Dec. 8 Council Meeting
New land acquisition by the City of Kenmore.
This week, Kenmore City Council said goodbye to CM Deb Srebnik - after eight years serving on council, Eric Adman will take her place. Members of council shared memories and accomplishments and thanked her for her service, except for CM Culver who refused. CM Srebnik, said her goodbyes and thanked the other council members and community. Former City Manager Rob Karlinsey called in as well to express his gratitude for her service to Kenmore. Then they ate cake.
Council adopted the consent agenda -
This included a number of items including the Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces (PROS) plan, and the purchase of land on Swamp Creek and the Sammamish River (total of $7.48m). The full consent agenda can be found in the meeting packet: https://kenmorewa.portal.civicclerk.com/.../agenda/2258
Council adopted two ordinances -
25-0638 - Adopted unanimously
This ordinance provides another six-month extension to the "reduced TOD" (Transit Oriented Development) areas around Swamp Creek. These temporary restrictions have been in place for 3+ years while awaiting a recommendation from the Planning Commission.
25-439 - Adopted unanimously
This ordinance affirms Kenmore's commitment to welcoming and supporting immigrants. Also included is an outline of King County Sheriff's Office's (KCSO's) policy on interactions with ICE. KCSO provides contract policing services to Kenmore. Chief Moen shared that immigration violations are a civil matter, and KCSO policies state that they don't spend time or resources dealing with immigration matters. There was also a question about the Flock license plate readers used by other cities and he clarified that the KAPE cameras are completely different. The information taken by KAPE cameras is only for traffic enforcement.
Staff provided updates on the following -
Northshore Parks and Recreation Service Area (NPRSA)
NPRSA is a special tax district that has the same boundaries as the Northshore school district. They have identified a site in downtown Woodinville for an aquatic and recreation center. The next steps are to refine layout for the site, conduct a community survey, then look at costs and a bond measure.
Boathouse
Northshore Boosters and the Kenmore Community Rowing Club both use the facility but neither is paying rent. During the proposal phase, there was a $340k funding gap and the City used strategic opportunity funds. The idea was that this would be paid back by fundraising from the users. Nothing was raised and the fundraising committee disbanded. The funding gap increased to $540k by project completion.
Councilmember Updates -
CM Culver
CM Culver spoke about the "Kenmore bill” and said that Rep. Peterson has hinted that it will be reintroduced (this is the one that would allow the state to have final say if Kenmore were to turn down a STEP project in the future). He also referenced SB 5148 - the "Housing Accountability Act" - which passed this year and said that the State would be choosing cities to audit on housing policy (and clearly implied that Kenmore would be on their radar).
With middle housing and STEP, Kenmore has been careful to meet the requirements set out by the State, but it seems that CM Culver still believes that when Kenmore denied the development agreement that it was a violation somehow of State law or guidelines. The fact that it required a development agreement meant that the project was an exception to our underlying code (more units, less parking, etc) -- Kenmore wasn't enforcing different rules for Plymouth, which is one of the reasons why the project didn't move forward.
CM Sasson
CM Sasson asked that the holiday lights stay lit through the Ides of March (15th). This was seconded and will appear on an agenda next year.
CM Srebnik
CM Srebnik brought back her conversation for deeply affordable and STEP housing. She asked that Staff as time and resources permit, start the conversation with providers who have built affordable modest-sized developments for families, seniors and individuals. She expressed a desire to see a pipeline for housing for seniors who are at Heron Haven in Kenmore.
In discussion, CM Marshall said that he respects the motion but wants to involve a re-formed STEP committee or a new committee from the outset. CM Culver also opposed the motion, but for entirely different reasons. CM Culver cited procedural issues and brought up a list of grievances - we need to "land the plane" on Imagine Housing, modest-size housing doesn't work for developers, we need a Plymouth debrief, we need to pass STEP policies.
Deputy Mayor O'Cain and CM Loutsis expressed support for the motion. DM O'Cain said that involving the community is critical to the success of these endeavors, and that we don't want to lose momentum on this issue. DM O'Cain said "I don't want to see us on the dais pointing fingers at the past when we're in the present. We've learned lessons, we are doing our best to move forward and take action." CM Loustis pointed out that CM Culver's objections to interfering with Staff time don't make sense, as the motion specifically stated "as time allows".
CM Loutsis moved to suspend the rules to vote on Deb's motion. Passed 5-2 (CMs Culver and Marshall opposed). Motion itself passed in the same way.
