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Kent begins deconstruction of downtown "Penguin Lot" using ARPA funds, plans community outreach
Summary
The city has started tearing out a vacant concrete lot on Second and Meeker purchased with ARPA funds; officials say grass, benches and a community outreach process will follow.
Kent Mayer Dana Rauf said the city has begun deconstructing the long-vacant ‘‘Penguin Lot’’ on Second and Meeker using American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds the city previously used to purchase two adjoining lots.
Rauf said crews were on site removing broken concrete and that the immediate plan is to install grass and benches. "We're gonna be putting in some grass and some benches, and then we'll do an actual community outreach process," Rauf said, inviting residents to help shape the final use of the space.
The Penguin Lot previously held a building that burned years ago and had remained a vacant concrete parcel for roughly four years, Rauf said. He said the lot connects to the city's Caresohn space park and suggested potential uses such as food trucks or a stage, but he emphasized the city will hold community outreach to determine resident priorities.
Rauf said ARPA funds were the one-time federal dollars used to purchase the two parcels; he did not provide purchase amounts or a project budget. The city did not set a timeline for completion of landscaping or programming.
