By Rob Butcher UPDATED At their March 2 Study Session, the Kirkland City Council briefly discussed the issue of how annexation might affect Kirkland’s neighborhoods and how the neighborhoods might be re-partitioned in the post-annexation era. At issue is the size and population of the soon to be annexed neighborhoods of Finn Hill and Kingsgate in relation to Kirkland’s existing neighborhoods. The... [Read more]

The City of Kirkland has a new tourism branding logo. The new image depicts a sailboat with the word Kirkland and the strapline, “Water.Colors.Everything.” At the March 2 Kirkland City Council meeting, the council approved the new branding for the city following a presentation by Ellen Miller-Wolfe, Economic Development Manager. On February 9, 2010 the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC) met... [Read more]

The City of Kirkland is seeking federal grants for four community projects and it is asking community leaders to write letters of support. The following letter was sent to various individuals in our community: Community Leader: SUBJECT:  City Seeks Federal Grant Funding, Legislator Letters Due to City Hall by next Tuesday, February 16. The City of Kirkland is seeking funding for four very important... [Read more]

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) has completed the Eastside Corridor Tolling Study – a traffic and revenue study including potential funding for future improvements and high occupancy toll (HOT) or express toll lanes on I-405 – for the 2010 Washington State Legislature. The following activities were part of the study: Develop a plan to operate up to two express... [Read more]

The 4th Quarter edition of the Kirkland City Update Newsletter is now available online. In this issue you’ll find the following stories: Transit Center Construction Begins Map Your Walk Around Kirkland Neighborhood News: Planning, University Style Annexation Update Budget Reductions City Council Farewell & Welcome Green Scene: 10 Tips for 2010 Winter Weather Preparedness A City Council... [Read more]

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... [Read more]

Just two days after the election, the City of Kirkland announces a Special Study Session for the City Council to discuss some sobering news: the 2009-2010 mid-biennial budget “gap” has risen to a whopping $13.1 million. The table below summarizes the revised shortfall projection and the staff’s recommended strategies for closing the “gap.” The decisions on where to cut... [Read more]

Redacted version of Sterbank Report now available from City of Kirkland UPDATED: As of October 14, 2009, the total amount billed by attorney Bob Sterbank, of Kenyon Disend PLLC,  for the Bank of America report was $8,993.47. The City of Kirkland has just released what is being called the “Bank of America Project Review” which tasked an outside attorney, Bob C. Sterbank, to review the... [Read more]

Renderings submitted to DRB 09/21/2009 by Touchstone Corporation   The Central Puget Sound Growth Management Hearings Board has produced a Final Decision and Order... [Read more]

Hector's, Juanita Townhomes and Kirkland Parkplace:   The City of Kirkland Planning Department has posted a Summary of Kirkland Development Activity on their website. The summary is titled, “Major Development... [Read more]

If the layout and design materials shown in the plans are approved (and built), Hector’s rooftop will be the place to be in town. A view of the lake, covered dining, outdoor fireplace, lounge chairs… sounds fantastic. The images shown here are from the plans submitted to the Design Review Board for their October 5th meeting. Similar outdoor dining areas and fireplaces as examples. Rendering... [Read more]

The City of Kirkland has made the 3rd Quarter Edition of the City Update available online. In this issue you’ll find: Election information Q&A: Proposed increase to Private Utility Tax Get ready for the flu season Green Scene: Stormwater development regulations coming soon Insider’s view: the treasury division You can download the PDF file from the City’s website at http://www.ci.kirkland.wa.us/Assets/City+Updates/City+Update+3rd+Qtr+Edition.pdf  Print... [Read more]

The Kirkland City Council will hold a Special Study Session on the Shoreline Master Program Thursday, October 22nd at 6:00 PM in the Peter Kirk Room of City Hall. The Council is considering changes to regulations of waterfront property owned by the City and private property owners. To learn more about is subject, please download the Shoreline Master Program from the Council packet (17.6 MB). Read More →

The City of Kirkland has updated its annexation webpage to include a flyer describing various aspects of annexation. The flyer discusses such issues as public safety, building and zoning, gambling, city finances, annexation finances, utilities, and parks. The city has an online copy of the flyer intended for PAA residents. It is formatted for that purpose but is still very informative and worth a... [Read more]

In a $8.6 billion deal, Verizon has sold its rural phone lines to Frontier Communications, and for some reason, Kirkland’s cable TV franchise has been thrown into the mix. This is an important issue for anyone with Verizon FiOS television services. The recent sale of Verizon’s cable TV franchise to Frontier is potentially disrupting since Frontier is a different provider. Frontier calls... [Read more]

In the controversy over LTAC, David A. Alskog, attorney for Les Utley, wrote a letter to the Council requesting an apology for the manner in which his client was referred to at the the August 4 City Council meeting. Mayor Jim Lauinger responded to the request with this Letter to Alskog. Read More →

The City Council is in the process of undertaking a “top-down” evaluation of core services to assist in identifying what service levels would need to be reduced in the event the voted private utility tax increase does not pass // < ![CDATA[ // < ![CDATA[ // < ![CDATA[ google_ad_client = "pub-5049538877929924"; /* 300x250, created 6/23/08 */ google_ad_slot = "1748785083"; google_ad_width = 300;... [Read more]

    PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT from the City of Kirkland Police Department about RESIDENTIAL BURGLARY   When the weather turns warm, windows and doors are kept open more often to let cool air in and families may go on vacation leaving the home unoccupied.  Residential burglars often take advantage of the opportunity to easily enter a home with unlocked doors and windows.  Although most residential... [Read more]

The Financial Management Report (FMR) is a high-level status report on the City of Kirkland’s financial condition that is produced quarterly. It provides a summary budget to actual comparison for year-to-date revenues and expenditures for all operating funds. The report also compares this year’s actual revenue and expenditure performance to the prior year. The most recent report represents... [Read more]

The Downtown Advisory Committee has completed their charge and has produced what has been referred to by many as The Hovee Report – a study otherwise known as The Downtown Kirkland Retail Strategy. From the City’s Downtown Strategic Plan Update site: Downtown Retail Strategy The Kirkland community has a strong desire to increase the vibrancy and utility of downtown Kirkland by attracting... [Read more]

The final draft of More People, More Places, More Often, A Plan for Active Transportation is now complete and scheduled to be presented to the City Council for adoption on March 3rd. Please visit the City’s Active Transportation Plan webpage to download. If you have questions or final thoughts,please contact David Godfrey at:  By E-mail: dgodfrey@ci.kirkland.wa.us By... [Read more]

In the days leading up to the Kirkland City Council’s decision to approve or deny Touchstone’s Parkplace PAR, Kirkland CRD’s Ken Davidson took his last, best shot at derailing the downtown development. It came in the form of this letter dated December 5, 2008. Touchstone’s Douglas Howe responded four days later with his own counter punch. These two heavyweights have been sparing... [Read more]

The City of Kirkland has just published its most recent official quarterly newsletter, the Kirkland City Update. The Update is a vehicle by which City Hall communicates with the citizens of Kirkland. The Kirkland City Update has witnessed several changes in the past as a result of changes in communications strategies. Once there was a printed publication mailed to homes and businesses which was replaced... [Read more]

The Planning Commission sent this letter to the Kirkland City Council on October 7th requesting that the Council “adopt a review process that fosters broad community involvement and support and one that can be concluded within a reasonable period of time.” They offered to assist the Council toward that end. On November 13th, the City Council responded with this letter to the Planning Commission... [Read more]

The Settlement Agreement between SRM Development and the City of Kirkland/CiViK, dated November 4, 2008 has just been released as per a public documents request made on November 5th. You may download the Settlement Agreement at: www.kirklandviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/srm-agreement-final-11-10.pdf  Print This Article Read More →

Expenditure reductions by type The City of Kirkland has just released to 2009-2010 Preliminary Budget and it is a doozie. It has everything you could never want like more tax increases and service level cuts. It is a sign of the times and a dose of reality. This budget still needs approval by the City Council, so for all of you out there looking for more cash for your favorite program, don’t... [Read more]

The City of Kirkland conducted a Tax Burden Analysis as reported in August of this year. At the City Council meeting last night, an update was presented to reflect the impact of the proposed tax policy changes on individual taxpayers. You may download the Tax Burden Analysis Update here. The following proposed tax policy changes were evaluated: Increase the utility taxes on public utilities from 7.5%... [Read more]

The Kirkland Citizens for Responsible Development (CRD) have released a document listing various reasons why they oppose the development plans for Kirkland Parkplace. The four-page document, “Professional Economics/Urban Design Critique Parkplace Zoning Amendment“, was produced by R.W. Thorpe & Associates, Inc. of Seattle. The critique attacks Parkplace on every issue from the character... [Read more]

As follow-up to the Downtown Kirkland Retail Strategy – Interim Report, this memorandum is intended to outline tools for consideration with implementation of a downtown retail strategy. This memorandum begins with discussion of the types of tools considered followed by outlining of strategic retail initiatives against which toolkit resources can be compared and then recommended next steps for consideration... [Read more]

The City of Kirkland has entered into a stay of 60 days in a good faith effort to settle the court case filed against the City by SRM Development over the process and outcome of their Bank of America / Merrill Gardens project. The Initial Hearing, if needed, will be scheduled for December 2008. You may download the document below:  Read More →