Kirkland City Manager Kurt Triplett announced Tuesday that Kevin Raymond has been hired as the incoming City Attorney. As Kirkland’s City Attorney, he will work closely with the City Council, city manager and city departments to provide legal services to help achieve City Council goals.

Raymond’s past experience spans practicing municipal law with King County and the city of Seattle, serving as King County Executive Gary Locke’s chief of staff, and private law experience in land use, permitting and regulatory work with local, state and federal governmental entities.

“Kevin Raymond’s long and successful career in both the public and private sectors is an incredible asset to bring to Kirkland’s Executive Team,” Triplett said. “His experience in policy, politics and private sector permitting and land use brings a unique perspective and extra dimension to the role of City Attorney.”

Raymond practiced municipal law for over 11 years in the civil division of the King County Prosecutor’s Office. As a senior deputy prosecuting attorney he led the contracts and employment sections, represented the Kingdome (including negotiating lease agreements with the Seattle Seahawks and Mariners) and also advised Records and Elections, minority, Women Business Enterprises (MWBE) programs, public nuisance abatement and more. He helped successfully argue the “one person, one vote” case that eventually resulted in the merger of King County and Metro, and later became the chief counsel for the consolidated Metropolitan Services Department that flowed from that court decision.

Raymond served as King County Executive Gary Locke’s chief of staff in 1995 and 1996, where he was the chief policy advisor and managed the executive’s office as well as the office of budget and strategic planning. In this role, he helped lead King County’s team in the agreements that retained both the Seahawks and Mariners in Seattle and set the stage for the creation of the new football and baseball stadiums after the demolition of the Kingdome.

Following Locke’s election to Governor, Raymond spent four years as a private land-use attorney, followed by a return to municipal law as a Senior City Attorney at the City of Seattle. Raymond served as the director of external relations for the Seattle Monorail Project. While at the Monorail, he negotiated easement agreements with King County, Seattle Schools, the Muckleshoot Tribe and the two stadium authorities.

Since 2006, Raymond has worked as vice president and general counsel for Legumex Walker Inc., a publicly traded healthy food processing company with 400 employees and annual revenues of $500 million. His legal practice while at Legumex included litigation, mergers and acquisitions, contracts, real property, employment law, regulatory and permit work, intellectual property and the management of outside legal firms.

Raymond and his wife Christi live in Seattle. In his spare time he plays guitar and is an avid cyclist who races competitively both on the street and on mountain bikes.

“I look forward to joining the Kirkland team and being part of the city’s commitment to smart growth, mobility, economic development and the environment,” Raymond said.

Raymond will be replacing City Attorney Robin Jenkinson, who retires on March 31, 2016. Ms. Jenkinson has been Kirkland’s city attorney since 2004.