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ENDOWMENT | Delta Dental honors former Kirkland dentist [6]
Learning | Lakeview Elementary students take Sports | Freshman softball pitcher helps Kangs to win district title [11] FRIDAY, MAY 30, 2014 a trip to Merrill Gardens [9]
A DIVISION OF SOUND PUBLISHING
Police and Courts begin move into new Kirkland Justice Center City officials offer tours of new Public Safety Building tomorrow BY TJ MARTINELL tmartinell@kirklandreporter.com
T
he grand opening of the Kirkland Public Safety Building (KPSB) this Saturday will present the Kirkland Police Department (KPD) with a situation it hasn’t faced in a long time; more space than they need. Also known as the Kirkland Justice Center, Kirkland
residents are invited to tour the building at 11750 NE 118th St. in the Totem Lake Neighborhood on Saturday from 1-4 p.m. The KPSB will house both the police department and the municipal court, which is currently located across the street. The transition to the KPSB is seen by both City Hall and KPD officials as a necessary move that reflects the large population growth Kirkland
underwent in recent years due to annexation. KPD Cpt. Mike Ursino said space became a major issue after the city annexed Finn Hill, North Juanita and Kingsgate in 2011, which added 30,000 more residents to the city. As a result, the department hired roughly 40 more officers and support staff, adding more personnel to its 15,000 square feet of space in City Hall. With
New Kirkland art gallery filled with Asian history
BIZ
[ more SAFETY page 5 ]
The new Kirkland Public Safety Building is located in the Totem Lake Neighborhood behind Fred Meyer. TJ MARTINELL, Kirkland Reporter
7 Hills of Kirkland ...
New Totem Lake Malls’ business to hold grand opening June 20
statues to one-hundredyear-old Mongolian cabinets and Korean wedding carriages. The gallery also offers a special opportunity for either Chinese immigrants or Chinese Americans to purBY TJ MARTINELL chase items not available in tmartinell@kirklandreporter.com their homeland. During the Cultural Revolution of the Ming’s Zen Gallery’s 1970s, there was a massive move to Totem Lake Malls effort by the government to in Kirkland marks what remove all trace of capitalits owners hope is the final ist, traditional and cultural destination for their import influences. As a result, the business, which has been military confiscated art, reltransported as often as the ics and historical artifacts. antiques they sell. After a long time buildAlthough technically ing diplomatic relations open, the gallery plans to with the Chinese governhave a grand opening on ment, Russell said they have June 20. In the meantime, given access to purchase owner Jim Russell said they these items, which have have opened their doors to been stored for years in anyone curious to see what warehouses, which are they have to offer. also acquired by priThe gallery has vate auctioneers in moved three times KIRKLAND China. Russell said in as many years the pre-Cultural and was recently Revolution art is forced to move out popular among Asian of Bellevue. The builddealers, as well as Chinese ing on Main Street was set businessmen who receive to be demolished to make way for condominiums and authorization to import the items back to China. apartments. Eleven other Although customers businesses were forced to can also find such artifacts move out as well. on auction sites like eBay, The gallery offers imRussell said he constantly ported art, furniture and checks the current bid and antiquities from Far East countries such as China, Ja- ensures that he offers it for a much lower price. For pan and Taiwan. The items include modern Buddha [ more ART page 3 ]
the KPSB, they have 82,000 square feet out of the building’s 102,000, which gives them extra room if the need arises for expansion at a future date. Although Ursino described himself as a “baby” on the project, as it started under a different captain, he said he spent every day at the site during the remodeling process. “Translating from paper to real can be hard,” he said. “I
a new era Cyclists power through the last 100 yards of Holmes Point Drive Northeast on Finn Hill during the EvergreenHealth 7 Hills of Kirkland on Monday. The annual fundraiser for Kirkland Interfaiths Transitions in Housing had 939 riders take part this year. MATT PHELPS, Kirkland Reporter
EvergreenHealth starts five-year sponsorship of KITH fundraiser BY MATT PHELPS mphelps@kirklandreporter.com
It is said that Memorial Day marks the unofficial start to summer. For some, the EvergreenHealth 7 Hills of Kirkland cycling event marks the beginning of summer athletic events in the Puget Sound area. “It is a good way to kick your butt into gear if you’re behind on training,”
said Lucas Donigan of Seattle, who has participated in the 7 Hills event each of the last three years. “It is a good way to kick off the summer cycling season but I have never done it on a sunny day.” And while the morning hours on Monday were overcast and gloomy, most of the 939 riders saw sunny skies by the end of the day. “It was disappointing
because we were about 300 riders lower than we were expecting,” KITH Executive Director Jennifer Barron said. “It was supposed to rain but it turned out to be one of the best days of the weekend.” The 15th anniversary brought good news for event organizers, as EvergreenHealth signed on to be the title sponsor for the next five years according
to event coordinator Bill Fores. Proceeds raised by the event go to help nonprofit Kirkland Interfaith Transitions in Housing or KITH, which helps those who are homeless and families who are at-risk. This year’s event raised $83,830. “We are excited to partner with EvergreenHealth. It is a way for us to partner and foster healthy families in our community. They are an amazing [ more KITH page 2 ]