The results are in for the latest neighborhoods improvement projects under Kirkland’s popular Neighborhood Connections program.

Residents in North Rose Hill voted for new landscaping and a bike rack at Woodlands Playground, the resurfacing and improvement of a Mark Twain Park basketball court and the installation of pedestrian and street lights along Slater Avenue N.E.

“It’s a great way to stimulate and strengthen neighborhood associations,” Neighborhoods Coordinator Kari Page said.

Beginning in 2000, Page said the program has funded nearly a million dollars worth of improvements in neighborhoods on a rotating basis. Involving residents in the city’s public works process is an effective way “to identify low-cost high impact projects,” she said.

The total cost of projects in the North Rose Hill area will amount to $27,700. A top priority for the area – a median crossing and pedestrian lights at an important I-405 overpass at N.E. 100th St. – was funded. The bridge links the Rose Hill and Highlands neighborhood and is accessible by vehicles in case of emergency. The projects should be completed by the end of the year.

The next neighborhood to receive funding, the Highlands, will soon vote on its own ballot from a selection of 14 projects. The residents will rank their top three preferences and the projects will be fully funded in that order. With requested improvements totaling nearly $120,000, Highland residents will be granted only $29,000 to spend. Ballots must be returned by no later than April 30.

For more information, contact City of Kirkland Neighborhoods Coordinator Kari Page at (425) 587-3011.