UPDATED 10/22: Downtown Redmond Light Rail Update

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The first segment that will open is called the East Link Starter Line. It will only go from Redmond Technology Station to the South Bellevue Station. That is supposed to open in the spring of 2024. The section that will serve Marymoor Village Station and Downtown Redmond Station is supposed to open sometime in 2025. The East Link will cross Lake Washington, maybe sometime in 2025 or later.

 

Four-car trains will run every 8 minutes carrying up to 800 riders, 16 wheelchairs, 12 bicycles and multiple suitcases.  18-minutes from DT Redmond to Bellevue; 42 minutes from Bellevue to Seattle; 45 minutes to stadiums; 72 minutes to Sea-Tac Airport.  

Factoid:  Per Move Redmond, "9 out of 10 people who work in Redmond live outside the City due to the high cost of housing."

Thank you "Move Redmond" for providing these maps, information and your advocacy for transportation connectivity.  10/21/2023

Redmond Middle School Teacher Diversity

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 Photos of teachers (not volunteers) hanging in the Redmond Middle School lobby. My guess is the school district tries hard to diversify their staff and executives.

We saw this composite while leaving the Rumble-In-Redmond Robot Combat Competition event.  

-- Photo and opinion by Bob Yoder, 10/21/2023

Candidate Bus Ride Along Interviews

Move Redmond did a Candidate Interview Bus Ride Along with Redmond Mayoral and City Council positions who are up on the ballot. We met with candidates at the Redmond Technology station where we then got on the Rapid B line and rode to the Bellevue Transit Center.

-- Kelli Refer, Executive Director, Move Redmond

Sammamish River Double Crested Cormorants

 Photo by John Reinke, Redmond, WA.  

Spectacular "Spectra at Marymoor" Apartments

OneRedmond, Redmond's Chamber of Commerce (and more,) recently organized a tour of  "Spectra at Marymoor" -- spectacular, innovative 450 apartment homes with amenities galore.  Spectra is only a short walk to Marymoor Park and light rail.  V.P. Brad Machat of Quarterra was our fantastic tour guide.  He shared the scissors with Mayor Birney at the ribbon cutting ceremony.  A few tour stops:  

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Phenix Salon Suites will open early 2024. Very exciting!  Much more news will come about this exciting business and two others.  Note the metallic balcony art!  

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This colorful building art was hand painted. Note the ring of evergreens!  The East Lake Sammamish Trail runs right by.  Popular community garden "pea patches" are on a wait list!  

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Spacious outdoor lounge, with full kitchen, outdoor chess, diverse art 

and roof greenery delivers tons of natural light. 

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Here's Mayor Birney relaxing by the novel green roof.

Garage art adds to the eclecticism of Spectra,

 the myriad of chairs and indoor art.  

Photos and post by Bob Yoder, 10/12/2023

Lake Washington Schools Foundation: An Introduction

Discover the heart and soul of the Lake Washington Schools Foundation in this video.

Did you know that Lake Washington Schools Foundation (LWSF) and Lake Washington School District (LWSD) are two distinctly different organizations?

LWSF is a non-profit organization that works in close partnership with the school district to support the students in our community. We provide direct services through our programs and also fund district initiatives. We are able to do this work only through receiving donations from supporters who share our belief that every student should have the ability to achieve their full potential.

-- posted by Bob Yoder, 10/12/2023

City Council Interviews Park Commissioner Candidates

The development of SE Redmond Park is underway and the Parks and Recreation is asking for your feedback and participation. Input from these two new Parks and Trails commissioners will be invaluable.  Everything you need to know about the proposed SE Redmond Park is HERE.   

- Posted by Bob Yoder, 10/12/2023

Redmond To Launch Small Business Resiliency Grant

REDMOND, WA - The City and OneRedmond are partnering on a small business grant fund, which will open for applications on Monday, Oct. 16. The program will offer relief in the form of one-time $5,000 grants to small, for-profit businesses that have experienced financial hardship due to COVID-19 and related public health measures.

The City is dedicating more than $500,000 to this fourth round of city-distributed funding, specifically designed for the small business community. The grant is funded by American Rescue Plan Act federal dollars and a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) will be required prior to the award.

“The City of Redmond is committed to supporting small business owners,” said Mayor Angela Birney. “These small businesses bring a vibrant and vital energy to our local economy, and it is important that we nurture their success today, tomorrow, and well into the future.”

Echoing Mayor Birney, Kristina Hudson, Chief Executive Officer for OneRedmond, said, “Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, and they have been vulnerable to the lingering effects of the pandemic. OneRedmond is proud to partner again with the City of Redmond on this grant program to help support small businesses who are critical to our community’s economic vitality.”

Eligible businesses must be located within the City of Redmond zip code of 98052 and have 10 or fewer employees. Grants will be awarded through a lottery system performed by an external organization.

Bird's Eye View -A Poem by Redmond's Poet Laureate

The Redmond Historical Society invites the community to an exciting conversation with Redmond Poet Laureate, Laura Da’, on the topic of “Currents of Time and Place: Poetry that Engages with History and Image in Cascadia.” 

Saturday, 10:30 AM, October 14, 2023. Doors open 10:00 AM.

Location: Old Redmond Schoolhouse, 16600 NE 80th St., Redmond, WA 98052. 

More info: https://www.redmondhistoricalsociety.org/rhs-events

This program is the second of the Society’s Saturday Speaker Series for the Fall 2023 season. This will be an in-person program at the Old Redmond Schoolhouse. Admission is free to RHS members, and a suggested donation of $5 for non-members.

UPDATED: Mayor Angela Birney's Story / Pedestrian Safety / RCTV

I found Mayor Birney's Story on Pedestrian Safety while watching Redmond City Television (RCTV) on Comcast Channel 21.  

I'm amazed how RCTV programming has improved.  There's much more content.  Tune in at 9:00AM for a half hour of local news, grant opportunities, and tips.  

All of  Mayor Birney's 52 YouTube stories can be watched in a rolling sequence. 

posted by Bob Yoder, 10/11/2023

Glimpse Of Redmond Councilmembers In Action

l-r Melissa Stuart, David Carson, Jeralee Anderson, President Jessica Forsythe, Varisha Khan, V.P. Vanessa Kritzer, Steve Fields (remote.)           Staff have backs to the camera.

I'm going to periodically report on the important Council "Committee of the Whole" meetings.  It will give you a chance to watch and listen to our representatives and see them take action on the agenda.  Most of their work with staff gets done here.  This is a meeting  of the "Planning and Public Works Committee."

Click HERE to watch the tape of five councilmembers discussing Redmond's "signalization intersection project" with Kirkland ($2,218,035.)   Scroll the tape to find:  Stuart, 15:35m;  Forsythe 16:40m;  Carson 17:00m;  Stewart 21:00m;  Fields 22:00m;  Krtizer 23:15m. (Kahn did not participate.)    

Ms. Khan's term ends December 31, 2023.  She's participated in less than 75% - 85% of council meetings.  The Mayor would have her exact attendance records.  

-- Bob Yoder, Opinion, 10/9/2023

    Photo:  RCTV Comcast 21  

Halloween Run Through The Park

Zoey reluctantly wears her Halloween costume after a long run in the Redmond Dog Park.  Here, she's lapping water from a bowl the city thoughtfully installed.

- Bob & Pam 

Redmond Ospreys And Their Nests

Marymoor Park juvenile osprey / credit Reinke

According to the Marymoor Park website, this tall osprey nest platform located near Parking Lot B was constructed in 2008, to replace a decommissioned cell tower. The new platform has been used by ospreys ever since.  

A juvenile osprey is currently occupying the nest.  (A juvenile can be identified by the white fringe around all of its brown wing feathers, which adults do not have.) 

I discovered that there are two empty osprey nests only a half mile away and still inside the park.  One nest structure is located in a tall lighting tower on the perimeter of baseball field #6 and the other is similarly located on the perimeter of baseball field #8. .

Empty osprey nests on Marymoor lighting tower

During all of my visits to the platform, only the juvenile has been present and I have never seen it flying around or accompanied by adult ospreys.  However, my visits have all been of fairly short duration, so I presume that the adults are still attending to the juvenile.  Nonetheless, the fall migration season has already begun, so presumably the juvenile and its parents may have already departed.  

-- John Reinke 

    Redmond, photojournalist 

   10/8/2023

Redmond Homeless Hotel Opens Early 2024

Silver Cloud Homeless Hotel
credit Kirkland Reporter

Today, King County Department of Community and Human Services announced the selection of an operator for the Health Through Housing building (AKA Homeless Hotel) in Redmond. The building now moves into the next phase of implementation before opening by early 2024.

The Salvation Army will provide 24/7 onsite operations at the building beginning in 2024. The Salvation Army is a long-standing regional provider of emergency shelter and long-term housing assistance. Throughout the COVID-19 emergency, The Salvation Army worked directly with King County on emergency relief and continues to be a partner in serving people experiencing, or at risk of chronic homelessness.

The Salvation Army brings expertise in creating stability for people experiencing homelessness through strategies, including street outreach and diversion, utility and food assistance, housing programs, and connection to integrated physical and behavioral health care. They will begin hiring staff to provide a range of 24/7 services and support for the new residents. The operator, alongside King County and the City of Redmond, will also engage with local area residents, city leaders, and businesses before occupancy. The first meet and greet will take place in late October.

Last year, the Redmond Health Through Housing building was used to temporarily provide a place for displaced refugees to stay from Afghanistan. From May through December, nearly 800 refugees received temporary housing, resettlement support, and connection to community. Of those who participated, 97 percent secured permanent housing. 

-- C.O.R. Press Release, 10/4/2023

CONNECTIONS of Kirkland, Behavioral Health Crisis Center Forum

"Connections Health Solutions" is King County's first of five immediate access multi-service behavioral health crisis response centers.  It will be located in the 405 Kirkland Corporate Center behind Olive Garden Restaurant, two blocks from the Kirkland police.  It's scheduled to open June/July of 2024. 

Heather Genovese, V.P. Clinical Operations of Connections Health Solutions held this ZOOM forum on 9/26, to inform viewers of the facility. Donna Lurie, Board President of NAMI Eastside led Q&A.  Notable items from their Tucson facility:    

• 24/7 Urgent Care Mental Health Clinic open to all. Treats adults over 17 years of age. 
• 15+ chairs for observation by psychiatric providers. No triage. Individuals are seen within 90 minutes.
• 65% stabilized within 24 hours.  65% have comorbid substance abuse. 
• 16-bed unit for crisis stabilization; stabilization is usually within 24-hours. 
• 16-bed unit for sub-acute crisis stabilization usually within 4 days. 
• 60-70% of involuntarily committed individuals convert to voluntary commitment. 
• accepts 100% of those coming through the door, regardless of insurance.
• 50-55% are brought in through the back door by police. No one turned away. Peer support specialists remove remove hand cuffs with care compassion and dignity.    
• 90% receive outpatient care by a mental health provider within 7 days off discharge.  
• 45-Day Transition Program:  "warm hand-off to community care" - recovery, support, and coaching.
• For profit. 
• EvergreenHealth isn't funding the Center. 

"King County invested $11.5 million of state and local dollars toward this crisis center located in Kirkland.  It will service five North King County cities.  It's the start of what we can achieve together when it comes to community behavioral health." -- King County Executive Dow Constantine.

 Posted by Bob Yoder, 10/4/2023 / I participated.

OPINION: Enhanced Downtown Building Colors, As Seen On City TV

I wish...

PLANNING COMMISSION INFO
Comcast Channel 21 TV screen, photo Bob Yoder, 10/3/2022

Redmond Poet Laureate Laura Da' Events, October 6th / 14th

Redmond Poet Laureate Laura Da'

Join Poet Laureate Laura Da’ at Idylwood Park on the shores of Lake Sammamish to celebrate the debut of her "Poetry Walk" inspired by the ecosystem within Redmond that supports the kokanee salmon. 

• Friday, October 6th, 6:00 - 7:30PM
• Idylwood Park

This unique and important environment has carried life in the region since time immemorial and is at the heart of this year’s projects by Da’. The Redmond STEM Center and the Seattle Design Nerds will also be creating a one-night-only projection in the park inspired by the Poetry Walk prompts, poems by Da’, and the workshops hosted by the Poet Laureate at Old Firehouse Teen Center.

The projection is made possible by a grant from the Academy of American Poets for Laura’s recognition as one of the 2023 Poet Laureate Fellows.

-- Redmond Parks and Recreation

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Redmond Historical Society - Saturday Speaker Series

On October 14th, the Redmond Historical Society invites the community to an exciting conversation with Redmond Poet Laureate, Laura Da’, on the topic of “Currents of Time and Place: Poetry that Engages with History and Image in Cascadia.” 

Date/Time: Saturday, 10:30 AM, October 14, 2023. Doors open 10:00 AM.

Topic:  "Currents of Time and Place: Poetry that Engages with History and Image in Cascadia”

Speaker:  Laura Da', Redmond Poet Laureate

Location: Old Redmond Schoolhouse, 16600 NE 80th St., Redmond, WA 98052. 

More info: https://www.redmondhistoricalsociety.org/rhs-events

This program is the second of the Society’s Saturday Speaker Series for the Fall 2023 season. This will be an in-person program at the Old Redmond Schoolhouse. Admission is free to RHS members, and a suggested donation of $5 for non-members.

Tendril Pat Receives Humanities Washington Award.

Tendril Pat

"Tonight I received the 2023 Humanities Washington Award, the Highest Award in Washington state for Public Humanities . This award recognizes my contributions over the years to Living traditional Arts and folk life in the state of Washington.

It also recognizes my role in the formation and growth of the Center For Washington's Cultural Traditions/ CWCT ! I am immensely honored and deeply gratified to receive this award ! My eternal gratitude goes to Humanities Washington for conferring the Highest Humanities award in the State on me."

Tendril Pat

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King County Councilmember Sarah Perry, Out In Our Community

 

Out in Our Community!

^{(Left): Earlier this month, we celebrated the stunning new crosswalk created by artist Jing Jing and sponsored by Pride Across the Bridge and the City of Redmond, Washington - Government; (Right) We joined the Indian American Community Services and their Senior Lunch program at the Beaver Lake Lodge in Sammamish!}

Lake Washington School District Capital Projects, Sign Up For Updates

Juanita High School 2021 construction, Internet 

Sign up for updates on Lake Washington School District capital projects and the "Connection" newsletter:  

• Redmond Middle School - Building updates
• Rockwell Elementary - Rebuild & remodel updates
• Eastside High School - Additional Capacity updates
• Kirkland Middle School - Addition updates
• Finn Hill Middle School - Addition updates
• Westside Area - Additional Capacity updates
• Connection Newsletter
• School Board updates

"Connections" is not exclusive to parents:  feel free to forward it on to others who might want to subscribe, such as a grandparent or interested neighbor.

Read how and where the District's capital projects are funded  District taxpayers passed bond/levy measures in:  1998, 2006, 2011, 2016, 2019, 2022.

-- Source:  LWSD website

Rumble in Redmond – Robot Combat Competition

Join us on Saturday, October 21st from 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. in Redmond for the Rumble in Redmond Robot Combat Competition! Builders from all over North America will bring their robots to an all-out clash where innovation and excitement collide. This event will serve as a qualifying event for the Robot Combat League National Championship in May 2024, allowing passionate builders to compete at the highest level of robot combat. 

Competitors will unleash their custom-built remote-controlled armed with hammers, flippers, or blades, delivering stylish and crushing blows to their opponents. Builders invest days, weeks, or even months perfecting their designs for competitions. 

FREE ADMISSION 

This is an all-ages, immersive competitive experience. We invite all who are interested to attend! 

press release, OneRedmond