What's Happening in Kirkland
Karen Story
City Updates from this month's Kirkland Alliance
of Neighborhoods meeting. Forgive the somewhat messy layout; I did
not want to attach a Word document, but pasting the content into
an email is imperfect.
What’s Happening in Kirkland
Peter Kirk Park
• City is converting the tennis courts to pickleball courts
• Doubling the size of the skate park
Zoning and Planning Work Program (PWP) update
Juanita Community-initiated Amendment Requests (Michaels/Goodwill)
• In-progress; no changes adopted yet/under Council consideration.
• Increases development capacity
State Middle Housing Implementation
• Adopted June 2025
• Increases development capacity
• Adds capacity for 80% average median income (AMI) units
• Increased how many housing units can be on a lot (4 or 6), but there are still caps on total lot coverage, so smaller lots can’t necessarily build to that density with practically sized units
• Also changed some parking guidelines, lowering the required number of spaces per unit
• When you build divided units on a lot, you can sell the land as well as the unit, creating a mini-lot
Co-Living Housing Implementation
• Adopted September 2025
• Increases development capacity, though only for co-living units
• Formerly called a “single occupancy unit” or “sleeping unit”; using shared central facilities such as kitchen and lounge areas
Expanding Housing Opportunities for Faith-based Properties
• Increases development capacity, though only for faith-based properties
• Example: developing affordable housing on church property
Totem Lake Southern Industrial Subarea Plan
• Increases development capacity
Zoning changes approved by Council in 2025
• Rezone of Houghton Park & Ride and Juanita Heights Park properties to Park zone
• State-required Middle Housing Implementation
• State-required Unit Lot Subdivision Implementation
•
State-required
Co-living Housing Implementation
2025
Miscellaneous Code Amendments, including State-required SEPA
categorical
exemption adjustments
Zoning changes to be considered by Council in late 2025 and in 2026
• State-required Critical Area Ordinance Update
• Juanita CAR Zoning Code Amendments
•
State-required
Design Review Guidelines and Process Amendments
Houghton
Village Development Plan (*Note: development plan does not amend
existing
zoning)
Economic development
NE 85th Station Area Plan
• Catalyze redevelopment of the Station Area to accomplish the objectives of the NE 85th Station Area Plan to create a thriving mixed-use district with sustainable buildings, park amenities, plentiful affordable housing, family wage jobs, and commercial and retail services.
• The economic climate is chilly right now, with high interest rates and other factors. Potential developers are moving slowly.
• The city has a “pioneer provision” that favors early action, foregoing some restrictions for developers who build the first 10% of the overall capacity.
• For a developer to “pencil out” a plan, it’s not just about whether they can make a profit—they have to satisfy investors who are seeking profit across national markets, so it’s harder to attract capital investment and the city needs to make development attractive.
• Economic Development connecting with property owners, developers, investors – hosting Roundtable on November 13
Kraken Iceplex and Community Center
• Partner with the Seattle Kraken to develop a state-of-the-art iceplex that will host NHL teams at the former Houghton Park and Ride property if the facility includes a new Parks community center and other community benefits defined by the Council.
• Kraken paying to build 2 story building; Community Center free to City
• Economic impact study: $7M/yr to Kirkland, existing & new business impact
• Could also be an asset for the Seattle Torrent, women’s hockey league
• Can drive hotels and other services in the area
• The community event space includes a large multi-use space that can be divided
• Legal agreements near complete, pre-submittal under review
• City Council presentation November 18
• 2026: Continue outreach, identify barriers, determine what can be done to catalyze
Transportation
• Use the Our Kirkland portal to submit any specific questions about transportation
• Vision: safe, connected and multimodal
• Goal: reduce reliance on single-occupancy vehicles and improve connectivity and multimodal mobility in Kirkland in ways that maintain and enhance safety, travel times, health and transportation choices.
• Strategic Plan Hierarchy:
o Walking
o Bicycling
o Transit
o Driving
• Parking Study
o Check out the real-time parking map on the city website
o Considering charging parking fees, primarily to encourage turnover in available parking spaces
• Metro K-Line RapidRide 30% Development (by end of 2026)
o Metro cut the K-Line funding by 25%; don’t know yet exactly what that means
• Transit Needs Study
o Example: Gaps in service that remain since the COVID pandemic
o How to create better frequencies and coverages
• Juanita High School Connection Study (trail connections)
• City policy review
o Provides guidance for desired speeds
§ Historically: calculate the average speed of 85% of travelers on a roadway and then set the speed limit to that
§ We want a more data-driven and safety-oriented process
§ Set 20 mph as default speed limit on local roads??
§ Set 30 mph as maximum speed limit on major roads??
LWSD Levy Renewal
The Educational Programs and Operations levy and the Technology and Capital Facility levy must be renewed by voters every four years. These levies provide needed support for students and staff in our community
• Mission: Each student will graduate prepared to lead a rewarding and responsible life as a contributing member of our community and greater society Vision: Every student is “future ready”: prepared for college, prepared for the global workplace, prepared for personal success
• Profile of success: Perseverance, adaptability, agency, curiosity, acceptance
• Commitments: Equitable and just systems, inclusive and rigorous learning; integrated sustainability, operational excellence
• 30K students
• Birthrates are declining
• Incoming kindergarten class is the smallest since 2013
• 94.2% graduation rate
• 5,384 staff (1,100 are substitutes, which costs $7M/year, and the state funds less than $1M)
• 55 schools
• 17K volunteers
• Balanced budget: Made $15M adjustments in 2024-25 school year to meet budget
• Expenditures will exceed revenue in 2028-29
• Federal funding
o ▪ Currently $13.5M/year,
o ▪ Losing at least $1.1M in 2026-27
o ▪ Current example: During the gov’t shutdown, we used local funds to replace Head Start programs that had their funding cut
• Funding gap: the difference between what the state funds and what it actually costs to provide programs
• Educational programs and operations EP&O Levy funds:
o 90% of athletics
o 100% of additional course offerings beyond core curriculum
o 30% of Early Learning programs (such as Head Start)
o 48% of health/mental health services
o 25% of special education services
• School technology and capital projects levy funds building maintenance: HVAC, electrical, and other building systems
• Learning technology: classroom technology, curriculum, and infrastructure
• Maintenance of athletic fields (repair and upgrades)
• This levy comprises over 90% of the LWSD technology budget
• Levy rates Estimated as $1.43 per $1K assessed property value in 2027
• Decreases to $1.36 per $1K by 2030
• Change from previous levy: +$255 for EP&O for a $1.5M property
• LWSD is one of the lowest rates among King County school districts
• Cities with heavy commercial property density (e.g., Bellevue, Seattle) see lower levy rates per residential property; that’s why those cities have lower rates than Kirkland