2. VISION STATEMENT

The following vision statement reflects how community members envision the Everest Neighborhood in the future and will work to achieve this vision using this document as a guide.

The community values the diverse population of people who live in the neighborhood and the sense of belonging. There is a sense of community and cohesiveness. Children know each other. People who are new to the community are welcomed at neighborhood gatherings. The neighborhood is maturing gracefully and is adapting to change in an inclusive way.

Everest is unique in that it is a short walk or bike ride to Downtown, the Houghton Everest Neighborhood shopping area, the Cross Kirkland Corridor (CKC), Lake Washington, and over the freeway pedestrian bridge to the Rose Hill neighborhood and Bus Rapid Transit/Stride (BRT) transit station at NE 85th Street/I-405. The CKC provides gathering places for the neighborhood as well as pedestrian and bicycle connections to other areas of the City and regional destinations via the Eastrail Corridor. Pedestrian and bicycle mobility to these destinations has improved with the addition of missing sidewalks, bike lanes and safety improvements. Mobility within the neighborhood and connectivity to other neighborhoods is improved as redevelopment of commercial and mixed-use parcels has created more through-block connections, consolidation of driveways, and intersection and pedestrian frontage improvements.

The 6th Street South corridor is one of Kirkland’s major high technology employment hubs yet continues to support diverse small businesses. This economic environment and community partnerships have led to many community amenities that provide opportunities to play and socialize along the CKC. These public/private partnerships were instrumental in implementing the CKC Master Plan and have served as a template for trail-oriented development in other neighborhoods.

The Houghton/Everest Neighborhood Center has evolved into a thriving, pedestrian-oriented mixed-use center, with businesses that meet the retail and service needs of the community, housing that supports these businesses and residents of the neighborhood. Attractive streetscapes, vehicular and pedestrian through-block connections, landscaping, pedestrian amenities and building design create a true neighborhood center for Everest and other adjoining neighborhoods. In the northwest corner along Kirkland Way, professional offices provide a gateway to the neighborhood and jobs within close proximity of the bus rapid transit BRT/Stride station. In light industrial areas, manufacturing and high technology jobs exist, along with new creative businesses like breweries and wineries that have created neighborhood gathering places with accessory uses such as tasting rooms, small restaurants and retail.

New affordable housing in the neighborhood has been created through thoughtful infill options in lower-density parts of the neighborhood, and redevelopment of multifamily and mixed-use projects. The lower-density residential areas now provide more housing choices for various income levels with a variety of detached houses, duplexes, triplexes, cottages, and accessory dwelling units. Increasingly, new development is utilizing sustainable green building practices.

The mature, wooded hillside located in the southeast corner of the neighborhood that connects to Everest Park is preserved as park open space and provides a natural system of protected wetlands, streams, steep slopes and wildlife corridors, which lessens the visual and noise impacts of the freeway.