Kirkland Chamber opposes proposed downtown development moratorium
Kirkland Views received the following email originally sent by the Chamber of Commerce:
Dear Friends of Kirkland,
Please join the Greater Kirkland Chamber of Commerce in opposing the proposed Downtown development moratorium that is being considered this Tuesday and recommend using the current and proven outreach processes that are in place. Please call, write and email members of the Kirkland City Council regarding your opinion. Email links, addresses and other contact information are below.
On Thursday afternoon we received the written details of two proposals the Kirkland City Council will consider this Tuesday, September 16 that would place a moratorium on downtown development. Here are the proposals and the link:
1) Ordinance No. 4139, Imposing a Moratorium Within Central Business Districts (CBD) Zones 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, and 8 on the Acceptance of Applications for Review and/or Issuance of Development Permits for Any New Development that Would Add or Create in Excess of 500 Square Feet of Gross Floor Area or (2) Ordinance No. 4139*, Imposing a Moratorium Within Central Business Districts (CBD) Zones 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, and 8 on the Acceptance of Applications for Review and/or Issuance of Development Permits for Any New Development that Would Exceed Two Stories in Height http://www.ci.kirkland.wa.us/__shared/assets/11d_NewBusiness9931.pdf>
Both proposals exempt the Parkplace and the Bank of America sites.
The moratorium idea was raised at the last council meeting. Since then, we have been seeking details via conversations with the mayor, council members and city staff. On Thursday, the two scenarios above were released. After deliberation of the above proposals, the Greater Kirkland Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors approved the following position:
The Greater Kirkland Chamber of Commerce recommends that the council use the processes already in place to evaluate these development issues and not take the extreme step of imposing a moratorium. Processes include the council making a proposal and then taking comments via public hearings. At study sessions, the council can evaluate staff reports that frame the issues. A Planning Commission exists to also review proposals. These processes are employed when evaluating the city budget, the proposed business tax, and other significant initiatives. Downtown development should not be singled out for exceptional treatment.
We consider a moratorium too drastic a step that could stall or discourage projects that are being considered. Public comment in this unique instance is limited to phone calls, emails and a maximum of 3 speakers with a total time limitation of 9 minutes. The council is not having a standard public hearing where there is latitude for more speakers. This sets a precedent that could affect the neighborhoods and business districts city-wide.
While city councils often have the right to implement a moratorium, such action often requires a demonstration that a City is suffering dire or emergency circumstances. In effect, the moratorium links a petition limited to a single Lake Street development to all eight downtown areas (from the lake past Parkplace and from Central Way to Kirkland Avenue). Concern about “superior retail” and step backs and set-backs for 3rd and 4th stories can be discussed in the public process oriented environment that Kirkland models.
The council will deliberate and probably approve one of these moratorium scenarios next Tuesday night. Since only three speakers will be allowed, please write, email and/or call the members of the City Council as soon as possible. Contact information is as follows:
Phone the council at 425-587-3001
Emails:
Mayor James L. Lauinger jlauinger@ci.kirkland.wa.us
Deputy Mayor Joan McBride jmcbride@ci.kirkland.wa.us
Council Member Dave Asher dasher@ci.kirkland.wa.us
Council Member Mary-Alyce Burleigh mburleigh@ci.kirkland.wa.us
Council Member Jessica Greenway jgreenway@ci.kirkland.wa.us
Council Member Tom Hodgson thodgson@ci.kirkland.wa.us
Council Member Bob Sternoff bsternoff@ci.kirkland.wa.us
Thanks!
Bill Vadino
Executive Director
Greater Kirkland Chamber of Commerce
425.246.1212
billv@kirklandchamber.org
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Posted by Admin on Monday, September 15, 2008 at 9:26 am
Filed under Development · Tagged with City Council, Comprehensive Plan, Development, Downtown, Features, Government, Moratorium
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It’s about time. Is the chamber going to hand out stickers and buttons? Council meetings need stickers because otherwise a full room might be seen as for the other side.
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Sorry for the delay, we have to get buy off by the majority of the chamber board when we send out opinions like this that are chamber based. I would guess there’s a no on the stickers this time around but the city council generally knows who’s on which side- however if anyone wants to produce last minute stickers I’m sure they’d have a number of takers!
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A moratorium is a good idea because it will a stop development rush when the city tries to reexamine the broken codes. We need to fix the problem so we don’t have to appeal development decisions anymore. How and why we got in this mess I will never understand.
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A moratorium is a poor idea because it takes the onus off the city council to get anything done in a timely manner. Now they can simply drag their feet and study the downtown codes not making any decisions, just like the downtown plan, the annexation, the NE 85th street corridor implementation, etc. I’m sure others could extend this list for pages. In the meantime, the refurbishment of the crumbling buildings throughout the downtown area will continue to be delayed and even when the moratorium is lifted the ‘taint’ of the latest shenanigans by the council will turn off many a good developer.
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