23 years of PFLAG on the Eastside
Challenger event is a hit
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REPORTER KIRKLAND
SOUND PUBLISHING, INC.
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KIRKLANDREPORTER.COM
FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2019
Suspect in Kirkland father’s murder pleads not guilty He faces charges of first-degree murder and attempted murder. By Ashley Hiruko ahiruko@soundpublishing.com
The suspect in the murder of a Kirkland
father of three pleaded not guilty to murder and attempted murder charges on June 19 in King County Superior Court, according to court documents. Saif Raad Al-Obaidi faces one count of murder in the first degree
and attempted murder in the first degree. He is accused of stabbing Darwin Garcia Franco, a Kirkland contractor, 30 times after breaking into his home in the dark morning hours of May 31. Garcia Franco died at the scene, in the 12900
block of 131st Avenue Northeast, after emergency responders attempted to save his life. Al-Obaidi is also accused of stabbing a 50-year-old mother of three, 18 times, after she tried to intervene
in the suspect’s attack on Garcia Franco. The woman had been living with Garcia Franco, staying in the basement level of the shared home. Bail was reserved for Al-Obaidi and a case setting date of July 3 planned.
Sustainability forum addresses strategy improvements for city By Madeline Coats mcoats@soundpublishing.com
The city of Kirkland continued its efforts to address climate change and environmental management with a sustainability forum on June 22 at City Hall. The city has a variety of programs, initiatives and master plans that focus on differing environmental preservation aspects, such as its Surface Water Master Plan, the Transportation Master Plan, the Urban Forestry Strategic Plan and the Cross Kirkland Corridor Master Plan. The city has successfully accomplished many sustainability-focused projects over the last several years. Until now, there has not existed an overarching plan to coordinate each of the efforts to improve sustainability. In 2015, the city noted in its Comprehensive Plan the benefit of having a procedure to identify best practices for sustainability strategies to be implemented. Council included the creation of this Sustainability Master Plan in the 2019-20 work program. City manager Kurt Triplett has been consulting with key stakeholders within the community to identify priorities and specific actions for the city to undertake. Throughout this summer, the city will
be conducting various civic engagement activities in order to collect feedback from the community. “It was a great kickoff to this project,” said Kirkland communications program manager Kellie Stickney. “This is the first time we’ve had a conversation to develop a Sustainability Master Plan.” The forum served as an open brainstorming session during which 67 residents discussed potential actions for Kirkland to improve environmental, economic and social sustainability. “It was very inter-generational. We saw kids as young as 10 or 11, to senior citizens,” said senior project manager David Barnes. The interactive event was structured around the eight draft focus areas in the city’s Sustainability Master Plan. The sections range from energy supply and emissions to healthy community building. “We had people sitting in eight different tables based on the focus areas,” said Barnes. “They discussed ideas about the elements of the plan and possible actions the city can take to influence the elements of the plan.” Every 15 minutes, people moved to another table with a new environmental subject, he explained. As lead on the plan, Barnes noticed that the
Kirkland residents engage in the interactive Sustainability Forum on Saturday, June 22. Photo courtesy of city of Kirkland
importance of trees in Kirkland was highlighted by residents several times. A special council meeting addressed the master plan on March 1. The memorandum served as a framework for discussion on the development of a plan to implement sustainable strategies. The project
aims to focus on the three key areas of sustainability: ecological, economic and social. Prior to the forum, feedback from the public indicated that the master plan should be inclusive of diversity within the city and encompass both government and community
ideals. Other responses recommended access to a useful handbook for all people to actively implement sustainability strategies. “We want to make sure that people can still be involved,” said Stickney. “This is just the beginning of a conversation.”
Council reviews bike, scooter shares By Madeline Coats mcoats@soundpublishing.com
It is still undecided whether or not Kirkland will be establishing a bike share pilot program this year. The plan was approved by the City Council for a one-year trial on March 4. By April 17, not a single bike share company had submitted a proposal to Kirkland. According to a memorandum by the Department of Public Works, many companies had previously expressed interest in coming to Kirkland, however, responses from the organizations varied when contacted by the city. Lime suggested a shorter pilot duration or a possible scooter-only system, arguing that Kirkland’s market would not be profitable without scooters. Uber’s company, Jump, and Lyft’s company, Motivate, were both interested in launching on the Eastside, yet this would not happen until much later in the year. Other scooter-only companies, such as Spin and Bird, do not have programs in this region presently. “I think this micro-mobility is potentially a solution for us, and regardless of what we do with a pilot program, we should continue to craft policies around these vehicles,” said councilmember Tom Neir at the June 4. council meeting. “Whether or not we have a pilot, they are going to come to Kirkland.” Gotcha is another rental app that offers electric bikes, electric scooters and ride sharing. The company reached out to the city and expressed interest in coming to Kirkland, however, it required more time to launch its business model. The memorandum expressed that Gotcha See BIKE, Page 3