Billed as the heart of Kirkland’s downtown retail core when it was built in 1982, all agree that Parkplace Shopping Center needs to be redeveloped. But decisions on the size and vision of what the city is willing to allow could be decided at a Dec. 16 Kirkland City Council meeting.

The present-day 250,000 square-foot retail and office mixed-use property is owned and operated by development company Touchstone. According to city financial data, the shopping center is a significant tax-revenue source in the downtown area, bringing in $135,000 a year. But overall, the development is considered an outdated, underperforming land use.

According to Parkplace property manager Jeff Cole, nearly 10 percent of the retail space in Parkplace is vacant, and only 250 office employees occupy space designed for up to 400. Nonetheless, says Cole, shoppers and visitors keep the area busy at all hours of the day, with parking lots mostly full and supermarket operators QFC reporting their store at Parkplace is one of their most profitable. Yet Touchstone representatives say their hope has always been to create a shopping destination that would be on a par or surpass the likes of Redmond Town Center or Bellevue’s Lincoln Center.

“It pains me to see Parkplace this way, a tired lady,” he said. “With a little help, she could do anything.”

Backed by financial giant Prudential, Touchstone and LMN Architects have proposed an ambitious four to eight-story redevelopment that would quadruple the amount of retail space, increase the square feet of office space from 100,000 to 1.2 million and offer 3,650 underground parking spaces, nearly all underground. The plans are estimated to cost between $800 million to $1 billion. They say the supermarket, movie theatre and expanded retail amenities would be available if their preferred eight-story plan is approved.

Opponents of the plan, led by Emerald Building owner Ken Davidson, oppose changing the city zoning codes primarily because the burden and scale the influx of an additional 5,000 people estimated to work there would place on the city. Started by Davidson, Kirkland Citizens for Responsible Development (Kirkland CRD) hired their own traffic consultant and created their own renderings of what they thought the zoning footprint might be. They also note that the Touchstone cannot guarantee the types of tenants they attract, so promises of a movie theatre or a supermarket are not certain. Hundreds of citizens have signed letters and petitions both in opposition and in favor of the plans, though city officials declined to say which camp held the majority in the missives. Davidson, who is also a principal in a law firm in the building he owns, characterized Touchstone as taking advantage of an alleged loophole in city zoning. The developer has also put forward a redevelopment plan for an office park and minimal retail use that is compliant with existing zoning.

A city commissioned Environmental Impact Statement found significant impact fees and mitigations, amounting to over $16 million, would be paid by the developer.

Ellen Miller-Wolfe, the city’s head of economic development, believes the future of Parkplace lays in the property’s ability to serve as a cluster for high-paying, information technology office jobs.

“Our housing is expensive,” she said. “These jobs will pay decent salaries and coincide with the demographic we’re trying to attract to downtown … The question is, how much do we build? Does this fit Kirkland?”

The decision will be made by the city’s elected officials, who must decide if a private amendment request (PAR) to allow up to eight-stories is warranted, breaking with current building regulations and zoning codes. Only three to five stories, including set backs are currently allowed, requiring changes to the city’s Comprehensive Plan if approved. City Council is expected to vote on a set of ordinances authorizing the changes Dec. 16.

At a Dec. 2 study session City Council members asked a number of questions concerning the city’s findings regarding parking and how the city would pay to maintain public safety service levels. An additional 3 police officers and 12 firefighters will be needed for an eight-story Parkplace, but City Financial Director Tracey Dunlap said conservative estimates showed the project would pay for itself.

“What I want to do is identify the net benefit to the city,” said Councilman Tom Hodgson. “I want to know exactly what that number is.”

Councilwoman Jessica Greenway criticized the shared parking plans as a “leap of faith,” saying no clear back-up plan existed if the concept failed.

With so many concerns still outstanding, City Manager David Ramsay proposed an additional study session for Thursday, Dec. 11 to answer all of the Council member’s questions.

“I don’t think this Council is ready,” said Kirkland CRD volunteer Cami Keyes. “They’re asking good questions that we would like answers to … We still think there are some major issues that will impact the quality of life here and they haven’t been fully vetted.”