Kirkland City Council Regular Meeting - October 18, 2022
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Kirkland City Council Regular Meeting - October 18, 2022
The Kirkland City Council held a regular meeting on October 18, 2022, beginning with a study session on the Parks Special Event Policy at 5:30 p.m., followed by the regular meeting at 7:30 p.m. Deputy Mayor Jay Arnold presided in the absence of Mayor Penny Sweet. The meeting included a special presentation by a local student inventor, a COVID-19 update, approval of consent calendar items and several ordinances, discussion on business license amendments, utility rates, 2023 state legislative priorities, and a fiscal note for a Park Lane study. Public comment was heard on various topics including Imagine Housing concerns and opposition to the Park Lane study.
Consent Calendar
- Approved minutes of October 3 and 4, 2022.
- Acknowledged a claim for damages from Jorge Sanchez-Perez.
- Awarded a construction contract for the 126th Avenue NE Watermain Improvement project to R.W. Scott Construction Co. ($1,429,377).
- Awarded a construction contract for the 120th Avenue NE School and Transit Connector Sidewalk project to Kamins Construction Inc. ($130,937.66).
- Accepted the Rose Point Lift Station Improvements project and established the lien period, returning $196,373.33 to Water Sewer Reserves.
- Acknowledged the resignation of Rod Lapasin from the Tourism Development Committee.
- Acknowledged the August 2022 Financial Dashboard Report and Procurement Report.
- Item 8.h.(1) (Park Lane Study Fiscal Note) was pulled for separate consideration.
- Motion to approve the consent calendar carried 6-0.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Anne Hess (Kirkland Downtown Association): Opposed fee increases for free community events, stating they would prohibit continuation.
- Pamela Bivens: Testified about unmet reasonable accommodation requests at Francis Village (Imagine Housing), including inaccessible trash and laundry facilities, and reported a hostile interaction with management.
- Donald Chin: Allege that Imagine Housing's residential support specialist violates privacy by sharing issues with the property manager, and that trash rooms are unsanitary. He also stated that extra funding requested by Imagine Housing does not benefit residents.
- Fred Ritchie: Expressed concern over proposed increases in utility rates and headcount, warning of a recession and urging fiscal restraint.
- Allen Freeman: Criticized Imagine Housing's case management, claiming donations are withheld from tenants and staff take items home. Called for accountability and audits of Imagine Housing.
- Ida Porter: Spoke in support of unvaccinated firefighters, arguing against vaccine mandates and citing lack of informed consent for EUA vaccines.
- Cindy Charlebois: Raised parking issues at Imagine Housing's Francis Village, suggesting creative solutions like renting nearby commercial space for staff parking. Recommended that Imagine Housing develop policies before receiving further funding, and proposed tenant-led facilitation for behavioral health.
- Alex Tsimerman: Criticized rules against signs in council chambers as a violation of free speech, and accused Seattle-area governments of fascism.
- Taylor Oiness (Business on Park Lane): Opposed the Park Lane study and permanent closure, citing deferred maintenance, lost parking (17 stalls), and negative impacts on businesses. Stated that business owners and landlords were not consulted.
Discussion Items
- Parks Special Event Policy Update (Study Session): Staff presented proposed changes including reducing event types, revising event limits, and introducing park rental fees. Council discussed balancing equity, flexibility, impacts on businesses and residents, and the need for stakeholder input from event sponsors. Council directed staff to bring forward more refined options, including a potential application period for multi-day events, and to consider differential fees for public vs. ticketed events.
- Business License Revenue Generating Regulatory Fee (Ordinance O-4816): Approved an amendment increasing the gross receipts threshold from $12,000 to $20,000 and the fee from $105 to $130 per employee. A technical amendment was made to correct language. Ordinance passed 6-0.
- Proposed Amendments to Business License Code (Chapter 7.02): Discussion on several changes including a new single license for multiple single-family rental properties. Council requested further refinement to include missing middle housing (ADUs, duplexes, triplexes) and consider caps. Staff will bring an ordinance on November 1.
- Proposed 2023-2024 Utility Rates: Approved four ordinances setting solid waste, water, sewer, and surface water rates for 2023 and 2024. Passed 6-0.
- 2023 Draft State Legislative Priorities: Council reviewed and provided feedback on general principles and priorities including housing (ADU tax exemption, new REET tier), behavioral health, climate, gun safety, and capital funding requests. Agreed to refine language to include both constitutional amendments and state legislation on reproductive rights. A motion to proceed with the agenda as amended passed unanimously.
- Park Lane Study Fiscal Note (Item 9.e): Approved $75,000 from the Council Special Projects Reserve for a consultant study on future options for Park Lane. Vote: 5-1 (Councilmember Nixon opposed, citing business opposition and alternative uses for funds).
Key Outcomes
- Ordinance O-4816 (Business License Fee) adopted as amended (6-0).
- Ordinances O-4817, O-4818, O-4819, O-4820 (Utility Rates for 2023-2024) adopted (6-0).
- 2023 State Legislative Priorities approved in concept with direction to incorporate state-level reproductive rights language.
- Park Lane Study Fiscal Note approved (5-1).
- Proclamation Process Change: Council directed staff to bring back options for a tiered proclamation system (live, video, website) and a calendar of cultural/religious holidays, with a default to video for recurring proclamations and extraordinary cases for live readings.
- COVID-19 Update: City Manager reported that due to an ongoing King County vaccination mandate for contractors, unvaccinated firefighters will not be reinstated. The COVID-19 update will be removed as a standing agenda item after November 1, 2022.
- The meeting adjourned at 10:25 p.m. after a closed session on collective bargaining.
Meeting Transcript
2022. The mayor is unable to attend this meeting, so as deputy mayor, I will be presiding. Tonight's meeting is a hybrid meeting. Community members are welcome to join us either in person or remotely through Zoom or by phone. Before asking the clerk to call the role for tonight's regular meeting, is there a motion to excuse Mayor Sweet? So moved. Second. It's been moved by Councilmember Curtis. All right, moved by Councilmember Falcon, seconded by Councilmember Curtis to excuse Mayor Sweet from tonight's meeting. Any discussion? All in favor, signified by saying aye. Aye, hi. Aye. Any opposed? The motion is approved. Clerk, will you please call the roll? Councilmember Nixon. Here. Council Member Black. Here. Council Member Curtis. Here. Council Member Falcone. Here. Council Member Pascal. Here. Deputy Mayor. Here. Thank you. Our study session tonight is on a parks special events policy update. We expect to reconvene our regular meeting at approximately 7 30 p.m. City Manager. Thank you, Deputy Marnold. So as you said, tonight's event discussion is the special events policy. Before I begin, we just want to acknowledge that special events are complex. There are a lot of perspectives on all the issues we're going to talk about tonight, and there are many stakeholders involved the residents, the community businesses, and the people who visit and attend the events. So what we're looking for tonight is not action. We're looking for council input and direction, and also if there's additional information that the council needs before we can proceed to final action in the future. So with that as the perspective, I'm going to turn this over to Lynn's Wagstra, our parks and community services director for introductory remarks. Lynn. Thank you, City Manager. Good evening, Deputy Mayor and Council. As you know, I'm Lynn Sfogstra, and I'm the director of parks and community services. We're talking about special events, and Kurt just gave us a wonderful introduction to that. Hoping we'll get the PowerPoint up shortly. One of the things that we thought we'd start with this evening is just a quick reminder as to why we do special events. There's a lot of reasons, but one of the primary reasons is the entertainment and engagement of the community. Events are often offered specifically for community building. Events are also offered to drive traffic to Kirkland businesses and for the economic impact. On that note, I'm gonna hand it over to John to cover the next subject.
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