SUMMARY MINUTES OF SPECIAL MEETING

TOUR OF KIRKLAND CITY STREETS

Thursday, April 19, 2007

10:50 a.m.

Kirkland City Hall

123 Fifth Avenue

PRESENT: Mayor Ransom, Deputy Mayor Fimia, and Councilmembers Gustafson, McGlashan, Ryu, and Way

ABSENT: Councilmember Hansen

STAFF: Julie Modrzejewski, Assistant City Manager; Mark Relph, Public Works Director; Rich Meredith, Traffic Engineer; Paul Lanie, Facility and Fleet Coordinator

KIRKLAND CITY STAFF: Joan McBride, Deputy Mayor; Daryl Grigsby, Public Works Director; Dave Godfrey, Traffic Engineer

The City Council and staff left Shoreline City Hall at approximately 10:15 a.m. and arrived at 10:50 a.m. at Kirkland City Hall. Kirkland representatives were met in the Norkirk conference room and the group reviewed a map of the streets included on the tour. Deputy Mayor McBride and Dave Godfrey, Kirkland Traffic Engineer, provided an overview of the conversion of Lake Washington Blvd., 108^th Ave. and Central Way from 4-lanes to 3-lanes. Mr. Godfrey said that Lake Washington Blvd. has been 3-lanes for a long time with a traffic count of approximately 22,000-24,000 vehicles per day and 108^th has 10,000-12,000 vehicles per day.

Deputy Mayor McBride stated that the City of Kirkland is committed to pedestrian safety and that wider streets put pedestrians more at risk. She continued by saying that there is a perception that going from 4-lanes to 3-lanes slows down traffic. Although most of their conversions were standard 3-lane roads, one version was composed of two lanes in one direction, a two-way left turn lane in the middle, and one lane going in the opposite direction for a total of four lanes. In addition, she said that slowing down traffic makes it better for merchants; it makes the street less of a thoroughfare and slows down traffic, giving drivers more time to look around at businesses. Deputy Mayor McBride added that a great deal of traffic is diverted from I-405 to Lake Washington Blvd and Market.

Mr. Godfrey said that the Central Way conversion was part of the Downtown Strategic Plan and was also part of a water-sewer project. The Norkirk neighborhood, which is the oldest neighborhood in town, was most concerned about cut-through or diverted traffic. Prior to the street conversion, traffic calming devices such as traffic circles and choking points were installed in the neighborhood. Central Way’s traffic counts are as follows: east of Lake Washington Blvd.-16,000 vehicles per day; west of Lake Washington Blvd.-20,000 vehicles per day and east of 3^rd-19,000 vehicles per day. The street conversion added parallel street parking and wider planting strips and medians. The conversion also maintained property access for vehicles.

Mr. Godfrey noted that the daily volumes have not changed significantly over time. He said they tend to focus on the intersections rather than the street segments. He continued by adding that their plan views traffic congestion as one component of how they design a street; it is more than focusing on capacity.

The tour included Central Way, Lake Washington Blvd. and Juanita Drive and ended at approximately 12:10 p.m. City Councilmembers and staff arrived back at Shoreline City Hall at 12:40 p.m.

/S/ Julie Modrzejewski, Assistant City Manager