwa.gov/SWMP.
Are you, or someone you know, a natural “Connector” in the community? Become a Community Business Connector! The Port of Seattle is seeking applicants to help small businesses connect to the resources they need.
Attend an application workshop on August 15 from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m. to learn more. Register here.
The City of Kirkland Office of Emergency Management is offering a Community Emergency Response Training (CERT) Rodeo on Saturday, August 20 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. for CERT trained community members.
The CERT Rodeo is an opportunity for Kirkland residents to refresh and practice their CERT skills and have some fun! Skill review includes hands on practice with fire extinguishers, disaster first aid, team building, communications, and light search and rescue.
Haven’t taken a CERT class before? Join the Fall 2022 CERT class and learn about emergency preparedness, disaster first aid, live fire suppression, and more.
The class is on September 20, 22, 27, and 29 from 6 to 9 p.m., with a drill on October 1 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Registration is $25 for Kirkland residents.
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Downtown Kirkland Special Event
Drivers should expect traffic delays and restricted parking due to the annual Kirkland Waterfront Car Show to be held in downtown Kirkland on Sunday, August 14, 2022. Detours and closures will be in effect from 5 a.m. until 6 p.m.
Visit https://www.kirklandwa.gov/Whats-Happening/News/Traffic-Alert-for-August-14-Kirkland-Waterfront-Car-Show
Northeast 124th Street – Totem Lake
Kirkland’s Totem Lake Connector contractor is closing Northeast 124th Street between 124th Avenue Northeast and 120th Place Northeast from 2 a.m. to 4 a.m., Aug. 17 while its crews move a crane across Northeast 124th Street.
Visit www.kirklandwa.gov/totemlakeconnector
Lakeview Drive – Lakeview
Kirkland’s 2022 street paving contractor is maintaining intermittent lane-closures on Lakeview Drive between its intersections with Lake Washington Boulevard and Northeast 64th Street.
Watson Asphalt is repairing damaged curbs and upgrading curb ramps that are out of compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Visit www.kirklandwa.gov/streetpreservation
Northeast 132nd Street at I-405 – Juanita/Kingsgate
Drivers will encounter traffic control that will be in place into fall as the Washington State Department of Transportation’s (WSDOT) contractor begins the first phase of major construction, including the removal of trees in the project area.
Travel lanes on Northeast 132nd Street have shifted south, and left turns are prohibited except onto Totem Lake Boulevard for drivers traveling westbound and into Woodlake Apartments for drivers traveling eastbound.
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 intersection.
For questions about this traffic control or this project, call WSDOT’s project hotline at 425-224-2433.
Visit https://wsdot.wa.gov/construction-planning/search-projects/i-405northeast-132nd-street-interchange-project
Kirkland Waterfront Car Show
Location: Kirkland Downtown Core
The waterfront car show is one of the best in the region with over 300 cars on display and over 30 vendors. Spend the afternoon browsing, eating and talking to owners and restorers. Learn and connect with participants and get up close to a wide display of classic, antique, muscle, and new high-performance vehicles.
Kirkland Outdoor Summer Movie Series
Location: Heritage Park, 111 Waverly Way, Kirkland 98033
Last movies of the series! Come enjoy Sherlock Holmes at 4 p.m. and Bill and Ted Face the Music at 7 p.m.
Bring a blanket or lawn chair and enjoy a FREE double feature on our new GIANT LED movie screen. Grab a delicious dinner from one of our food trucks and some yummy popcorn, too!
For event details, visit the event page.
Stewardship Events with Green Kirkland Partnership
Join Green Kirkland Partnership and help our parks and natural areas thrive.
Volunteers are greatly needed at events in August!
Volunteers will help restore critical habitat by removing invasive plants such as blackberry or ivy, planting native plants (Oct-March), and pitching-in with stewardship tasks like mulching and weeding.
All experience levels and ages are welcome following the safety and event guidelines. Tools and training are provided. Events are 100% outdoors and rain or shine!
Date: Every Friday from June 3 to September 30
Location: Juanita Beach Park, 9703 NE Juanita Drive, Kirkland 98034
Come with your friends, or meet new ones, and enjoy shopping for delicious and nutritious foods, as well as fine wines and locally brewed craft beers. Then try one, or more, of our hot food vendors for a varied menu of offerings. We look forward to seeing you at Juanita Beach.
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