Like many Finn Hill residents, Margaret Horne is vigilant about Big Finn Hill Park use as she walks through the forest every day with her dog.

“We’re always watching people in the woods, making sure they are not making new trails or cutting down trees,” she said.

So when Horne came around the corner Feb. 15 while walking along the park trail that runs parallel to N.E. 138th Place off Juanita Drive, she was struck by the sight of a backhoe.

“We didn’t know it was coming,” she said of the equipment that flattened several areas of trail vegetation as crews took soil samples last week at the proposed site of a new Kirkland fire station.

The crews conducted a geo-technical survey to determine if the site would be suitable for a fire station, said Jack Henderson, Kirkland Fire Department deputy chief of operations. He noted the work was a “standard construction project” and said the crews did not remove any trees. Also, the permit that was issued by King County requires the geo-technical firm to replant the damaged vegetation, he added.

“We’re still trying to decide whether this is a proper lot or not for a fire station,” said Henderson, adding that the department will know more by March 8, when a public open house is scheduled.

King County currently contracts with the Kirkland Fire Department to provide fire protection service for the annexation areas of Finn Hill, Juanita and a western portion of Kingsgate.

The 2-acre site on Finn Hill is in an unincorporated part of King County that will be annexed into the City of Kirkland, effective June 1. The city and Fire District 41, which provides service to the area but will dissolve with annexation, have been negotiating for months with King County to acquire the site for a new station.

Fire officials want to sell two smaller stations on Finn Hill and consolidate them into one larger station to improve response time and save on operating costs. Proceeds from the sale of the existing stations would pay for the new one.

But many Finn Hill residents have expressed anger about the lack of public involvement in the project so far.

A Finn Hill resident for nearly 20 years, Patti Anderson said the recent soil work took her by surprise.

“I was not expecting it and it made me feel that plans were further along than anybody in the public knew they were,” said Anderson, a former Denny Creek Neighborhood Alliance president. “It’s ludicrous, frankly. My concern is that the idea that a large fire station and large parking lot can be developed and placed in this park is misguided – especially without widespread community knowledge, debate and feedback.”

She also said she is opposed to the fire station.

“It’s bad stewardship of park land,” said Anderson. “This particular park is highly coveted by this community with a long-standing commitment of preservation and restoration. It’s absolutely the wrong place for this project.”

The Denny Creek Neighborhood Alliance (DCNA) also voted to oppose the potential Finn Hill fire station  during its monthly board meeting on Tuesday.

After considering objections voiced by residents at the meeting, a majority of DCNA board members agreed that the Finn Hill location  “undermines goals that are critically important to the community,” according to a Feb. 22 press release.

The DCNA said the acreage designated for the proposed station in existing King County park land is used daily by hikers and bikers. The soil work last week “raised concerns among many residents, who’ve heard little, if any details on the proposal or the rationale for its siting,” said DCNA in the press release.

Fire District 41 Commissioner Toby Nixon said the non-profit group’s decision to oppose the station implies the district has had no communication with DCNA. He said fellow commissioner Jim Lloyd attended a Dec. 8 DCNA meeting and outlined the proposal.
“We thought the outcome of the meeting was very positive and they (DCNA) looked forward to working with us further,” said Nixon.

Jeff Hoerth, DCNA board member and past president, said the organization has known about the plans since December. During the December meeting, he noted some push back by board members regarding the proposed 20-stall parking lot. Fire District 41 and the city signed a letter of intent with King County last June specifying that in exchange for 20 parking spaces for park users, the county would allow the district to build a station on a parcel of park land.

“A parking lot would be overkill,” said Hoerth, who lives near the proposed site and says he doesn’t see a need for more parking.

He said he is most concerned that the process is moving “faster than we thought it would,” adding the community needs to be more involved in the process.

Nixon said the geo-technical firm “failed to give the fire district notice” that it was performing the soil study, therefore the district could not notify residents in time.

He invited the public to attend an open house at 7 p.m. March 8 at the Kirkland Stake Center (Mormon Church) on the corner of Juanita Drive and N.E. 132nd St.

If the Finn Hill site is found to be feasible for water drainage, the district hopes to have a formal inter-local agreement signed by all parties by June 1.