The Kirkland City Council met on March 4, 2025, for a study session at 5:30 p.m. and a regular meeting at 7:30 p.m., adjourning at 10:41 p.m. The study session included briefings on streamlining design review, a concept plan for a potential Kraken Iceplex Community Center, and the Peter Kirk Pool Facility Assessment and Feasibility Study. The regular meeting covered proclamation of National Safe Place Week, public comments, consent calendar, and business items including a property donation, middle housing code compliance, King County Metro K-Line support memos, surplus equipment declaration, a sexual assault advocate pilot, legislative updates, and board appointments. Key decisions were made on all items.
Fourteen members of the public addressed the council:
Amy looks pretty sharp with the background that she's got on. I have the picture. I just can't figure out how to load it. All right. I'd like to call the order of the city council meeting in March 4th, 2025. Before we call a roll, I want to note that Councilmore Sweet and Councilmember Falcone are attending the study session remotely. Clerk, will you please call a roll? Councilmember Tim Chisholm. Here. Councilmember Black. Here. Councilmember Sweet. Here. Councilmember Falcone. Here. Councilmember Pascal. Here. Deputy Mayor Arnold. Here. And Mayor Curtis. Here. Our study session tonight is on three items. First is a briefing on the streamlining of design review to comply with state requirements. Second, we will receive received review a concept plan for the potential Kraken IcePlex Community Center. And last is a discussion on the Peter Cookirk Pool Facility Assessment and Feasibility Study. We expect to reconvene our regular meeting at 7.30, City Manager. Okay, thank you, Mayor. So because I have three topics, we're going to be ambitiously moving through them quickly, about half an hour per topic. Our first one is the streamlining design review to comply with state law. I'm going to turn over to our senior planner Tony Levitt, unless Adam, if you had any comments that you want to make otherwise. Tony, take it away. Great. Thank you very much. Tony Levitt representing the planning department. So yes, we are here to discuss the streaming streamlining design review process that we have undertaken. This is kind of overview of what we'll be discussing today. And we'll get right into it. So House Bill 1293 became effective in July of 2023. The bill requires that the city apply only clear and objective regulations. Oh, I'm sorry. I'm used to my assistance helping with design review. There we go. Okay. Thank you. All right. Um so the bill requires the city apply only clear and objective regulations to the exterior design of new development. For design review process, a clear and objective regulation must include one or more ascertainable guidelines standard or criterion by which a applicant can determine whether a given building design is permissible under that development regulation. Additionally, it may not result in reduction of density, height, bulk, or scale below the generally applicable development regulations for a development proposal in the applicable zone. Additionally, the bill requires the design review process be conducted concurrently with the review for project permit, and the process may not include more than one public meeting. The deadline for this adoption is June 30th of this year.