You might want to sit up and pay attention.

The City Council wants to engage you and your neighbors on an ambitious list of hot topics that directly affect you. The City is not resting on idle. We want you to jump in, buckle up, and go on this ride with us starting now. Here are some of the hot topic conversations we are having:

• Affordable Housing
• Imagine Housing/Habitat for Humanity affordable housing proposal on 181^st Street
• Human Services Needs Assessment
• “The Docket”: State-mandated middle housing regulations, elements of the comprehensive plan, more tree protection regulations, and more.
• Love Where You Live Community Engagement Project
• Lakepointe
• Downtown
• Financial Sustainability Plan
• 2025-2026 Two-Year Budget
• Capital Projects
• Public Works Operations Center
• Climate Action Plan
• DEIA Strategic Plan and Five-Year Roadmap

Do we have your attention? Read on to dig deeper into each of these hot topics:

1. Affordable Housing. This issue is not going away, and all cities in the state are expected to plan for and receive housing types at all levels of affordability. As Councilmember Srebnik said, “we’re not off the hook,” and we need to figure this out together as a community. A schedule for having this conversation will be presented at a City Council meeting in March.
2. The Imagine Housing & Habitat for Humanity affordable housing proposal on the Holt property (vacant lot on 181^st across the street from Safeway). Over the next year we will have a community conversation to fully understand this proposed project in detail. Click here for more information.
3. Human Services Needs Assessment. The City of Kenmore has partnered with Health Management Associates to conduct a needs assessment to learn about human service needs in Kenmore. The report will be presented to the City Council in March or April. Click here for more information.
4. “The Docket.”  Every year, the Planning Commission takes on a list of planning policies and regulations, known as “the Docket,” that directly affect you. This year is no exception. Just a few of the topics include economic development policies, downtown plan, the natural environment, state-mandated middle housing regulations, cottage housing, small houses on small lots, the next phase of tree protection regulations, and more. Click here to view The Docket.
5. The Love Where You Live Project. Starting last summer, the City embarked on an ambitious community engagement effort known as “The Love Where You Live Project” to ask our residents what they want for Kenmore. We have received over a thousand responses from our residents resulting in a wealth of information and ideas. The next phase of Love Where You Live has begun, including a series of “on the road” workshops that will start this week. Click here to learn more or see below for workshop information.
6. Lakepointe. The last property of its kind and size on Lake Washington, Lakepointe has great potential for both economic development and shoreline habitat restoration. Lakepointe has come up a lot during the Love Where You Live project, and it has emerged as one of the main topics that we will explore during the next phase of Love Where You Live. Click here to learn more.
7. Downtown.  We heard loud and clear during Love Where You Live that our residents would like to see a more vibrant downtown with more restaurants, businesses, and opportunities to shop. Thanks to a grant from the Urban Land Institute, in early March we will be bringing in an expert panel to meet with downtown property owners and other stakeholders to create a plan for how to jumpstart the next phase of our downtown creation. Downtown will also be one of the main topics we explore more deeply in the next phase of Love Where you Live. Stay tuned for more information.
8. Financial Sustainability Plan.  A task force of Kenmore residents has been meeting for two months, and by the end of April, they will be bringing forward a set of recommendations aimed at keeping the City’s financial lines from crossing. With the cost of doing city business rising faster than revenues (including property tax, our largest source of revenue, being limited to 1% growth per year by state law), the task force has their work cut out for them. Click here to go to the Financial Sustainability Plan webpage.
9. 2025-2026 Biennium Budget. Right on the heels of the Financial Sustainability Plan, we will set forth on building the two-year budget for 2025 and 2026. The budget is a crucial policy document that puts the City’s money where its mouth is.  We will have plenty of opportunities for you to tell us what you want to see in the budget, so stay tuned.
10. Capital Projects. The City is the fortunate recipient of a number of sidewalk grants that also including funding for traffic calming devices for safety. Chances are, these sidewalks and traffic calming devices are coming to your neighborhood. Before we go ahead and just build those projects, we want to include the neighbors in the design. Over the next year, affected neighborhoods will be receiving notifications to participate in the design. If sidewalk grants weren’t enough, the City Council approved an aggressive plan to restore natural habitat along fish-bearing streams and replace fish-blocking culverts. This habitat restoration effort is known as “Rapid Progress Plus,” and we will need to hear from you as we get going on this work. 
11. Public Works Operations Center. Last year the City Council approved the plan, budget, and financing to build the new Public Works Operations Center, to be located next to Kenmore Middle School on 202^nd Street. This overdue and much-needed facility is crucial to maintaining the City’s infrastructure, including our parks, roads, bridges, and surface water pipes and structures. Click here to see what we’re building.
12. Climate Action Plan.  The City has been implementing its plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions citywide, and you have a key role to play. Most of the needed greenhouse gas reductions will need to come from our residents in order to meet the target reduction goal. We have appointed a committee of residents to advise us on how best to get the word out and involve everyone in this important effort. Click here to visit the City’s Climate Action Plan webpage.
13. DEIA Strategic Plan and Five-Year Road Map.  Last year the City Council adopted a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Plan that will take our community to the next level in assuring that Kenmore is a place where all people love where they live. We need your help and engagement as we continue on this journey. Click here to see our DEIA webpage and what you can do to help.

Do we have your attention? Are you buckled in?  We look forward to having these conversations with you. Enjoy the ride, bumps and all. 

Rob Karlinsey, City Manager
rkarlinsey@kenmorewa.gov