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outh Rose Hill-Bridle Trails Neighborhood Association (SRHBTNA) General Meeting
March 11, 2025
MINUTES
Attendees: 13
Board Members in attendance: Chris Kagen, Jim Hoff, Don Samdahl, Betsy Lewis, Kyle Sullivan, Felix Chen, Karina O’Malley, Emily Sorensen, Martin Morgan. Board Members absent: John Marsh, Deirdre Johnson
Guests: Kirkland Police Lieutenant David Quiggle, King County Council District District 6 Representative Claudia Balducci
President Kagen called the meeting to order at 7:04 pm with a Public Comment period.
Don Samdahl stated that apparently Kirkland does not enforce the Tree Ordinance, citing the example of the removal of all existing trees on the property at 130th NE and NE 70th, which is being redeveloped into four residential lots.
Discussion ensued. Chris Kagen noted that recently he was unable to locate a tree removal permit for a lot being redeveloped in Bridlewood Circle. City staff told him that the tree removal permission was granted under the master plan for the property, which plan was not publicly available.
Dan Harrison commented that some new homes in his neighborhood had no gas appliances. Others commented that there are builder incentives to go “all-electric” but gas connection is still allowed under City code. However, new construction is required to have a 240 volt electrical outlet in garages.
Announcements
Save the Dates:
SRHBT NA will host the second annual Ice Cream Social on Thursday August 7 at the Houghton Park and Play. More information is forthcoming.
SRHBTNA NA will hold a Kirkland City Council Candidate Forum on Tuesday September 9. All candidates are invited to address questions on topics specific to the SRHBT neighborhood. The Kirkland Alliance of Neighbor(KAN) typically holds its own candidate forum covering topics of citywide interest, date TBA.
Elections Committee member Karina O’Malley announced SRHBTNA Officers and Board of Directors Elections will take place at the Tuesday May 13 SRHBTNA general meeting. Karina introduced Board of Directors and Officers present who are running for re-election. There is one open Board of Directors seat. There is one declared candidate for that position. Karina emphasized that this is an election and encouraged any qualified person to put their name forward for any position. Qualifications are to be a member of the SRHBTNA which is open to all residents, property owners, business licensees and nonprofit organizations located within the NA borders who are 18 years of age or older.
Roundtable Discussion: Suggestions for Northeast Regional Transfer Station(NERTS) Mitigations/Improvements should the Houghton site be selected ($28 million available that won’t be needed for site acquisition)
Attendees broke into groups of 3-4 and came up with the following ideas:
Stargazing platform
Traffic mitigation for speeding on N.E. 60th including a speed camera
Preserve perimeter walking path
Designated off-leash area separate from walking path
Move the Park and Play equipment to Taylor Fields site
Reconfigure the 116th N.E./N.E. 60th intersection
Complete the sidewalks on the west side of 116th N.E. Sidewalks should be above grade and separated from the roadway.
Repair 116th N.E. to the Bellevue city limits
Use the $28 million to remove the structures on the Woodinville site so NERTS can be sited at that location
Plasma incinerator
Ensure resident parking is provided along 116TH N.E.
Claudia Balducci was asked to respond to the following questions:
If the current 60th St site is selected for the new NERTS, the South Rose Hill/Bridle Trails Neighborhood Association would like to know, now, what the process will be to solicit neighborhood input on the mitigation and improvements that will come along with the new facility. We want to know the specific timeline, who will be included in the outreach (just adjacent properties, the whole neighborhood, the whole city, or some other subgroup?), and how we will be solicited to give input. We ask that the SRH/BT Neighborhood Association specifically is included in any outreach or communications regarding the negotiation of the mitigation and improvements, as well as any updates or opportunities.
Note: Officially King County Solid Waste (KCSW) is considering four options for the transfer station: do nothing; locate a new facility in Woodinville; Demolish the existing facility first, then construct a new facility on that site (1A); the current facility remains in operating while a new facility is constructed adjacent, the current facility is then demolished (1B).
Claudia: NOTE: Her remarks are paraphrased. “I can advocate for the mitigations and improvements you identified tonight. It is much better to present such requests at the beginning of the process rather than for the neighborhood to be asked for their input after King County Solid Waste has come up with a plan. It seems as though it’s a foregone conclusion that one of the Houghton alternatives (1a or 1B) will be selected. How best can the neighborhood determine the mitigations? KCSW will facilitate forming a “design group”. I will advocate that the SRHBT neighborhood be formally included. Your neighborhood should ALSO advocate for formal inclusion. I will also advocate for formal and regular communication with the neighborhood and SRHBT should also advocate for that.
In King County’s budget process, I can write a “budget proviso” to insist on an inclusive, transparent process.”
Deepa Garg commented that KCSW did not invite SRHBT to participate in the Site Advisory Group (SAG).
Claudia: “Edge issues” are important. Residents living immediately adjacent to the site on all sides should be included in the siting decision.”
Question: SRHBT is a neighbood within the jurisdiction of the City of Kirkland. Kirkland has permitting authority for the project. Kirkland wants a big chunk of the $28 million. SRHBT needs to work with the City on spending that money.
Claudia: The City will be doing its part to advocate. I meet frequently and regularly with City officials.
Question: Excavating the old landfill. Siting option 1A would not require disturbing the old landfill.
Betsy Lewis recently observed 45 industrial steel barrels enclosed in a temporary fence on the southeast corner of the site. KCSW staff responded to her query on the contents, saying that half of the barrels contain core samples taken from the old landfill site and are awaiting analysis which will take 4-6 months. Betsy’s question is why the final siting decision will be made before March 31 when the analysis results will not be known for months.
Claudia: “That leads to the conclusion that KCSW has already decided on option 1A, as it does not require excavating the old landfill. I will ask about that.”
Question: Is there an emergency response plan?
Claudia: There is a general one–I will find out about any specific plan.
Clarification in response to a question: Taylor Fields is the designated name for the entire site, not solely the ballfields.
"Metro transit service to South Rose Hill-Bridle Trails has steadily deteriorated, beginning with the loss of Route 265 to downtown Seattle. Then one by one, Metro eliminated routes serving the Houghton Park and Ride. Subsequently Metro closed the Park and Ride, the rationale given being that the facility was not being used. Unlike other Eastside cities, Kirkland no longer has direct transit service to Downtown Seattle. What can be done to bring back this service?"
Proposal to Site a Kraken Hockey Iceplex on the former Houghton Park and Ride, currently the Houghton Park and Play
Claudia: King County has no role in the proposal. WSDOT and the City have roles in negotiating. A question for KIng County is if the iceplex would be a regional asset.
Question: Does Claudia see it as a regional asset?
Claudia: As a regional asset, the iceplex might be eligible for King County Parks monies. The question for the County is if it would be a significant public benefit. I don’t see it as such. If there is some free access to the facility I could see some public benefit in that.
Deepa Garg: If it is a regional asset, there will be a significant increase in traffic as there is no other way to access it other than the 116th N.E./N.E. 70th intersection. This is a reason to bring back bus transit to that intersection. Move the planned K-Line route to the east side of I-405.
Claudia: A major destination at that location is a factor in planning transit routes. Metro Transit has been moving toward a network mode. It’s hard to buck that trend but we can start to fix your neighborhood’s loss of service with greater frequency of trips. Take the surveys Metro sends out. Your responses are helpful.
Bus service is frequently restructured.
Comment: Return the Houghton Park and Ride site to its former use as a Park and Ride. There should be a requirement for underground parking there.
Claudia: Transit planner logic is difficult to fathom at times; the demand isn’t there because the service is not there is logical, not the other way around.
Transit service must be frequent, serve enough of the population, and have ease of access.
Chris Kagen adjourned the meeting at 8:30 pm.
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