Kirkland Reporter, January 22, 2016

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FINES | Kirkland car dealer agrees to pay more than $74,000 for misleading advertising [2]

Pokémon | City Championships held in FRIDAY, JANUARY 22, 2016 downtown Kirkland [2]

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Urbanathlon | Kirklander takes first in New York race [3]

Sen. Hill legislation seeks changes to Interstate 405 toll lanes BY LAVENDRICK SMITH WNPA Olympia Bureau

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awmakers say they intend to find immediate solutions to motorists’ frustration and anger over the Interstate 405 express toll lanes, which opened in September. Senate Bill 6152 would authorize the Washington State Department of

Transportation to operate only one express toll lane in each direction on I-405. Currently the agency operates two express toll lanes from Bellevue to Bothell in both directions, in addition to a single express toll lane running in both directions from Bothell to Lynnwood. I-405 extends from I-5 at Tukwila to the south along the east side of Lake Washington, reconnecting to I-5

just north of Lynnwood. Bill sponsor Sen. Andy Hill, R-Redmond, and Rep. Mark Harmsworth, R-Mill Creek, who has a companion bill in the House, said Thursday thousands of constituents in their districts have complained of traffic congestion and high toll rates since the express toll lanes opened. Harmsworth said congestion increased on I-405

when just three non-toll, tolls. It takes just a little general-purpose lanes were step back to give us some left open. He called relief so that we can the legislation a first start looking at this step toward mitigatproblem.” ing the effects of the David Hablewitz, new lanes. with Stop405Tolls, “It’s a moderate an organization approach,” he said with support from at a hearing on the 28,000 people who Sen. Andy Hill bill in the Senate oppose the express Transportation toll lanes, said he’d Committee on Jan. 14. “It like to see a bill that redoesn’t do away with the moves the tolls completely,

calling the toll program an improper way to collect revenue. “Charging a fee to drive on a road does nothing to increase its capacity,” Hablewitz said. Not everyone is against the express lanes, including some commuters. Duncan Milloy, a Mill Creek resident, said he travels I-405 frequently in the HOV [ more TOLLS page 7 ]

Low, moderate income residents feeling housing squeeze in east King Skyrocketing real estate prices, low wages to blame

ARCH. Currently, there are only 60,500 housing units planned, according to the data. ARCH is an organization which was created in BY AARON KUNKLER 1992 through an inter-local akunkler@bothell-reporter.com agreement between East King County cities to adHousing in King County dress affordable housing is in high demand and concerns. The organizalow to moderate income tion works with the cities residents are feeling the to preserve and expand crunch. affordable housing, but East King County, with real estate costs nearly stretching from Kenmore to Issaquah to Bellevue, has doubling since its inception, and funding commitseen a dramatic increase in ments from cities holding living costs during the steady and falling well past decade, accordbelow inflation, it is ing to 2015 data struggling to meet EASTSIDE from A Regional the area’s housing Coalition for Housneeds, particularly ing (ARCH). This for low income resiincrease is due largedents. ly to an increase in those “It takes so much to get looking for housing, as from the market all the the area emerges from the way down to low income,” Great Recession, a housing ARCH director Arthur deficit and stagnant wages Sullivan said. “To get to low for many working people. income, it’s always needed During the past three direct assistance.” decades, East King County The organization uses has gone from having three main routes to a surplus of housing to encourage the creation of employing a workforce aff ordable housing. that requires 25 percent The first is trying to cremore housing than is ate diversity through the available. The situation is private sector where cities only expected to get worse zone to allow more flexibilover the next 20 years with ity in the creation of multithe addition of a projected family housing, including 133,000 jobs, requiring apartments, duplexes and some 95,000 additional

NEWS

housing units, according to

[ more HOUSING page 8 ]

Woodinville resident Jennifer Dixon owns Rocket Fizz in downtown Kirkland and hopes its retro feel and assortment of in-house soda pop will keep patrons coming back for more. TJ MARTINELL, Kirkland Reporter

Rocket Fizz brings retro feel to downtown Kirkland BY TJ MARTINELL

tmartinell@kirklandreporter.com

A fond memory from Jennifer Dixon’s youth is visiting the general store near her grandparents’ place in Pennsylvania. Her grandfather would take her there to get candy. “He (Grandpa) was a candy guy,” she said. “My parents were more of the

‘eat all the fruit you like’ type.” Now, Dixon has come full circle with the opening of Rocket Fizz, a soda and candy store, in downtown Kirkland. The store held its grand opening last week. Dixon first got the idea of opening up a Rocket Fizz store, her first busi-

ness, early last year after seeing the co-founders featured on the TV show Undercover Boss. First opened in Camarillo, Calif. in February 2009, the store concept was created by Ryan Morgan and Robert (“Rob”) Powells. “Something about it was appealing to me,” she said. “It was the visual aspect to

it. The old time retro feel. I really liked the demeanor and personality of the cofounders.” A trip to Portland to visit stores there later cemented her desire to open one in the Seattle area, which got off the ground following training in California. While others [ more CANDY page 13 ]


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