What People Are Saying
“Having thoroughly and carefully considered the arguments for and against closure of Park Lane to vehicular traffic, I find the arguments of the owners of businesses and buildings on Park Lane, who are unanimously opposed to closure, to be far more persuasive than the arguments of those who desire to close the roadway. I am thus firmly opposed to closing Park Lane to vehicular traffic. It is most unfortunate that the city has continued expending funds on study after study, exacerbating the uncertainty and anxiety for businesses and causing them to question the sincerity of the city's claims to be business friendly. We should not spend another cent on consultants or studies. It's time to settle this once and for all and move on.”
— Toby Nixon, Current Kirkland City Council Member
“I am dismayed that some Kirkland city council members are determined to eliminate precious parking spaces in the midst of a continuing need for more parking in the city. 100% of the Park Lane business owners oppose the elimination of the few parking spaces that are there. There has been some mention that the city of Bothell did exactly that in the interest of having a walkable section. Drive up there and it looks like a ghost town. Finally, I have seen no data that shows any citizen support for such a drastic step. On the other hand, a number of citizens have come out strongly against the elimination of the parking. When first elected to the city council in 1991, one of the first issues we dealt with was the critical need for more parking downtown. The need for downtown parking is greater than ever.”
— Santos Contreras, Kirkland Resident & Former Deputy Mayor, City of Kirkland
“By keeping the street open, the aim is to ensure easy access for customers, allowing businesses to thrive and maintain a steady flow of commerce.”
— Ryan James, Kirkland City Council Candidate
“Closing Park Lane 24/7/365 makes absolutely no sense, especially when considering the asymmetrical cost/benefit analysis. I arrived at this conclusion after meeting with each Council Member and engaging in discussions with City staff members to understand the problem they sought to address. I found myself increasingly perplexed. The evident lack of a clear vision became apparent as no two people provided the same explanation. Consequently, the unwavering persistence of those advocating for its closure, despite the vehement opposition of all business and property owners, raises suspicions about an undisclosed hidden agenda that people are unwilling to openly discuss.”
— Marc Chatalas, Cactus Restaurant Owner & Property Owner at 121 Park Lane
“I am happy to be a vocal opponent to any permanent closure of Park Lane. I realize that my business isn’t located on Park Lane, but a closure in my opinion would not be a benefit to me or other retailers in the Kirkland CBD (Central Business District). What kind of CBD does Kirkland want and who knows better than those who own businesses in the CBD.”
— Gunnar Nordstrom, Kirkland Resident & Business Owner
“Please respect the business community in Kirkland and give them credit for knowing what is best for their business and quit trying to help. You are hurting the very downtown you claim to care so much about.”
— Sheila Cloney, Kirkland Resident
“Traffic in Kirkland is dreadful and closing a street will only exacerbate that, parking in Kirkland is difficult to find and removing even that small number of spaces will just add to the problem. Our primary concern is how the closure would effect the small businesses that rely on being easily accessible to customers and clients. The highest level of consideration should be given to those that would be most impacted.”
— Geoff Stevenson & Andrea McBeth, Kirkland Residents
“Please do not take away parking on Park Lane. We need those 17 spaces all day, every day. I think we would fill our vacant storefronts if parking availability wasn’t such a huge issue in downtown Kirkland.”
— Sue Contreras, Kirkland Resident & Volunteer
“We should not give up any more parking in downtown Kirkland. Parking is at a premium everywhere. I feel like the pedestrians and cars work together without issues as usual.”
— Kathy Iverson, Kirkland Resident
“I feel very strongly that Park Lane should not be closed to vehicles. I want our downtown business to thrive—but my biggest consideration anytime about going downtown—is parking! Access to parking on Park Lane, all year round, is critical to me, and I am sure to those businesses which depend on shoppers/diners like myself.”
— Deirdre DeWan Johnson, Kirkland Resident
“I researched the history of pedestrian-only districts/streets in the US over the past 60 years and found that the efforts were aimed at revitalizing declining commercial and/or residential districts, sometimes in response to the growing popularity of suburban shopping malls. And I found that 80-90% pedestrian-only districts/street projects reportedly failed and were removed. It's clear from the experiences of other cities that removing vehicles from Park Lane will cause far more pain for Kirkland than pleasure. Please "just say no".”