Kirkland Planning Commission Meeting: 2044 Comprehensive Plan and APDDs (April 28, 2022)
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Kirkland Planning Commission Meeting: 2044 Comprehensive Plan Update and Autonomous Personal Delivery Devices Discussed
The Kirkland Planning Commission met on April 28, 2022, from 7:00 PM to 9:09 PM to discuss the 2044 Comprehensive Plan Update and Autonomous Personal Delivery Devices (APDDs). The meeting opened with public comments from the Kirkland Association of Neighborhoods (KAN) and other residents, followed by study sessions on the comprehensive plan and APDD regulations. Key outcomes included a motion to request staff information on permit waiting times and direction to staff to present commissioner input on APDDs to the City Council.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Kirkland Association of Neighborhoods (KAN): Bill Blanchard (Chair) and Ken MacKenzie presented on behalf of KAN, detailing community concerns about the 85th Station Area Plan (SAP). They requested delaying SAP-related ordinances until: BRT station construction contracts are signed with WSDOT and Sound Transit; a convincing mobility plan is developed; the Lake Washington School District has a clear plan for school capacity; a location for a community park is identified; and all planned studies are completed. They highlighted issues including lack of community awareness, walkability barriers (tech jobs vs. affordable housing residents), traffic congestion, school crowding, park shortages, incomplete travel time analysis, and concerns about Google's parking reduction goals. They asked the city to improve outreach, possibly with a mailer to all residents.
- Laurie Hanson: Asked if the May 18th Station Area Plan open house could be held in person. Staff indicated it was currently planned as virtual but would consider the request.
- Margaret Bull (after the APDD presentation): Expressed strong opposition to APDDs, stating she saw no advantages and described issues with dogs, strollers, driveways, and inefficiency. She urged the city to not allow them.
Discussion Items
2044 Comprehensive Plan Update (File No. CAM22-00023)
- Deputy Planning Director Jeremy McMahan presented an overview of the mandatory 20-year update, required by December 2024 (deadline extended due to COVID). Key themes: equity, sustainability, housing affordability, transit-oriented mobility, resilience, smart cities, community engagement. The city has sufficient capacity under existing zoning for housing and employment targets, but the Station Area Plan would add capacity. A visioning process will begin in late summer 2022. Commissioners provided input on topics to include:
- Commissioner Heiser: Suggested exploring social housing (publicly built housing) and addressing missing middle housing. Also noted that permit processing times should be addressed as per GMA goal #7.
- Commissioner Singhal: Proposed broadening climate action (carbon neutrality, water/energy conservation), proactive school capacity planning, and universal high-speed internet access.
- Vice Chair Reusser: Emphasized retention of middle-income residents and seniors priced out due to rising property taxes; supported ADUs.
- Commissioner Tymczyszyn: Requested an informational presentation on building permit waiting times and their impact on housing affordability.
- Commissioner Rutherford: Urged outcome-focused objectives with measurable metrics, especially for housing (considering income slices and transportation costs).
- Commissioner Allen: Raised semantics on "non-motorized" paths (should include e-bikes/scooters), safety language, pandemic resilience, and consistency on "10-minute" vs "15-minute neighborhood" terminology.
- Commissioner Singhal (later): Concerned about transitioning to eight-year neighborhood plan update cycles, fearing resource constraints and loss of neighborhood character.
- Motion and Vote: Commissioner Tymczyszyn moved, seconded by Singhal, to request staff prepare an informational presentation on permit wait times for a meeting within the next few months, and then decide next steps. The motion carried 7-0.
Autonomous Personal Delivery Devices (APDDs, File No. CAM22-00195)
- Senior Planner Scott Guter briefed the commission on APDDs, including state law (RCW 46.75), a demonstration of Amazon Scout, public outreach results, and input from Houghton Community Council (HCC) and Transportation Commission. Key concerns: impacts on disabled persons, safety, privacy, lack of proven public benefit, and consumption of public space. Staff presented three regulatory options: (1) prohibit entirely, (2) allow only on large private properties, (3) allow limited use in right-of-way via a pilot program with performance standards. Commissioners discussed:
- Commissioner Tymczyszyn: Suggested requiring companies to present their perspective.
- Vice Chair Reusser: Raised city liability concerns and noted the technology is still immature (requires human operators).
- Commissioner Singhal: Emphasized risks to disabled community, need for quantified public benefit, and potential fees for use of public right-of-way.
- Commissioner Rutherford: Questioned the Planning Commission's role, suggesting Transportation Commission is more appropriate; recommended limiting Planning Commission focus to private property dispensers.
- Commissioner Allen: Supported deferring to other bodies, possibly allowing testing in less pedestrian-dense areas first.
- Commissioner Tymczyszyn: Asked about insurance requirements for operators.
- Staff will incorporate commissioner input into a briefing to the City Council on May 3, 2022, and a draft code joint public hearing with HCC is tentatively scheduled for May 26.
Key Outcomes
- Comprehensive Plan: The commission voted 7-0 to request an informational presentation on building permit waiting times to be delivered within the next few months.
- APDDs: Staff will take commissioner feedback (including preference for limited role of Planning Commission and caution on public right-of-way use) to City Council for direction; a joint public hearing with HCC is planned for May 26, 2022.
- City Council Actions (reported by staff): On April 5, Council approved SEPA review amendments for smaller projects on Goat Hill and adopted recommendations on High Performance Building Standards. On April 19, Council received updates on the Sustainability Master Plan and the Comprehensive Plan. HCC will pass High Performance Building Standards in May; HCC vetoed the tree code on April 25.
- Upcoming: Annual election of Planning Commission officers is scheduled for May 26, 2022.
Meeting Transcript
Three minutes then. Well, first of all, thank you for giving us more than three minutes. Ken, part of my team will be uh joining us. I just have a few things to to say to introduce us here tonight. Anyway, I want to thank you for giving us this opportunity to talk tonight. Uh we have, of course, you know, asked you for this before, and and now we're here. And I'm Bill Blanchard, I'm chairman of Can. And uh as you know, that's a group of people that meet monthly to talk about the issues affecting all the neighborhoods of Kirkland. The 85th Street station plan came, you know, we heard about it years ago. People came to our meeting, and we decided that we needed to take a close look at this because it is going to affect all of us in the future. And I don't know, uh is there Kirkland staff here tonight? Oh Alison, anyway, people like Allison, I just want to thank you for all your hard work. I think that you're doing a great job at what you're doing. And you know, as we push back on you, um, I I just want to remember your quote. If there weren't out people, if there weren't people like us out there concerned about the change, you would feel that you weren't doing your job. So I really appreciate that now. So as we know, in a couple years, they'll, you know, 85th, they'll they'll be dump trucks, they'll be bulldozers, they'll be um, you know, people lining up behind cement trucks waiting to go on. And um, and we you know, that's really important because uh what what we believe, what can believes, and especially the people that work with me, I have a great team. I want to call out Ken, he's gonna talk in a minute. Um, and um, you know, there's you know, people come in and out, uh Liz, you know, Anna, everybody, they've worked so hard, and these are the people that actually read the documents. I know you do too. There, you know, when when you get a 700-page document, it's a lot of time to invest, and these people are doing that. And they we found some cracks in the um in the uh what would you say in in your work in the consultants' work, and we want to talk about that. We just want to make people understand. Uh Roshan, I don't want to forget him. Um so that's that's why we're here. That's why we're working on it, working with you. And um we really are looking at changing the landscape of Kirkland from a suburban um you know environment to an urban community. Even you know, what uh the consultants have said, what staff have said is that we're gonna have to put up with an urban level of congestion. And that's our future. Uh we we see that, we want to work with you and to make that happen. But here's um here's the deal. We think that the people of you know, you've done a great job of saying how this is going to happen and you know what's going to happen. Allison, and you know, really you and the consultants, you guys have done a superb job of telling us the how and and what's going to happen. You've laid out the plans, we've we've listened to your presentation, they're really done. But tonight, or or going forward, we have to uh tell the people of Kirkland why are we doing this? What what's the reason behind it? Because when those trucks back up, when those bulldozers are happening, when they start knocking holes in the sound barriers, all of our jobs are going to change, all of you. You're you're not gonna be pushing forward to change Kirkland. You're gonna be answering phone calls and and emails about what's going on. And so what we are asking, what Ken's asking is that you reach out to the community, explain what's going on, tell everybody the why, so that when it happens, we won't be barraged with people not understanding because as you know, that's what happens when the when the sign goes up and people don't and they haven't been involved, they get really upset. And that's when they you know what hits the fan. And that's why I'm here tonight. And that's why um I'm gonna turn it over to Ken. Ken is going to talk about just one crack in the um in the in the in the in the movement. And you know, it's about transportation, but there are many. There's there's what are we gonna do about schools? What are we gonna do about um traffic? What are we gonna do about parks? And when we read the reports, there's always, you know, we're gonna figure this out, but we're asking everybody that's involved with this.
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