Engineering department shares overview of the city's many projects

Kenmore’s Engineering Department presented an overview of the work they do at the Sept. 10, Kenmore Community Club potluck. In addition to the Engineering Department's presentation, attendees were introduced to new City Manager Teri Killgore, who started her new position just two days earlier on Sept. 8.

Ms. Kilgore previously was Economic Development Director for Scottsdale Arizona, and has a wealth of experience in city management for such cities as San Jose, the City of Vallejo and Walnut Creek, California. 

Kenmore's Engineering Director John Vicente outlined the department’s operations and presented an impressive list of projects slated over the next six years, including sidewalks on 80th Ave, and in Arrowhead neighborhood, and pavement restorations citywide.

Capital Project Manager Terri Bielenberg talked about the complexity of the planning that goes into preparing projects for the bidding process. Vicente added that much of his time is spent on applying for grant funding for needed projects as the taxes collected by the city don’t begin to cover the costs.

City Traffic Engineer Tobin Bennett-Gold talked about an innovative technology Kenmore has recently rolled out using a variety of sensors including cameras, radar and lidar installed on city vehicles that assess road conditions throughout the city. The system collects data on a daily basis, instead of hiring engineering consultants on an annual basis for a pavement survey. He said the new system will save the city $30,000 per year and is expected to speed the technical process of prioritizing pavement projects.

Asked about the traffic cameras, Bennett-Gold talked about the effectiveness of the speed cameras on Juanita Dr. at Arrowhead Elementary. He said the system has shown a 98 percent reduction in speeding through the enforcement area. Prior to the camera installation, over 95 percent of drivers were speeding through the active school zone. After implementation, this figure dropped to only 1.5 percent. As a result of that success, the City has expanded the Kenmore Automated Photo Enforcement (KAPE) program to other school zones and increased monitoring to 24 hours.

Bennett-Gold said the program is entirely about increasing safety, not increasing city revenue. He said all of the revenue Kenmore receives goes into other safety improvement projects. It doesn’t go into the general fund.

He further pointed out that Kenmore uses a two-month warning period before the enforcement begins. Many other cities only use a one-month warning period. In addition, unlike other cities, Kenmore deliberately installs speed feedback signs that flash your speed on either side of the enforcement zone to reduce the number of cars caught speeding by the cameras.

Next month, Oct. 8, you won't want to miss the The Department of Planning and Community Development, which is responsible for long-range planning, park planning, and park development.