Cross Kirkland Corridor Updates
Karen Story
 |
||||||
Google Holiday Lights on the CKC – Friday, December 2nd 4:30-6:30 p.m.
Join your Kirkland neighbors on Friday, December 2 for an evening of caroling, hot cocoa, a giant snow globe photobooth and the second annual musical holiday lights on the Cross Kirkland Corridor! The snow-globe will be ready for photos starting at 4:30 p.m. and at 5:30 p.m. Mayor Amy Walen will flip the switch to turn on a show featuring 10,000 LED lights custom-programmed to holiday music by Google Kirkland engineers. Parking is limited, so those who can are encouraged to take public transportation, bike or walk to the show.
The event happens at the Family Fitness and Play Area on the Cross Kirkland Corridor near the Google campus (Approximate address is 499 7th Ave S, Kirkland, WA 98033 - click here for directions: https://goo.gl/maps/kWLez)
Volunteers Needed for Invasive Plant RemovalJoin friends and neighbors to volunteer on Monday, December 5 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. to remove invasive plants from the CKC on the section between 6th St. S. and Kirkland Ave. Parking is available on Kirkland and Railroad Avenues.
Bring small pruning saws, heavy duty loppers and water. Wear long pants, long sleeves, sturdy shoes, and gloves (leather gloves are best for pulling blackberry bush removal). For more information contact Karen Story at ka...@nwnative.us.
CKC User CountsHave you noticed the two eco-counter boxes on the trail? They have been counting pedestrians on the trail since May of this year. There is also one section of the corridor with a bike counter tube across the trail. The recent numbers are impressive: Highest Bicycle Count (Kirkland Avenue): 204 on August 17 Highest Pedestrian Count (Kirkland Avenue): 1336 on May 30 The average number of bicycles (June-October) at Kirkland Avenue is 118 per day (counting each direction). The average number of pedestrians (May-October) at Kirkland Avenue is 663 per day (counting each direction). At NE 52nd Street, the average number of pedestrians (May-October) is slightly less at 459.
More Garbage CansKirkland’s Maintenance Division has ordered three new garbage cans to be place at trail heads at 111th Avenue NE (street end), NE 60th Street (east side of the CKC), and NE 64th Street (west side of the CKC). Look for installation early next year.
Sound Transit 3The voter approved 25-year Sound Transit 3 Plan includes three projects in Kirkland including Bus Rapid Transit along I-405, the South Kirkland Park and Ride to Issaquah Light Rail project and an environmental study to determine future high-capacity transit investments in the area from Bothell to Bellevue via Kirkland. Read about each project below:
I-405 Bus Rapid Transit: This project establishes Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) from the Lynnwood Transit Center to the Burien Transit Center via I-405 and SR 518. The project relies on the I-405 express toll system where available and Business Access Transit (BAT) lanes on SR 518 from Tukwila to Burien. Project elements include parking, station access improvements, and ten stations including a new transit center in South Renton and new stations at Northeast 85th Street with BAT lanes extending toward Downtown Kirkland and at Northeast 44th Street in Renton. Project completion: 2024
South Kirkland Park and Ride to Issaquah Light Rail: This project builds light rail from south Kirkland to Issaquah with four new stations at south Kirkland, the Richards Road area, Eastgate near Bellevue College, and central Issaquah, with one provisional station in the Lakemont area. This provisional station would require identification of additional funding not currently included in the ST3 System Plan in order to be built. Project completion: 2041
High Capacity Transit (HCT) Environmental Study: This environmental study will examine future high capacity transit options between Bothell and Bellevue, including routes along the Eastside Rail Corridor/Cross Kirkland Corridor and I-405. The project will include public outreach, ridership forecasting, and cost estimating.
CKC Beacon Project
The Kirkland Parks Foundation, with support from Google and the City, created the CKC Beacon Project that brings information to your smart phone along the trail. The “New&Now” app will help you experience the CKC in a new way. As you travel the trail, information will be available to you on your smart phone at various points along the way. There will be information on a variety of subjects – the CKC Master Plan (first quarter of 2017), Environment, History, Science, Technology and Mathematics (STEM), local events, etc. Stay tuned, the launch will be in early January.
South Kirkland Park and Ride Pedestrian Bridge
The construction of the South Kirkland Park and Ride Pedestrian Bridge/Elevator from the CKC to the Metro Parking Garage and Transit Center is on hold as the City seeks additional funding to complete the project. More information about the timeline for this project will follow.
New Connections to the CKC
Thanks to the 2016 Neighborhood Safety Program, two new connections to the CKC have been built. At the north end of 111th Avenue NE, steps and a pedestrian bridge were constructed linking to a school walk route and enabling the neighborhood to access the corridor faster and easier. Steps were also constructed (with a bicycle runnel) at 2nd Avenue and 10th Street (just north of the Kirkland Way railroad bridge). This connection allows pedestrians and bicyclists to access the trail and go safely up and over the busy intersection at Kirkland Way and Railroad Avenue. The easement necessary for the Forbes Creek trail connection to the CKC in the Highlands Pass area is progressing smoothly and anticipated to be executed by the end of the year. The trail construction will begin immediately after all approvals are complete.
Second Bench Donation – In life, it’s not where you go, it’s who travels with youThe Ellard family donated the second bench on the Cross Kirkland Corridor! Claudia and Eddie Ellard use the trail often and their dog Cody loves to join them. The bench is located on the west side of 6th Street and is decorated with the plaque saying “In life, it’s not where you go it’s who travels with you.” Relax on this new bench. Thank you Claudia, Eddie and Cody!
If you are interested in donating a bench on the path, contact Kari Page at kp...@kirklandwa.gov or 425-587-3011.
Ephemeral Art Project CancelledThe Kirkland Cultural Arts Commission selected local environmental artist, Terra Holcomb, as the inaugural Cross Kirkland Corridor (CKC) artist in residence. The final project was to be a 10-foot tree hollow made from fallen black cottonwood leaves. Holcomb’s ephemeral art piece, was cancelled due to a family emergency of the artist. The Cultural Arts Commission will look for ways to bring ephemeral and other art to the Corridor in the future.
The Spikes SculptureIn the fall of 2013, Merrily Dicks and her husband attended the ribbon cutting ceremony of the CKC and afterward walked the trail as others did. Noticing there were railroad spikes lying beside the trail, they started picking them up. A friend, who was also walking the trail asked, “What are you doing?” Merrily told her friend that she wanted to do something with the spikes to commemorate the history of the railroad. The friend then handed her the spikes she was holding. This was the start of a community-wide effort to collect buckets of spikes and rail material along the corridor. Merrily didn’t know how to weld, after all she was a painter. But this didn’t stop her. She went to the Lake Washington Institute of Technology to learn the welding trade and enlisted her classmates and staff in helping her build a sculpture with the spikes collected by the community. On November 15, the City Council unanimously approved the installation of The Spikes Sculpture on the CKC just below northeast 85th Street overpass. The sculpture will be installed before the end of the year.
Stay Connected With Us:
|
