Kirkland Weblog

"Kirkland First" is Keeping it Local

Kirkland has just launched a free online business directory for Kirkland-based businesses in an effort to promote local spending.  You can check it out at www.kirklandfirst.org .  It's just like a hyper-local yellow pages getting underway, so if you or someone you know owns a local business you should get them hooked into this resource.  It's FREE.  And you know I love free.

As a consumer, you might be surprised at the products and services you can find right here in Kirkland by checking out the site (dog training, A/V rentals, event planning, you name it!).  The goals of the Kirkland First program are to give local businesses more opportunities to thrive, build a stronger local economy, and promote community between business, residents and consumers.   So let's get on board and keep our dollars (the few that we have left) here in town. ~j

98034 Gets Their Amazon Fresh!

Good job on the votes, Kirkland! Juanita will not starve after all.  Amazon just announced that they will start making their grocery delivery service available to 98034 starting on April 1st. Order before midnight and your groceries can still be at your doorstep by 6am.   Sounds strange to me, but if you wanted to order a book or DVD  or spatula along with your wine, steak and asparagus they'll bring that to your doorstep too.  And for those of you that expressed concern about buying locally (AMZ is a local company), I noticed they have a 'shop local items' button right on their home page.  ~j

Amazon Fresh Expands: Vote for Kirkland!!

For those of you that don't know about Amazon Fresh, it's a great online grocery service.  Everything is fast and fresh and delivered to your door.  They have all sorts of organic and local items too.  You can order online until 10pm and have your groceries waiting on your porch pre-dawn.  Delivery is FREE if you order over $40 (which isn't difficult to do). 
Ugh, I sound like a commercial.  I'm not gushing only b/c I'm biased (Steve works at AMZ) but b/c I used to use this service at least once a week when we lived in 98033 and it's a lifesaver.  Then we moved out of our house while it undergoes some major renovations, and we're now in a rental house in 98034.  The landlord conveniently forgot to mention that Amazon Fresh does not deliver here!!!
So- here's what you need to do- VOTE!  Amazon is asking for voters to tell them where their next delivery zip code should be.  The people of Juanita are starving out here!  Let's help them out!!!
VOTE for 98034 here.

I'm Joining the Kirkland PD

Well, maybe not literally, but for 12 weeks I'm going to go through some behind-the-scenes training.  And you can too!  The Kirkland Police Dept Citizens Academy runs every Weds between Feb 4 and April 22nd from 6-9pm and they're taking applications now (it's free!).  If you are over 21, live or work in Kirkland and have no prior felony convictions you can come learn about officer training, investigations, special response and firearms instruction.  I might be a sharp shooter and not even know it yet. My future is bright.  Still waiting for my background check to clear, haha, college doesn't count right?

For an application or more info, check the city website  or  contact Sgt. Robert Saloum, Community Services Division, at 425-587-3401 rsaloum@ci.kirkland.wa.us or Officer Allan O'Neill at 425-587-3451 aoneill@ci.kirkland.wa.us.  I'm looking forward to this adventure and will be sure to share it with you- I can spy on the police (j/k Chief!), pick up a few new skills (do these tactics cross-over to parenting?)  and maybe even pull YOU over on my ride-along (friends beware).~j

Finding a Cab in Kirkland Just Got Easier

Attention Kirkland party crowd!  Or maybe those that occasionally have one too many.  Have you ever tried calling for a cab in this town?  They aren't just floating around when you need them and you'd better have a Red Bull in your hand if you are planning on calling for one and waiting. 

But one smarty pants group of taxi drivers have noticed the need for service on the eastside and started a flat rate service called Eastside for Hire.  They've been around since October and have 40 cars in operation serving mostly the eastside (but of course they will take you anywhere!).  Wait times are typically 10-15 mins. The cool thing is it's a flat rate- no surcharges for waiting or for extra passengers.  So, if you've tied one on down at Tiki Joe's, you can call 425-453-9000 and stuff yourself and 3 of your friends in the car for $7 to all crash at your 98033 address.  There is a handy rate calculator on their website- it's $35 to go from 98033 to the airport, for example.

So stay safe and smart, Kirkland.  I don't want to see your swervin' ass on the road (and neither do the plentiful DUI taskforce officers) and now you have no reason not to make the right choice.  It's that easy.  Please leave your feedback here if you have the chance to use this service.  The old has-been partiers like myself are curious :-)    ~j

You can Save the Day!

CERT Class #10 just graduated (left) and there's a new one starting up soon.   My mom got certified, so if she can do it, you definitely can!  CERT= Community Emergency Response Team which is a national program that helps prepare you to help yourself, your neighbors and your community in the event of a disaster. 

That's right sister, we've got to get ready for the big one.  That wind storm last year was just a little taste of what it could be like if things went sideways here.   You will learn how to do search/rescue, prepare your home/work with emergency supplies, understand fire behavior and apply basic medical and psychological techniques.  There's a test at the end where there are similated scenarios, so be prepared to do some heavy lifting.  Our own fire dept instructs the weekly classes for the low low price of- FREE! (for citizens who live, work or attend school in Kirkland).

The next session starts on April 9th and runs for 8 Wednesdays 6-9pm.  There's an application here or you can also contact the coordinator, Robin Pastor, if you have questions: 425-587-3659 or rpaster@ci.kirkland.wa.us.  There she is, photo left, with our Fire Chief Jeff Blake. You should encourage your neighbors to go too.   When I checked how many CERT's there were in our neighborhood of over 800 homes, there are only 2.  Good news is that I know where they live, bad news is there would be quite a line at their door.  The net of the story is we need to get more people CERT-ified.  So go ahead and take advantage of this program so you can help save the day when it comes.  ~j

There's a New Boss in Town

Meet Kirkland's new Chief of Police, Eric Olsen.   I always thought it sounded so cool to have the title "Chief" or "Commander" come before your name- doesn't every kid dream of that?   Chief Olsen has earned this honorable promotion from Captain with 25+ years of service in policing.  He's not big on titles though (I just think of myself as "Eric the cop"), he's focused on being accessible and creating a greater collaboration between the police dept and our community.  And he must be true to his word, because he was willing to sit down at lunch with a Kirkland blogger to tell me what's up.  He was probably kicking himself when my first question was, "Who's your biggest baddest ticket-writing cop that I should be shaking in boots for when he pulls me over?"   It's about public safety.  Not ticket-writing.  Darn, I knew that.

As we sat at a table outside at The Slip, despite not being in uniform on that day, he's got the cop vibe.  You probably don't know this, but I also sell tactical equipment part-time, so I know the cop vibe.  The one where he's constantly and calmly scanning his surroundings for any notion of danger or suspicion.  Luckily, we were safely tucked behind the plastic fence. 

Chief Olsen grew up in West Africa and went to high school and college in Minnesota.  Apparently his wife wasn't too keen when he told her he wanted to be a police officer.  But she must have gotten used to the idea, because they live happily in Snohomish with their 14 year old triplets - two boys and a girl(Eric is a twin himself!).  He enjoys living in Snohomish and it also allows him to separate his personal life from his work.

"Kirkland is a great place with great people," says Eric, "and I try to encourage our officers to get out of their cars and get to know the neighbors and business people."  He also stresses the importance of public safety and mentions how often crimes are solved when citizens call in suspicious activity or felt like something just wasn't right.  Don't hesitate to call.  And if you'd like to be on the receiving end of that call, Kirkland PD is also hiring.  There are at least 5 open headcount for officers and if (who are we kidding- when) annexation happens, we'll need an additional 44 officers.  That's a lot of blue.  And while we're on the annexation topic, I was asking about the proposed new jail which still nobody seems to know the location of, but he did confirm the need for a 75 bed jail if we annex.  Right now we have 4 cells that hold 12-16 people and we can rest easy b/c no-one has ever escaped! Airtight- minus the ceiling ducts, of course!

To net it out, our new Chief is a down-to-earth guy and he's got his listening ears on.   And he's funny too.  When asked which Kirkland restaurant is his favorite he responded, "I'm a big guy, I like them all."  Fresh in his new office and so PC!  If you see him around, be sure to introduce yourself.  He can also be reached at 425-587-3403 or eolsen@ci.kirkland.wa.us .     ~Janis

Car Detailing Done Right!

It's been a few years since my 2000 BMW 323 got a good detailing.   So  a few weeks ago I decided to treat my sometimes reliable BMW to a full cleaning and wax job--inside and out.  The only problem is that I didn't know where to take my car and I (like many others) don't have a hard copy yellow pages sitting around any longer.  So I searched the web for car detailing in Kirkland.  The results were slim picking and hardly any car detailers actually have a website or web presence to speak of.  I finally remembered there was a car detailing place inside Carillon Point in the parking garage.  I actually found them on the web too! The place is called Autobahn Custom Detail and here is their website.  I took a look at their information and decided to call them up.  Tim Tuttle/Owner answered the phone, fielded all my questions and we scheduled an appointment for later in the week. 

Here is what I liked about Autobahn and why I would recommend them:

1/ Tim is both the owner and does all the work himself.  Who better to work on your car than the owner of the business?  Tim really cares about quality, repeat business, and works from referrals quite often.

2/ Tim has been at this for over 10 years and is a nice, friendly guy.   He has also taught lot's of other detailers around the area over the years. 

3/ My car came out looking brand new...well almost brand new.  I guess as new as a 2000 can look.

4/ Location.  Carillon Point is easy to get to and while my car was being detailed I worked from the Starbucks (although their wireless T-Mobile wasn't working) until she was ready for the road again.

Now it's been a while since I had my car detailed so I wasn't sure about the latest pricing.   Tim charged me $200 for the full treatment.  I remember paying less a few years back so I called around to three other detailers.  All were roughly about the same price.    Do you think this is high or about right given today's prices?  Please comment...

Steve 

Stood up by the Kirkland PD

After my wife participated in a ride along with the Kirkland Police (and blogged about it)I figured I would do the same.  Kind of a follow up post to see if my experience was similar--or even better.  So I filled out the form and dropped it off.  I got my appointment scheduled and I was excited to go!

It's not the first time I have been on a ride along.   Several years back I went on a few ride alongs with the Sacramento PD.  Why Sacramento?  Well, my cousin is Sgt. Susan Feenstra out there.  The ride alongs were exciting and I went for the entire shift (from night into the wee hours of the morning).   There was lot's of action...calls into housing projects, gang related calls, a few stops for food, and lots of domestic violence calls.   Even saw a few arrests and bookings back at the jail. 

I have a ton of respect for police and their work and love hearing the stories whenever we are fortunate enough to spend time with my cousin and her husband.  Oh, I forgot to mention that my cousin's husband, Jim Hyde, just took the Chief of Police job at Antioch PD. 

OK, so back to the Kirkland PD ride along.   I was scheduled to have my ride along last Thursday night from 7:30 to 9:30 pm.  It doesn't sound like a lot of time, but I was still excited and wanted to see first hand how our police keep Kirkland safe.

I arrived about 7:25 pm (you should always arrive for an appointment early, right?).   I picked up the red phone outside the lobby--which by now was closed.  I told the operator I was there for my ride along.  She said "Great! I will buzz you in, please wait in the lobby and will tell them you are here.  Someone will pick you up from there." 

So there I sat, and sat, and sat and then sat some more.  I watched as police officers came back from one shift and left for the next.  Some officers looked at me as they walked by outside the lobby and just kept walking.  Then I sat some more.  Nothing but a camera pointed at me in the lobby and some forms sitting on a desk. I read them all.  At about 8:25 (almost an hour into my two hour ride along) I just decided to leave. 

They had my info, but no one called.  I thought they might want to know what happened to me (what if I was kidnapped?) or even apologize (I know...wishful thinking, huh?).   Hey, I am the first to admit that having a visitor tag along isn't a high priority and may even be an unwanted distraction for most officers.  That said, if you are going to offer a program for ride alongs my feeling is that you should run it properly and have some respect for the people who are carving time out of their schedules to participate.   

Nobody likes to have an appointment and be blown off.  Whether it's a dentist appointment, an appointment for a tattoo, a dinner reservation, or a ride along.   Why couldn't an officer just pop into the lobby and say they are "running late", or that they "had an emergency".  Anything would have been better than the cold shoulder!

After getting home and telling Janis the story she confirmed that the same thing happened to her, although she waited it out (about 45 minutes).   Maybe 7:30 pm is just a bad time?  Maybe they should either kill the program or tell people to show up at 8:30 pm.  Of course that doesn't leave much time to get into the squad car.   Anyway, I hope they take steps to improve the program.   It works well in other cities.    Does anyone else have a ride along story to share that's more exciting than mine?     Steve

I-405 Northbound Completely Shut Down This Weekend

ALERT:  All Northbound lanes of the 405 in Kirkland will be completely shut down (24x7) from Friday June 23 starting about 10PM through Tuesday morning, June 27.    There will be several detours available but plan on huge backups and long commutes.  Tell everyone you know! 

Get more details from the WA State Department of Transportation by clicking here.