In a city that has forbid card rooms within city limits, the gambling tables have turned.
The Kirkland City Council approved in a 5-2 vote to grandfather in the Caribbean Casino in the Kingsgate neighborhood during the July 7 meeting, if the city annexes the Potential Annexation Area (PAA) of unincorporated King County.
Deputy Mayor Joan McBride said the casino may be the main issue that some voters will use to decide their vote for or against annexation and that the council owed it to them to bring the issue to a resolution.
Tom Hodgson and Dave Asher both voted against the resolution. Asher said it was an issue of principle, while Hodgson wanted to set the issue aside and revisit it after the annexation vote as a separate issue.
“This should not be about revenue but about fairness,” said Council member Jessica Greenway, noting the city should not shut down existing businesses.
Casino Caribbean is a card room with 15 tables that includes games such as blackjack and poker and grosses $2.9 million a year. The casino employs 124 people, including 35 Kirkland residents with living-wage jobs. The casino used to house Sno-King Bingo, which closed at the beginning of the year. The business is now looking for an expansion license to move the poker tables into the area where the bingo was housed.
Home height restrictions
As for other hot-button annexation issues, including height restrictions, the council decided to take more time to look into them.
Currently, Kirkland’s single-family homes are restricted to 30 feet in height and many of the homes in the PAA go up to 35 feet, which is the zoning law in King County. The greatest concern for the council centered on Goat Hill, which lies above the Juanita Beach area, where many homes are built taller than 30 feet to take advantage of the view. Other areas of the PAA have similar issues with structures taller than 30 feet.
“This is the most important land-use act we have,” said Greenway. “It protects our neighborhoods’ character. The 30-foot limit is a great tool.”
Other council members disagreed.
“We don’t have uniformity right now,” said Council member Mary-Alice Burleigh, noting that South Rose Hill, which was annexed in 1988, is different from the rest of Kirkland.
Height restrictions was one issue that directly impacted Mike Perry, who spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting. Perry, who owns a plot of land at the bottom of Goat Hill along the water, is set to build a multi-family structure. He purchased the land under King County codes that allow for height up to 60 feet. Kirkland building codes do not allow multi-family buildings over 35 feet. The land is directly next to a multi-family structure that is taller than 35 feet.
“We bought the land under the current (County) zoning,” said Perry. “This would have a direct impact to us financially. I would like you to take time and examine it more.”
Zoning issues also came up during public comment.
Susan Harmon brought issue with a proposed change in zoning on a plot of land near the intersection of N.E. 122nd Place and Juanita Drive. The large piece of land currently has a small vacant house. It is also next to the Sinclair Condominiums where Harmon’s home, among others, is just eight feet from the property line. If the area is annexed, under the zoning change that land would be zoned for business use.
“It would impact property values and our quality of life,” said Harmon. “We don’t want another big business that close to us.”
The council will discuss height restrictions and zoning issues again at the next meeting July 21.
Other annexation issues the council will consider later include the allowance of storage containers on private property; oversized vehicles, which are restricted in Kirkland; and how much acreage residents should designate for chickens and roosters.
