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Mark Eliasen called the meeting to order. City Councilmembers Toby Nixon, Bob Sternoff and Dave Asher were in attendance.
Kirkland Police Officer Christa Gilland was our first guest. We hope to make a brief "police report" a regular part of our meetings. Christa, a 13 year Kirkland officer, told us how Kirkland is a safe city, with mostly property and vehicle type of crime. Christa mentioned police can be called on a non-emergency number, 425-577-5656, as well as 911. Society has become more isolated and Christa recommends keeping in touch with neighbors as a good way to stay safe. Christa answered a number of questions from our group. Dave Tomson and Andy Loos of SRM Development told us about their plans to build a 180,000 sq. ft. project at 500 7th Ave S, known as the "Pace Site", with Google as the prospective tenant. It will be two floors of office over underground parking, and will be a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold building. It will be two buildings joined by covered atrium that will make it appear as single building. A roof deck with green landscaping is planned. Traffic will be kept off of 7th Ave. S. by means of curbing that prevents turning into or out of the project from the west. Also, a driveway will connect the new campus across the rail corridor trail to the existing Google site. A tunnel or bridge may be used to accomplish this. Google wants to improve their portion of the trail with amenities such as a pavement, sport courts and landscaping. There is to be a 100' total buffer along 7th Ave. S. Lighting will be shielded to minimize glare. Dave mentioned that Google wants to be a good neighbor and will be sensitive to neighbor's concerns. The project has passed the traffic concurrency test. A possible new traffic signal at 6th St. S. and Kirkland Ave. may be installed to mitigate traffic. The environmental cleanup at the former chemical plant site is in progress with monitoring wells in place. More work remains, but the site is expected to be "delisted" in the not-too-distant future. SRM hopes to have a lease in place within a few months and the project completed by mid 2015. Dave can be called at 425-629-4437 with any questions. Our Neighborhood Business segment was next, with PJ Glassey, owner of X Gym at 120 Central Way. X Gym has been in Kirkland since 2004, and with 24 Hour Fitness moving to Totem Lake, will be the oldest fitness center in town. The exercise program, a unique system developed by PJ himself, consists of a 21 minute workout, two times per week. One-on-one personal training, advanced techniques and the latest machines are added perks. They cater to all ages, teen to 80s. An introductory session is free. Robert Pantley and his daughter, Angela, gave us an update on their proposal to build "residential suites" in downtown Kirkland on the "Crab Cracker" site, located on Central Way. The project will have 11,000 sq. ft. of retail, 61 regular apartments, and 221 residential suites (we described the concept in the minutes of our last meeting). There will be 255 parking stalls, 17 more than required. Only half the tenants are expected to own cars. Retail will include an "urban hardware" store and a coffee shop. There will be a rotating art space that celebrates the living history of Kirkland. The building will be LEED Platinum Plus. An outdoor environment will be created with covered areas, green roofs and SPIN gardens. A pedestrian-friendly feel will be provided to increase foot traffic in the area. Design review should start in two months and Robert expects to break ground in about a year. Don Winters updated the group on several projects planned for the Moss Bay Neighborhood. Potala Village developer Lobsang Dargey is suing the City over the rezone of his property on Lake St. and 10th Ave. S. He had planned to build 143 units, but would now be limited to 58 under the new rules. Stuart McLeod received approval from the Design Review Board and is moving forward with the "Hector's project" on Lake St. They will next apply for a permit. The project could be finished in 2016. We plan to have architect Rick Chesmore give us a presentation at our next meeting in March. CamWest Development has been in pre-permit talks with the Planning Dept. with tentative plans to build 17 single family condo units on the Kirkland Professional Center property on west side of State St. between 3rd and 5th Aves S. The project would be similar to Nettleton Commons. CamWest project "Kirkland Commons" at State St. and 2nd Ave. S. is under construction. 15 homes are being built, 9 of them separate homes of which 7 are sold and 6 Townhomes of which one is sold. A project slated for the White Swan car wash property at 324 Central Way now has a zoning permit application under review. The proposed project would have 72 residential units in 3 to 4 floors of market rate apartments over 5000 sq. ft. of retail. Parking is proposed within a below-grade parking structure. Planning documents, including conceptual drawings, are available here: Part 1 and Part 2 Our next meeting will be Comments are closed.
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