It is a sad day for the city of Kirkland. The departure of both Kirkland Fire Chief Kevin Nalder and Police Chief Eric Olsen is a huge loss for the city and they will be tough to replace. But the reason that it is difficult to say goodbye to these men is that they both have a gigantic legacy within the city.

It is said that timing is everything and both men helped the city and citizens through one of the biggest transitions in its history – the 2011 annexation.

Bringing the Kingsgate, North Juanita and Finn Hill neighborhoods into the fold was no small task as it nearly doubled the population of Kirkland. When most annexations of this size take place the expansion of local emergency services is one of the biggest undertakings.

Nalder and Olsen helped to develop a plan for the new area to be woven into current fabric of the municipality.

Nalder, who stepped down last week for personal reasons, became chief as the heavy lifting for the annexation was just starting to take place in 2009. Nalder has dealt with the issues of removing and replacing fire stations, finding good response times for the coverage area and assuming new coverage areas. I am not saying that the current configuration is perfect, but the issues that faced the department with the annexation were daunting. The department still has work to do but most of the big changes were made under Nalder’s supervision.

Taking on 43,000 new residents is no easy task.

For Olsen the issues were made even more complicated as the city built a new Public Safety Building in the Totem Lake neighborhood to house the police department and the municipal court.

The Kirkland Police Department was also responsible for taking over for the King County Sheriff, an entirely new coverage area as the Sheriff only had three deputies to cover the three neighborhoods.

Olsen was also a very respected member of the community as a letter to the editor showed. A man from the community wrote that Olsen helped to change his life when he was young and arrested by taking the time to talk to him about his life choices instead of just throwing him in the back of a police car and ignoring the then-boy’s future.

To these two men we say thank you and wish them nothing but the best as they move on to new chapters in their lives.

Matt Phelps is the regional editor for the Kirkland and Bothell/Kenmore Reporter newspapers.