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Council approves safe‑parking funds, parkland swap, Kraken agreement changes and right‑of‑way ordinance
Summary
At its July 7 meeting the Kirkland City Council approved a $100,000 fiscal note to repave a safe‑parking lot, adopted a land‑swap resolution for Mark Twain Park contingent on a restrictive covenant, approved amendments that allow the Kraken Iceplex ground‑lease signing under clarified design/permit conditions, and adopted Ordinance 49‑44 to dedicate a right of way at the ICEplex site.
The Kirkland City Council used its July 7 agenda to take several formal actions affecting homelessness services, parkland configuration, development agreements and site access.
Safe parking fiscal note: Council approved a $100,000 fiscal‑note contribution for the Lake Washington United Methodist Church safe‑parking repaving project. Deputy City Manager Jim Lopez said the full repaving scope was estimated at about $426,000; the $100,000 disbursement from the Special Projects Reserve is contingent on a written agreement requiring the program to operate for three years and includes pro‑rated repayment if the program ends early. Council approved the fiscal note 6‑0.
Mark Twain Parkland exchange (Resolution R5739): Staff revisited a 2006 proposal to release a small panhandle of Mark Twain Park and swap land to support a developer’s right‑of‑way dedication at no cost to the city. A missing county authorization for the panhandle release required a corrective approach: staff recommended conveying the park panhandle in exchange for developer land plus placing a restrictive covenant on a newly acquired Llamas property to ensure no net loss of parkland and compliance with the Forward Thrust bond obligations. Council adopted the resolution 6‑0.
Kraken Iceplex agreement amendments: The council approved amendments to the agreement to lease and to the ground lease that clarify sequencing and preserve the city’s design approval standards. Because a contractor delay pushed building‑permit issuance into late August, the amendments move certain permit‑related triggers while preserving the city’s right to withhold permits if design obligations are unmet. The amendments also incorporated clarifications requested by the Kraken’s lender and adjusted the timing for starting a capital‑reserve contribution. Council approved the amendments (vote 6‑0).
Right‑of‑way dedication (Ordinance 49‑44): To give the ICEplex site the best chance of gaining Washington State Department of Transportation approval for an access break onto NE 116th, council declared the internal access road a public right of way (Ordinance 49‑44). Staff said WSDOT will not consider a limited‑access break unless the road is a recorded public right of way. Council adopted the ordinance 6‑0.
Votes at a glance: - Safe‑parking fiscal note: $100,000 approved; motion carried 6‑0. - Resolution R5739 (Mark Twain swap and restrictive covenant): adopted 6‑0. - Kraken agreement amendments (resolution filed in packet): approved 6‑0. - Ordinance 49‑44 (right‑of‑way dedication): adopted 6‑0.
Why it matters: the actions fund a homelessness service partner’s lot improvements, lock in parkland protections while enabling a long‑pending land swap, allow a major private‑public project to proceed with lender‑requested clarifications, and secure the legal status of an access road so state agencies will process a limited‑access request. Each action included staff safeguards (agreements, covenants, permit conditions) designed to protect city interests.
