Kirkland City Council to vote on biennial budget Tuesday

The Kirkland City Council will vote on whether or not to adopt the city’s proposed 2017-18 biennial budget at its meeting on Tuesday, scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Kirkland City Hall.

No major changes have been made to the initial $694.4 million budget, as the council has indicated strong support for the work done by city staff in developing it.

The budget now stands at $695.8 million, which includes the addition of less than $1.2 million for capital projects, most notably the project scope expansion for phase one of the development of Totem Lake Park.

The additional costs are covered through factoring in higher property taxes coming into the city through new construction and an increase in utility tax revenue through the two-percent surface water rate increase.

Kirkland City Manager Kurt Triplett also set aside $767,280 for the city council to decide to use for a variety of different programs and staffing. In November, the council directed that money to expanded human services funding (including the creation of a Human Services Commission); more staffing for communications and seasonal streets labor; consultants for transportation engineering and performance management; investing in a research project by Forterra on population growth on the Eastside; and the council’s contigency fund. The $131,927 placed in the contingency fund can be used by the council as they see fit at a future date, and most of the councilmembers indicated a desire for that money to eventually go toward building a shelter for women and children.

The full preliminary budget can be found on the city’s website, kirklandwa.gov. The budget was the only topic of discussion at the council’s Oct. 27 special meeting, and public hearings were held at the Nov. 1 and 15 regular council meetings. All of these meetings can be watched on demand through the city’s website at kirklandwa.gov/depart/council.