Kirkland:
Kirkland is an affluent city in King County, Washington, United States. It is a suburb of Seattle located on the Eastside (of Lake Washington). As of April 1, 2005, the city had an estimated population of 45,740, making Kirkland the eighth largest city in King County and the eighteenth largest city in the State.
Notable features of the city include its downtown, located on the lakefront (Kirkland is the only city on the Eastside with a waterfront downtown), with many restaurants and art galleries and a 400 seat performing arts center; numerous public parks, including a number of beaches; and a large collection of public art, primarily bronze sculptures.
Kirkland is the former home of the Seattle Seahawks; the NFL team's headquarters and training facility were located in Kirkland for its first 32 seasons. The Seahawks moved to the new 19-acre (77,000 m2) Virgina Mason Athletic Center in Renton on August 18, 2008. Warehouse chain Costco previously had its headquarters in Kirkland (now in Issaquah), hence the "Kirkland Signature" store brand. Several prominent companies like Bungie Studios (developer of the Halo, Marathon, Myth and Oni video game series) have headquarters in Kirkland; see List of companies based in Kirkland, Washington. It is also home to a Google development office, and serves as a home for many Microsoft and Amazon.com employees.
Kirkland had its moment in the limelight when the 1982 Kirkland National Little League team won the Little League World Series. It also was the home to Little League's 1992 Big League Softball World Series Champions Representing the Eastside District Nine Leagues. Since 1999 Kirkland has been the home of the Little League Junior Softball World Series held each August at Kirkland's Everest Park.
Kirkland is known for its per capita income and its real estate market, which are both regularly among the very highest in the state. Based on per capita income, one of the more reliable measures of affluence, Kirkland ranks 13th of 522 areas in the state of Washington to be ranked.
History
The land around Lake Washington to the east of Seattle, which would later be known as Kirkland, was first settled by Native Americans. English settlers did not arrive until the late 1860s when the McGregor and Popham families built their homesteads in what is now the Houghton neighborhood. Four miles to the north people also settled near what they would later call Juanita Bay, a favored campsite of the Natives because a type of wild potato, "wapatos", thrived in the region. The Curtis' arrived in the area sometime in the 1870s and, later, the French family in 1872. The Forbes family homesteaded what is now Juanita Beach Park in 1876, and settled on Rose Hill in 1877. As time went by slowly more and more people arrived in the area and by the end of the 1880s a small number of logging, farming and boat-building communities had been established.
In 1886, Peter Kirk, a British-born enterprising businessman seeking to expand the family’s Moss Bay steel production company, moved to Washington State after hearing that iron deposits had been discovered in the Cascade mountain range. Other necessary components such as limestone, needed in steel smelting, were readily available in the area. Further yet, a small number of coalmines (a required fuel source for steel mills) had recently been established nearby in Newcastle and train lines were already under construction. Plans were also underway to build the Lake Washington Ship Canal. Kirk realized that if a town were built near the water it would be a virtual freshwater port to the sea, as well as help support any prospective mill. At the time, however, Kirk was not a U.S. citizen and could not purchase any land. Fortunately, Leigh S.J. Hunt, then owner of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, offered to partner with Kirk and buy the necessary real estate.
Under their new venture, the Kirkland Land and Development Company, Kirk and Hunt purchased thousands of acres of land in what is now Kirkland’s downtown in July 1888. Kirk and his associates started the construction of a new steel mill soon after, named Moss Bay Iron and Steel Works. Thus founding the city of Kirkland in 1888, officially one of the earliest on the Eastside at the time, Kirk’s vision of a " Pittsburgh of the West" was beginning to take form. However, the Seattle, Lake Shore and Eastern Railroad, which had recently been purchased by Tacoma-based Northern Pacific, had now refused to construct a rail line to the lake. This would, after all, have a negative impact on Tacoma, which was furiously competing with Seattle as the dominant Puget Sound seaport. The ensuing financial issues and numerous obstacles were also taking a toll on Kirk, who was running out of investors. Hunt was also in debt from the purchase of land.
Nevertheless, the plans continued and the steel mill was eventually completed in late 1892 on Rose Hill (a full two miles from the Lake’s shore). Unfortunately, before it would ever produce any steel, financial issues arose and due to the Panic of 1893 the mill subsequently closed without ever producing any steel. In spite of everything, Kirk was determined not to give up on his namesake town, and Kirkland was finally incorporated in 1905 with a population of approximately 532.
In 1900 the Curtis family, who had been living on the Eastside since the 1870s, had made a living operating a ferry-construction business on Lake Washington. Along with Captain John Anderson, the Curtis' were among the first to run ferries in the area. Leschi, first operated on December 27, 1913, was the original wooden ferry to transport automobiles and people between the Eastside and Madison Park until her retirement 1950. The ferry operations ran nearly continuously for 18 hours each day. However, the construction of the first Lake Washington floating bridge in 1940 made ferry service unprofitable and eventually led to its cancellation.[6] Subsequent years saw wool-milling and warship-building become the major industries.
The first woolen mill in the state of Washington was built in Kirkland in 1892. The mill was the primary supplier of wool products for the Alaska Gold Rush prospectors and for the U.S. Military during World War I. By 1917, after the completion of the Lake Washington Ship Canal, the construction of ocean-going vessels had become a major business. By 1940, the thriving Lake Washington Shipyard had constructed more than 25 warships during World War II for the U.S. Navy, on what is now Carillon Point
Kirkland culture
Today Kirkland is socially and economically integrated into the greater Seattle area. Like most of its Eastside neighbors, it is relatively affluent but dependent in large part on nearby technology firms such as Redmond-based Microsoft. Kirkland has an active antiwar movement, including Evergreen Peace and Justice Community, and members of Veterans for Peace chapter 92, Washington Truth in Recruiting, Eastside Fellowship of Reconciliation and other groups.
Parks
During the summer, local residents of neighboring cities flock to Kirkland to visit Kirkland's many waterfront parks on Lake Washington. Kirkland has many neighborhood parks as well, and abuts the equestrian Bridle Trails State Park. The waterfront parks are linked together by a paved trail which is open till dusk.
Gentrification
Kirkland is a small, quiet town, with many retired people and apartment complexes. There are quite a few old, quaint houses, though many are being torn down. Currently the major areas undergoing gentrification are Houghton, Juanita, Norkirk, Rose Hill, West of Market, and the downtown area.
Nightlife
Kirkland has a variety of bars, clubs and dance clubs, most of which are located in downtown Kirkland's main strip, Lake Street. Crime associated with the bars and clubs, including violence, noise and drunk driving, has drawn criticism.
Arts
Kirkland has a thriving gallery district downtown. The Kirkland Performance Center hosts a number of performing arts events.
Teen Union Building
The Kirkland Teen Union Building in downtown Peter Kirk Park is supported by the city and a number of nonprofit organizations. It has two music stages, a recording studio, darkroom and year-round activities and programs for youth.
Geography and climate
It is bordered to the west by Lake Washington, to the east by Redmond, to the south by Bellevue, and to the north by Kenmore and Bothell.
Kirkland is accessible via Interstate 405, which connects it with other Eastside cities, including Bellevue, Renton, and Bothell. Seattle, which is west of Kirkland, as well as Redmond to the east, are both accessible through State Highway 520.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.0 square miles (28.5 km²), of which, 10.7 square miles (27.7 km²) of it is land and 0.3 square miles (0.9 km²) of it (3.00%) is water. The elevation varies from 14 to 500 feet (150 m) above sea level.
Kirkland's average temperature is 46.8 °F, and the average annual precipitation 38.6 inches (980 mm).
Education
Kirkland is home to Lake Washington Technical College and Northwest University, formerly Northwest College of the Assemblies of God.
Kirkland is in the Lake Washington School District. Secondary schools located in the city include:
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