Letter from the Community

The following are letters from the community showing support for annexation. These have been reposted with permission of the author.

I wholeheartedly support annexation to the city of Kirkland. There’s never been a better time to annex than NOW! Vote yes on Nov. 3.

Why?

1) King County is in much worse financial shape than the city of Kirkland. They don’t have the budget to support neighborhood services. They just keep cutting and cutting. Annexation is the only way to counter King County’s endless service cuts.

 

2) Police coverage will increase and response times decrease. Johanna’s examples ought to be enough, but I have my own. After a daytime burglary at my home some years ago, I wasn’t sure if the intruder was still in my house. I waited at a neighbor’s house for what seemed like eons before the King County Sheriff’s officers showed up. Investigation? Ha. On the other hand, we had a great experience with a Kirkland officer who recently took time to show my 3-year-old son his patrol car lights. Building those kinds of relationships early helps kids know that they can go to the police if they need help.

 

3) I have personally checked with the City of Kirkland Finance Department to ensure that the promise is true: even with debt service, property taxes will decrease by more than 14 percent.

 

4) And yes, even with a utility tax, total taxes will remain about the same or decrease slightly.

 

5) There’s hope of salvaging our parks with annexation to Kirkland. The county plans to close 132nd Square Park, Edith Moulton Park, and a handful of others in our area by the end of the year. While details have yet to be worked out, if annexation passes, the city parks director told me “Kirkland’s financial projections assumed that the city would have responsibility for neighborhood parks including 132nd Square, Edith Moulton, Juanita Heights Park, Kingsgate Park, Windsor Vista Park and Juanita Triangle.” It will take some time, but the plan is to bring the parks up to Kirkland’s standard of care. 

 

For the record, I’m your neighbor and have lived in the annexation area since 1992. I am a proud member of Citizens for One Kirkland. I’m a wife and mother, not an elected official or lawyer. I just want what’s best for my family. I hope you’ll join me in voting yes on Nov. 3.

 

Barbara Ramey

Juanita

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