Sadly, this awesome little guy is not for sale.

Good thing they put up those handwritten signs. Otherwise how would their potential patrons ever have figured out that this location has been closed?

The Seattle Times had an interesting story a few days ago about the trouble brewing hundreds of feet under our fair city: Brightwater tunnel likely causing homes’ troubles

Neighbors of Brightwater have complained of construction noises late into the night, cracked floors and foundations, a sinkhole that swallowed a driveway, pollution of a creek, homes flooded with sewage and wells gone dry.

Most of the complaints have been filed by people who live along the tunnel route. The tunnel runs under Northeast 195th Street and other roads, and directly beneath 147 private properties, officials said.

Here are some of the things neighbors have endured:

• Marlene and Eldon Berg’s previously quiet Kenmore neighborhood became a noisy construction site, with truck engines revving, backup beepers sounding and metal banging on metal when contractors began digging a tunnel portal. Windows in their home rattled and floors shook when a boring machine chewed its way out of the portal. After the Bergs’ well ran dry, the county hooked them up to the city water system.
• Ray Ames was asleep when his wife, Mary, woke him up and showed him a brownish liquid flooding the kitchen and pouring out of the toilet. Raw sewage had backed up into the house because of pump problems on a Kenmore sewer line that was being redirected to the Brightwater plant. Two years later the county paid more than $70,000 for repairs and legal fees.
• Pauline Chihara stepped out of her Kenmore home early one morning and discovered her driveway had fallen into a 30-foot-wide, 15-foot-deep sinkhole.

Yikes!

Here’s a map of where the Brightwater tunnel passes through underneath Kenmore:

View the full system map at the project page on King County’s website.

Sounds like it’s a good idea to keep your eyes peeled for potential problems (cracked foundations and driveways, plumbing issues, etc.) if you live anywhere along the NE 195th St. route.

If a giant sinkhole swallows your house, call 9-1-1 from the neighbor’s place after you barely escape with your life. If you have other, less pressing problems thanks to Brightwater, call the County’s construction information line at 206-205-5989.

What the heck is it? Was somebody worried that the cable might get cold in the harsh Kenmore winter?

This looks fairly lovingly hand-crafted. I can’t help but feel like I’m missing out on some sort of joke here. And I hate missing out on a good joke. Anybody care to fill me in?

In Kenmore, Mayor David Baker said City Hall staffers routinely receive complaints regarding Best Friends, many coming from parents who say young children easily can see into the roadside stand. Baker said officials have discussed the issue, but declined to go into details.

“We are aware of it, we do know of it,” he said.

To me that almost sounds like some sort of veiled threat from the Mayor there. Interestingly, as I drive by Best Friend, I have noticed a slight change in the weeks since that story ran.

Pretty much since the story ran, the blinds in the windows facing Bothell Way, which used to stay open, have been closed. Coincidence? Probably not.

Looks to me like Best Friend owner Wayne Hembree caught the hidden message in Mayor Baker’s remarks to the Reporter and decided to preemptively avoid a confrontation with City Hall. Probably a good move.

I have to say though, I am disappointed in the apathy of Kenmore voters. According to King County Elections, Kenmore had a voter turnout of 53.4%.

Not only is this a lower turnout than the most recent comparable election in 2005 (56.7% turnout), but it’s even a lower raw number of voters! In 2005 6,831 voted, but in 2009 just 6,823 people voted, despite the fact that every single registered voter was mailed a ballot that they just had to fill out and drop in the mail (or drive down to Lake Forest Park). Pitiful!

But enough about that. Let’s abruptly change the subject.

I spotted this home somewhere up on the hill between 61st and 68th. It intrigued me.

Yes, that’s a City of Kenmore flag flying in front of that home. Where can you even buy a City of Kenmore flag?

Clearly this is someone that has a lot more allegiance to Kenmore than the average bear. I bet they voted.

Here in Kenmore three of our seven city council positions are up for election this year. In the primary, only 29.4% of Kenmore’s registered voters bothered to return their ballots. Flip that around: that means that over 70% of voters in Kenmore did not vote in the primary. I have to say, that is pretty pitiful, especially considering how easy it is to vote now that we have been forcibly switched to an all-mail system.

I’m not interested in making “recommendations” that allow you to abdicate your civic responsibility to make your own informed decision, but I will do what I can to help you get to that point for yourself. In order to help you make an informed decision on the two contested races for Kenmore City Council, here is a collection of relevant links.

Previous posts on Eyes on Kenmore:
• Diane Brennan Responds to Our Questions
• Allan Van Ness Responds to Our Questions
• Bob Hensel Responds to Our Questions
• Laurie Sperry Responds to Our Questions
• Reflections on the City Council Candidate Forum

Voter’s Pamphlet:
• Position 2 (Sperry vs. Brennan)
• Position 4 (Hensel)
• Position 6 (O’Brien vs. Van Ness)

Campaign Websites:
• Laurie Sperry
• Diane Brennan
• Allan Van Ness

Other Links:
• KBIN Election Links
• Bothell Reporter July 28 Article
• Bothell Reporter August 10 Article
• Bothell Reporter October 19 Article
• Bothell Reporter October 26 Article
• Patrick O’Brien on Kenmore Undressed
• Candidate Forum impressions on Kenmore Undressed
• O’Brien RE: New City Hall on Kenmore Undressed

Don’t forget that there is also a convenient King County ballot drop box located outside the lower entrance to Third Place Books just down the street in Lake Forest Park.

You have no excuse not to vote other than sheer laziness.

I’m reffering to the issue of parking for the James G. Murphy Co. auction house located on 68th Ave NE, just north of NE 182nd St.

Roughly once every three months or so James G. Murphy puts on a big auction at their Kenmore headquarters, complete with a major advertising push across the Seattle area. These auctions seem to usually primarily feature lots of cars, trucks, utility vehicles, boats, etc, which take up their entire fenced lot. Their advertising push always seems to be a success, with these quarterly auction events generating a large amount of interest from the deal-hungry buying public and drawing in hundreds of people from all across the Seattle area.

At around 11:00 in the morning yesterday I happened to pass down 68th avenue and 182nd street, and the scene was pretty chaotic. Cars and trucks stuffed into every possible spot (and then some) up and down both streets, lining the entirety of 182nd street and 68th avenue at least up to The Timbers apartment complex a quarter mile up the hill.

The following photos were taken at around 3:00, when—if you can believe it—much of the heavy traffic and parking overflow had actually died down.

Note that this overflow lining the streets is in addition to the completely packed former park & ride parking lot southwest of 68th and 182nd, which had the above-pictured sign indicating that it was the official parking area.

Already today the “downtown” Kenmore region is turned into a bit of a mess when James G. Murphy Co. has one of these big heavily-advertised auction events. But here’s a question that I can’t help wondering…

Where are all these James G. Murphy Co. auction attendees going to park once the Kenmore Village project finally gets off the ground and the ~350-spot former park & ride lot is no longer available?

I have a hard time imagining how the blocks surrounding James G. Murphy Co. will avoid degrading to complete mayhem once this occurs. Picture a traffic backup extending out onto SR-522 in both directions for the better part of the day and parked cars lining every street within a mile radius, crammed right up against residential and business entrances to the streets such that motorist visibility entering the road is virtually destroyed.

Does James G. Murphy Co. have a plan for this eventuality? Is the city working with James G. Murphy Co. to develop a workable plan for this situation before it completely cripples the city some Saturday in the future?

It seems like this is something more people should be talking about now, before the inevitable day of reckoning arrives.

• KOMO News, December 2007: Failed culvert pumps mud into Kenmore homes
• KOMO News, September 2009: Kenmore residents: Battle flooding culvert with no help, sandbags?
• Kenmore Undressed, September 2009: Kenmore Homeowners Are Getting Stiffed – A $50,000 Flooding Problem
• Kenmore Reporter, October 2009: Kenmore residents, city dealing with another potential Wild Cliff Shores flooding problem
• Kenmore Undressed, October 2009: Flooding at Wild Cliff Shores – Three Years Later and Still No Answers

Here’s an excerpt from the Kenmore Reporter story:

Arroyo has video showing water flowing throughout his back yard, reaching roughly up to his knees. In this instance, the Northshore Fire Department came to the rescue, he said, showing up at 2 a.m. to help put sandbags along the creek.

Those sandbags are still in place and Arroyo said residents have come to look on them as sort of an insurance policy against the creek. But Arroyo said the subdivision now faces a new problem. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has stated the bags represent an illegal altering of a fish-bearing stream, and as such, they have to go.

Arroyo added, to further complicate things, the state has said that while the subdivision needs a permit to put up the sandbags, they also need one to take them down. Both permits cost money and, reportedly, neither is easily obtained.

In the long run, in order to keep the sandbags in place and possibly make other alterations to the creek such as removing silt build-up, Wild Cliff might have to do an environmental study with a price tag of $50,000 to $70,000, money Arroyo said the homeowners just don’t have.

UM… WHAT?

Welcome to Kenmore, Washington – a.k.a. Bizarro World.

Here’s a Bizarro World pop quiz.

Q: What do you get when you bring the City of Kenmore and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife together to solve a flooding problem that has been affecting homeowners for three years?

A: This:

“In an ideal world, with these studies, in the next year or two, there will be some solutions to the problems that affect us all.”

That’s a quote from Kenmore City Manager Frederick Stouder. In Stouder’s “ideal world” it takes four or five years to solve a repeated flooding issue that is causing significant property damage and costing people money over and over again.

I’m speechless.

For those of you keeping score at home, the departure of The Little Gym in the next month or so will leave the commercial space (i.e. – not counting City Hall) in the city-owned Kenmore Village property over half empty, with five of nine storefronts vacant. By square footage, the commercial space will be just under half empty.

Businesses that have moved or gone out of business, leaving Kenmore Village in the last year or so include:

• Ostrom’s Drugs – drugstore – moved to 6414 NE Bothell Way
• The Little Gym – children’s gym – moving to Lynnwood
• Hidden Treasures – thrift store – closed
• Reign’s Realm – children’s clothing & supplies consignment store – closed
• Taco Guyamas – fast food mexican restaurant – closed

Here’s a map of Kenmore Village in its current state (click to enlarge):

Eventually as I have the time, I will be expanding this map to include all of Kenmore’s business zones. Your input is welcome.

The structure of the evening was mostly centered around pre-submitted questions, grouped into categories by the moderator, with each candidate being allowed a fixed amount of time (usually 2-3 minutes) to give their thoughts on each issue.

The categories covered at the forum were:

• city budget, taxes, and spending
• traffic, 522, transit, walkable neighborhoods
• environment, air and water pollution
• parks and recreation, St. Edwards, ballfields
• Kenmore Village downtown project, Urban Partners

Here’s my general impression of the message each of the four candidates was presenting Thursday night. The commentary below represents my opinion alone, and should not be construed as an endorsement of any particular candidate.

[left to right: Diane Brennan, Laurie Sperry, Patrick O'Brien, and Allan Van Ness]

Diane Brennan
What Diane lacks in eloquence she definitely makes up for in passion. You could tell that Diane feels very strongly about the environment in Kenmore, as well as the importance of an open and transparent local government. Diane’s main themes seemed to be that the city should do more for the environment, spend (and save) its money more wisely, and do more to attract businesses to Kenmore.

Laurie Sperry
As one would expect from an incumbent, Laurie spent most of her time touting the accomplishments that the city has had during the last four years while she has been in office. She mentioned the addition of numerous parks, the improvement of 522, and at least twice brought up the fact that Kenmore was named one of the “best towns and cities across the country for families” by Family Circle Magazine. Personally, I have a hard time making the connection between “Kenmore made some arbitrary list in a fluff magazine” and “re-elect Laurie Sperry,” but it’s obviously a big deal to some people, I guess.

Patrick O’Brien
Patrick came out swinging on his number one issue, which clearly appears to be financial responsibility in the city budget. At one point he claimed that his “number one priority” would be clearing up the traffic bottleneck at 68th and 522, but most of the points he hit on throughout the evening were city finance related. He brought up the fact that “several” city salaries are in excess of $100,000, consulting fees are in the millions, and the city has not reported the cost of various lawsuits. One specific money-saving action that O’Brien proposed was to re-bid Kenmore Village.

Allan Van Ness
Allan seemed to be somewhat on the defensive most of the night, spending most of his allotted time responding to accusations from Patrick O’Brien. Several times he corrected what he said were false statements by O’Brien on various issues such as taxes and spending. I was a little bit disappointed with what seemed to me to be a pattern of blame-shifting from Allan in some of his responses. On a question about opening up 522 to more lanes, his response was that “the state wouldn’t do it.” Referring to the idea of re-bidding Kenmore Village, his response was “nothing’s happening in the market.” His statements were true, but not very proactive, in my opinion.

Cross-Questioning
The portion of the evening that stuck out to me the most was the brief cross-questioning section, in which each candidate was permitted to directly pose a question to their opponent.

Diane’s question for Laurie was about the city’s dumping laws. She wanted to know why the current city code allows potentially toxic trash to accumulate on a property as long as it is not visible from the city street. Laurie’s response was “I have no idea,” and to outline the complaint-driven process for dumping law enforcement.

Laurie’s question for Diane was “can you name three positive changes you’ve seen in the city of Kenmore in the last four years?” It came across to me as sarcastic and childish. The line even drew laughs from some in the audience, who I assume were Sperry supporters. She was obviously attempting to prove some sort of point: that she apparently believes Diane’s campaign is too negative. Of course, if someone thinks everything in the city is going great, why would they run against an incumbent councilmember in the first place? For the record, Diane named four things: an improved tree ordinance, the opening of Snapdoodle Toys, new sidewalks on 522, and the new Swamp Creek Park.

Patrick’s question for Allan was “what are you prepared to do to reduce spending and budgetary increases?” Allan said that he would push for a reassessment and evaluation of the city’s consulting contracts, possibly creating some new city positions to do jobs that are currently contracted out. He also gave a generic response about “tightening our belts.”

For Allan’s question to Patrick, he took the same disappointing route as Laurie, asking Patrick to name “three other things that you think have been done well in the City of Kenmore in the last four years.” Rather than play along like Diane did, Patrick took the opportunity to instead point out the problems that he sees with non-public processes. Clearly he is not concerned about the possibility of being perceived as too negative.

Closing Thoughts
Overall I thought the forum was interesting, and gave me a much better idea of what the candidates are about than what I’ve been able to read in their statements and responses to our questionnaire. If there are more such forums between now and the election I will attempt to attend and report on these as well.

Google Street View:

View Larger Map

Also of interest in the local election: Kenmore City Council/Van Ness, O’Brien spar over Kenmore Council seat

Kenmore’s new city hall was another target O’Brien mentioned early in his conversation. He said the issue should have been put to a public vote, and that at one point Van Ness promised it would go on the ballot.

“It (a new city hall) certainly isn’t the priority of the majority of the people I talk to,” O’Brien said.

Van Ness countered that he did not initially support the city hall project, calling for, as it did, a building five times the size of Kenmore’s current City Hall. He also railed against a $2 million underground parking garage, but said he was unable to convince the rest of council to abandon those plans.

In the end, Van Ness said he began to change his mind after the city hall project was essentially rebid.

Patrick O’Brien remains the only council candidate that has not responded to our questions. Here are Allan Van Ness’ responses.

The notice alleges that Waterfront Construction “has violated and continues to violate the CWA (see Sections 301, 307, and 402, of the CWA, 33 USC §§ 1311, 1317, and 1342) and its National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit.

The list of offenses Waste Action Project are alleging are as follows:

• discharges of bilge water
• discharges of welding waste
• illicit and/or unauthorized discharges
• failure to monitor stormwater discharges
• failure to adopt a stormwater pollution prevention plan

Over on YouTube, user crazyhazedaze has been posting videos of some of these activities since late last year.

Waterfront Construction has 60 days from September 10th to respond to the action before they will face a citizen lawsuit.

Water pollution has been an ongoing issue around the Puget Sound. According to a recent Seattle PostGlobe story, Washington State has plenty of violators of the Clean Water Act:

Even though 195 out of the Evergreen State’s 435 regulated facilities violated the Clean Water Act between 2004 and 2007, few got in trouble for it, according to exhaustive data posted at NYTimes.com. For every 100 violations in the state, there were only 8.6 enforcement actions.

And those are just the ones that were caught.

Clearly there is still plenty of work to do to ensure the cleanliness of our natural resources. We will continue to follow this developing story for you.

I flew over to Stupid Prices yesterday to check out their deals, and spotted something a little bit amusing:

In giant, bold, all-caps: “NOTHING HELD BACK!” and “EVERYTHING ON SALE!”

In tiny fine print, taped to the third banner: “Excluding: TELEVISIONS”

It would seem that Stupid Prices has rather strange definitions of “NOTHING” and “EVERYTHING.” Televisions are apparently “NOTHING,” and therefore naturally excluded from the “EVERYTHING” which is on sale.

The Northshore Fire Department has a website with some information on the new project, including renderings and site plans for the new location.

Link via KBIN, photo by the Kenmore Crow.

1. Why are you running for Kenmore City Council?

   I am seeking re-election because I feel that we as a city are in the midst of a wonderful revitalization, and I would like to continue to use the experience I have gained as a councilwoman to help guide the city through this important time of transition.

2. What will be your top priority should you be elected to this position?

   I will continue to focus my efforts on revitalizing “downtown” Kenmore in an affordable, environmentally friendly manner. I also am committed to preserving parks, trails and open space in Kenmore and protecting the character of our single family neighborhoods.

3. What is your favorite thing about Kenmore?

   My favorite thing about Kenmore is our location near Lake Washington. We are so fortunate to have parks and trails to enjoy the natural beauty around us.

4. What is your least favorite thing about Kenmore?

   My least favorite thing about Kenmore is the traffic during the SR522 improvements.

5. Arrange these nearby cities in order from your favorite to your least favorite: Woodinville, Shoreline, Bothell, Kirkland, Brier.

   Kenmore’s elected officials work together with our neighboring cities on regional issues. Kenmore also shares a public works crew with Lake Forest Park. I will leave the rating of neighboring cities to others.

6. What do you feel is the biggest challenge facing Kenmore in the next 5 years?

   The biggest challenge in the next 5 years will be balancing the needs, wants and desires of the community with the financial resources available.

7. What’s your favorite restaurant in Kenmore?

   I do not have a particular favorite restaurant in Kenmore. I am excited to see new eateries like the Butcher Shop Café open on Juanita drive.

8. Why should voters select you over your opponent?

   I have almost four years of experience on the Kenmore City Council. I have a proven record of accomplishments as a councilmember.

   On the council, I’ve worked hard to preserve Kenmore’s environment and quality of life by improving parks, trails and open space and protecting the character of our single family neighborhoods through height and infill restrictions. I’ve encouraged citizen communication through a new city website, publishing Kenmore Blog.net and meeting with citizens. I’m committed to Kenmore’s continued economic health and prosperity by being fiscally responsible and attracting new stores and businesses to the city. I serve as Kenmore’s representative on the WRI8 Salmon Recovery Council, Northshore Parks and Recreation Service Area, and Kenmore Library Advisory Board.

   Please visit my campaign website: http://lauriesperry.com/ If you have any questions or concerns feel free to contact me by email at laurie@lauriesperry.com or by phone: (206) 817-2260. I look forward to hearing from you.

We appreciate Laurie’s reconsideration. Thanks for joining us, Laurie.

Patrick O’Brien is now the only candidate I have not yet gotten any response from. Hopefully he sends us something soon, so our collection can be a complete guide to Kenmore’s upcoming City Council elections.

In my opinion the new Chase look is a lot more sterile and uninviting than the WaMu feel was, especially the interior of the building. But I suppose it is better to have our local branch continue operating under a massive impersonal operation headquartered in New York City than to have lost the local jobs that the branch provides. I just wish Chase would stop running those annoying “new to Washington” radio ads.

1. Why are you running for Kenmore City Council?

   I am running for Kenmore City Council because I believe in public service and giving back to the community in which you live. In the past I have given back to my community as a soccer coach, leader of the YMCA Indian guides, treasurer of the PTA, auctioneer (pro bono) for local charity events, head of an ad-hoc citizens group, Kenmore city council member, and most recently Chair of the City of Kenmore Economic Development Advisory Committee.

2. What will be your top priority should you be elected to this position?

   My top priority if elected will be economic development. The economic development advisory committee recently presented an action plan with goals and strategies to the city council. The plan includes both short term and long term goals and strategies and was accepted unanimously by the city council. Current economic conditions are difficult at best but by planing now we will be ready to take advantage of the recovery when it happens and I wish to be part of that effort.

3. What is your favorite thing about Kenmore?

   My favorite thing about Kenmore is its people. Their diversity, knowledge, and passion for their causes and the city make Kenmore a truly wonderful place to live.

4. What is your least favorite thing about Kenmore?

   Right now my least favorite thing about Kenmore is the construction on 522. I just keep telling myself be patient because when it is finished traffic will improve access to local businesses will improve and Kenmore will look a lot better.

5. Arrange these nearby cities in order from your favorite to your least favorite: Woodinville, Shoreline, Bothell, Kirkland, Brier.

   Rather than rate these cities because they are all good, if elected I would like to talk with the elected officials from these cities and ask them what they think is the best part of their city, Then I would like to ask them what policies and procedures they put in place to make their city better. We can learn from their experiences to help make our city better.

6. What do you feel is the biggest challenge facing Kenmore in the next 5 years?

   The biggest challenge facing Kenmore is the economic down turn and how we handle it as a city. The down turn is effecting our ability to complete the downtown plan, construct local infrastructure improvements, and obtain funding from other government agencies to improve our city.

7. What’s your favorite restaurant in Kenmore?

   I do not have a favorite restaurant in Kenmore. Our family visits as many restaurants in Kenmore as we can because it is important to support all the businesses in Kenmore.

8. Why should voters select you over your opponents?

   Currently I have no opponent. However, as previously stated I believe in public service and the idea that a job worth doing is worth doing well. The learning curve for a council member is steep but I will study and do my best to learn the issues that affect our city. I will listen to everyone in our community to learn and understand their concerns. However, listening does not mean I may come to the same conclusion on the issues at hand. I will commit myself to making Kenmore a better community for everyone now and into the future.

I’d like to thank Bob for participating even though he does not have an opponent in November. Kenmore voters have no practical choice but to elect him, and yet he was still happy to reach out to the community in this online public forum. Kudos.

I have now received some a response from all but one of the folks running for Kenmore City Council in the upcoming election. This includes a change of heart from Laurie Sperry, who decided to participate after all. I will post her responses on Thursday, and will attempt to send another email to Patrick O’Brien this week in case my first message did not go through.

The original road closure notices that were mailed out stated that the road would be closed “throughout the summer until school reopens in the fall,” which is just two days from now on September 2nd. This date was also posted on the orange construction road closure signs.

However, the orange construction signs have now been updated with a new date: September 30. The Snohomish County Public Works website is even less optimistic, putting the completion at October 30 (although the page for this specific project states that the road will re-open “approximately the first week in October”).

So for all of you that are really excited to drive on the new and improved Lockwood Road, you’re going to have to delay that gratification just a bit.

It is also worth noting that in 2011 Snohomish County plans to “improve” the intersection of Lockwood Road Carter Road by turning the existing four-way stop into a full-fledged roundabout. Clearly this is some strange usage of the word “improve” with which I’m not familiar.

1. Why are you running for Kenmore City Council?

   It has been an honor to serve the Citizens of Kenmore on the City Council. After years of planning, improvements are being implemented. We are completing the first phases of SR522 improvements, and our new City Hall is underway. We need more park improvements, more sidewalks and better flood control. The downtown revitalization is on hold due to the national economic problems, but ready to go once things turn around. We’ve just begun. I hope to continue being a part of the civic process and seeing to completion the many plans that are underway.

2. What will be your top priority should you be elected to this position?

   My top priorities in Kenmore: continuing to improve our parks, improve the traffic flow, citizen access to a green waterfront, revitalization of downtown, etc.

3. What is your favorite thing about Kenmore?

   My favorite “thing” about Kenmore is the citizens who make our city one of the “Ten Best Towns for Families” in the country. Kenmore is a great city in which to live, play, raise a family and to retire, and it is getting better.

4. What is your least favorite thing about Kenmore?

   The industrial waterfront, except for the marinas and air harbor.

5. Arrange these nearby cities in order from your favorite to your least favorite: Woodinville, Shoreline, Bothell, Kirkland, Brier.

   I’d add Lake Forest Park to the list. I don’t think it is appropriate to rank them. They all have their assets and all six are great neighbors.

6. What do you feel is the biggest challenge facing Kenmore in the next 5 years?

   The biggest challenge will be to obtain funding for all the projects we would like to complete. Hopefully we can continue to progress without an increase in property taxes. The City has not raised property taxes for the last five years.

7. What’s your favorite restaurant in Kenmore?

   They are all my favorites. We have a good selection of the Asian restaurants and Teos and Mazatlan are good. However, I would like to see some additional moderately priced restaurants like Anthony’s, Olive Garden, Marie Callender’s, etc.

8. Why should voters select you over your opponents?

   As your Councilmember, I’ve worked to upgrade our parks, pass a critical areas ordinance, establish infill and height regulations, improve safety and traffic on SR-522, and ensure that the new City Hall is environmentally friendly and affordable.

   I’m running for reelection to see to completion the revitalization of Kenmore. I envision a vibrant mixed-use community that’s easy to access and pedestrian friendly while maintaining single-family neighborhoods. As development proceeds, we must safeguard our environmental resources. Our parks are a rich asset that we must improve for all ages and interests.

   City projects must be accomplished with fiscal responsibility, transparency, and citizen participation. My goal is for Kenmore to remain affordable without increasing the tax burden.

   With four years experience on the Council and regional committees, I’ve gained the skills and knowledge to best serve our city. I’m excited about Kenmore’s future and humbly request your continued trust, support and vote.

   For more detailed information on the above and other subjects please go to: www.vannessforcouncil.com, and/or contact me by email or phone: allan@vannessforcouncil.com, (425) 398-1040

Thanks for joining in the discussion, Allan. I requested short answers from the candidates to my questions in order to keep these posts from being too long, but if you would like to read more about where Allan stands on local issues, be sure to check out his campaign website, where he has written up his thoughts on just about any local issue you can think of.

FYI, I have also sent a request to Patrick O’Brien, Allan’s November opponent for position #6, but have not yet received a reply (however, he has responded to a similar request over at James Lupori’s “Kenmore Undressed”).

P.S. – Allan had one more issue that he wanted to speak on: council / citizen communications. Here are his thoughts on this.

The Council has recently added a town hall meeting format to the first regular council meeting of each quarter. This is a big step toward better communication with the citizens, however I think we can do a better job publicizing these meetings. I’d like to see more opportunities for two way discussions between the Council and the citizens. To that end I have proposed additional meetings dedicated to the town hall meeting format that are well publicized and hopefully better attended.

Kenmore is losing small, mom and pop businesses one by one thanks to a city council that either doesn’t care or isn’t willing to help keep these small businesses here in Kenmore, or even to assist them in any way with relocation.

Case in point: Corner Comics
http://www.cornercomics.com/

6575 NE 181st
Kenmore, WA 98028
(425) 486-XMEN (9636)

Corner Comics is moving to a new location thanks to the imminent shuffle of public buildings that will eventually relocate the Kenmore library to their current building. Corner Comics’ last business day at their Kenmore location is coming up quick: Saturday, August 29th, 2009. They are moving to Kirkland, into a rental space they can afford.

I talked to the owner, Paige Gifford, while she was closing up shop. I asked her if it was her choice to move out of the current location. “No,” she replied, “we were told to move by the end of August.”

I then asked her if the City of Kenmore offered her any assistance. “Not one bit,” she said, sounding a little angry. “They never offered any relocation money or any other kinds of assistance.”

She pointed out that the available rental space in the current Kenmore Village is priced far too high, around $40 per square foot. This is nearly double the $20 per square foot that she had been paying at the store’s current location. “None of the local businesses can afford that kind of rent, nobody makes that much money,” she explained.

In Gifford’s opinion, the City Council only wants big box stores and major franchises. She believes that there is no room in the council’s plans for local small businesses.

And she’s not too far off. Ostrom’s went so far as to buy their current location so that they have some control over it. The construction of Kenmore Village by the Lake is stalled indefinitely because the developer, Urban Partners, has been unable to find an anchor store and keeps begging for more time in their search.

Of course it now turns out that even many citizens’ favorite store, Trader Joe’s, was seemingly never invited or courted by local government in any way. It took the initiative of local citizens to get the franchise’s attention, as well as City Council member Laurie Sperry.

She recently sent an email out to subscribers to her blog, KenmoreBlog.net, on August 21st, asking readers if they wanted a Trader Joe’s in Kenmore. If you did, please click a link and voice your opinion. (I do have to note that she misspelled “Trader Joe’s” as “Trader Joes.” One would think she’d get that right.)

Of course I clicked the link and voiced my opinion. But I also think that we need a PCC or a better grocery store in our neighborhood than Safeway or Grocery Outlet.

It would be even better if we had our own Farmers Market. I dearly love the Yakima Fruit Market in Bothell for its variety and types of fresh vegetables. It would be great if we had something like that right here in Kenmore. A grocery store that dealt in locally grown or raised food.

One way we could encourage and support local small businesses such as Corner Comics or a fruit market rather than chasing them away would be to create a business incubator here in Kenmore. It would be a way to encourage and nurture new local businesses in Kenmore, founded by its citizens for its citizens. That’s something our City Council could do, if they could see past Adam Smith’s Invisible Hand of the Market.

Sometimes the Invisible Hand works and sometimes it gives you the invisible finger.

[August 28 update from the Kenmore Crow]
Mayor David Baker responds to some of John’s criticisms in a comment below, which I will duplicate here in the post in order to provide better visibility.

Mayor Baker’s response:

In order to provide accurate information in response to the matter raised by Mr. Reiher. Corner Comics rents on a month by month basis from King County Library System, NOT the City of Kenmore. The library wants to demolish the building in November and is asking all tenants to vacate that are on a month by month basis. If Corner Comics wants relocation expenses then they should contact the King County Library System

The City is not responsible for property owned by the King County Library system. It is not the City of Kenmore’s, responsibility pay for relocation expenses for another governmental agencies action. The only time the City could legally consider relocation expenses is when the city is acquiring the property under state and federal regulations.

The current Kenmore Village rental rates are NOT $40.00 square foot, but range between $5.00 to $17.00 per square foot with several in the $10.00 to 11.00 per square foot range.

The Kenmore City Council, years ago, decided that big box stores did not fit in Kenmore’s long range plans and preferred small local businesses. That is written in to the Cities Comprehensive Plan, Downtown Plan and elsewhere.

The last point is that Ostrom’s Drug and Gift store did NOT buy their current location, they are leasing.

We received the following email from Laurie this morning:

Dear Kenmore Crow,

Thank you for your request. I am happy to respond to questions from people who are willing to identify themselves by their real name. I like crows, and they can be quite intelligent, however I do not make a practice of talking to crows, even if they are from Kenmore. http://kenmoreblog.net/?p=620

Sincerely,
Laurie Sperry
Kenmore City Councilmember

I am disappointed that Mrs. Sperry would use this blog’s anonymity as an excuse not to answer a simple list of questions that may help the voters of Kenmore determine whether they should check her name on the ballot this fall or that of Diane Brennan.

I have chosen to facilitate this blog anonymously because past experience has taught me that remaining anonymous can help avoid discussions that devolve into ad hominem attacks. Especially given the emotionally-charged nature of some of the issues that Kenmore has dealt with in the past and is facing in the near future, I thought it best to remove the potential distraction of personal discussions. I will never insult or libel anyone through the anonymity of this blog, and simply intend to facilitate an engaging, focused discussion on the important issues of our town.

There are still 71 days before the election, so Mrs. Sperry could change her mind. The Kenmore Crow will not bother her any further with additional requests, but should any of our readers care to encourage Mrs. Sperry to reconsider her dismissive position on this matter, she can be reached at laurie [at] lauriesperry [dot] com.

1. Why are you running for Kenmore City Council?

   I ran for this position because I think the current city council is not responsive to the community’s concerns. I would work for a more open and transparent city government. I want to represent people in the community rather than dictate what should be done.

2. What will be your top priority should you be elected to this position?

   I would propose that the city apply for more government grants for income shortfalls on the 522 project, and to put in infrastructure improvements such as sidewalks in neighborhoods. In 1999, the city had a record-breaking number of grants but since then the number of grants have decreased.

3. What is your favorite thing about Kenmore?

   The friendly people, the city parks—my favorites are Wallace Swamp Creek Park, and St. Edwards State Park, and the bird-watching.

4. What is your least favorite thing about Kenmore?

   The Lakepoint industrial area (except for Kenmore Air and the Marina) which is destroying a beautiful lakefront. Also, I could do without the smell coming from the asphalt plant.

5. Arrange these nearby cities in order from your favorite to your least favorite: Woodinville, Shoreline, Bothell, Kirkland, Brier.

   Woodinville, Bothell, Shoreline, Kirkland, Brier

6. What do you feel is the biggest challenge facing Kenmore in the next 5 years?

   Keeping from going bankrupt. We have lost too many small businesses and their accompanying sales and revenue streams.

7. What’s your favorite restaurant in Kenmore?

   Ichiban Teriyaki—they have great pork teriyaki! My other favorite is Tai Ho.

8. Why should voters select you over your opponents?

   I don’t have any personal agenda for running for city council other than it causes me great pain to see what the city allows to happen to its citizens, the environment, and small businesses. I believe we need to update city codes to align with King County codes. I want to see the city’s code enforcement dramatically improved. I’m not a “yes” man who will rubber stamp everything (including the city budget) that is handed to me. I won’t make decisions behind closed doors.

   I have served as precinct committee officer in Kenmore since 2004. During this time, I have spoken with hundreds of Kenmore residents as I went door-to-door to deliver voting information. This has given me deep insight into the unhappiness that people have with the city council. They tell me that the city doesn’t listen to them or care about them, and sometimes they’re called troublemakers for trying to get assistance from the city. The only people I know who have gotten any movement on a problem from the city have been people who hired lawyers.

   I’m committed to researching issues, listening to the community, and finding the best possible solutions.

Thanks for sharing with us, Diane. So far I have sent two requests to Laurie Sperry, Diane’s November opponent, but have not yet gotten any response. I will continue to send inquiries to Ms. Sperry, as well as all of the other City Council candidates that will be on the ballot this fall.

That’s quite a few different public organizations that all have to coordinate and work together to make everything work out as planned, and there has been some (justifiable) doubt as to whether everything will indeed come together in the end.

Here’s an update on the latest status of the Post Office’s part of this scheme, courtesy of KBIN:

The City and The USPS are now negotiating the fine print and details of an initial five year lease/rental agreement for space, 1985 sq. ft., in the current City Hall.

The agreement also acknowledges that at some point the Post Office could move into a space to be developed and owned by Urban Partners. The proposed lease terms, initiated by the Post Office, while still in review form, is now back in the hands of the Facility Division of the USPS Western States Office in Denver. The initial five year terms are potentially followed by five year increments up to 2041. We are anticipating final agreement by the end of October, if not sooner.

The main thing I’d personally like to see out of a new Kenmore Post Office would be the addition of an Automated Postal Center, so we can actually mail packages any time of day rather than only during business hours.

I’m talking about BANNERS! That’s right, unless we’re just making a move for the title of “most pigeon-friendly town of all time,” I’m betting that those poles sticking out horizontally from the light posts are for a set of classy banners.

If you ask me, it’s about time this town got some banners. It is an obvious fact to anyone with a basic understanding of civics that a lack of banners is one of the top things that has been holding Kenmore back from actualizing its full potential as a premier destination.

If you tell me that you can think of something better than banners to spend limited city resources on during a severe economic retraction, you’re probably lying.

At right is a great example of optimal banner usage from our neighbor to the east, Bothell, who uses their banners to promote such unique and attractive local features as lady exiting building while talking on cell phone and wooden foot bridge (not pictured).

So what do you think we should put on our new banners? Construction photos? The shuttered card room? The gravel factory? Downtown Kenmore?

So many choices! If you’ve got any great ideas for what Kenmore should put on our soon-to-come banners, drop me a line and I may whip up some mock-ups to send over to City Hall.