The City of Kirkland has come to agreement with the owner of the Antique Mall property to turn the unused lot into a pay parking lot for the general public. The property located at 151 3rd Street is just north of the Heathman Hotel and is owned by Ms. Marilyn Dillard. It currently has a cyclone fence surrounding it.
According to an agreement between the City and Dillard, the lot will has 93 parking stalls, some of which will be available as paid parking between the hours of 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM Monday thru Saturday. The agreement is awaiting approval of the city council.
Current plans call for restriping and signing the lot to provide 93 parking stalls. Initially 30 stalls will be available for monthly lease and the remainder will operate as pay parking. Monthly lease rates will be determined jointly by the City and the property owner. Pay parking will be enforced from 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM Monday-Saturday and the rate will be $1.00 per hour. The lot will be open to all users, including downtown employees and construction workers.
You can read the terms of the agreement by downloading the Resolution R-4789, Authorizing the City Manager to Execute an Agreement for the Use of Portions of the Dillard Property at 151 3rd Street for Public Pay Parking Purposes from the city.
I ‘guess’ more parking is good even though the library parking lot across the street is rarely-if ever!-full. I think surface parking lots are a true misuse of space i.e. Lake St and Central + are not aesthetically pleasing. It is too bad that it is not being used in an effective, energizing way. Marilyn Dillard, the owner, had come to the city council with the great news that she had-after many years of trying- just signed a contract with a fabulous developer, Opus, the very night that the City Council put a moratorium on building. Obviously Opus walked away. The exciting plans would have helped create much needed economic retail vitality in our beloved downtown core. Opus would have also created more parking tucked esthetically under the building.
Ms. Getz is right on in her assessment of the surface parking lot situation. We can hope that the newly constituted City Council will not stand as a roadblock to sensitive development.
But, here is my dream idea for the half block taken up by the Antique Mall. Let it be purchased by the city as a park site and developed with some tasteful structures that would be used as the Farmers Market venue. I see the possibility of underground parking at the site. The surface treatment could be the kind of pierced pavers that allow grass to grow. The trick of course is finding funding for such an ambitious project. Might there be a corporation (or group) that could partner with the city in exchange for naming rights? (Google Park/Market?)