City of Kennewick: Continuing to lead the way!

We are very excited about our future! Kennewick continues to be a hot spot in the state, with new housing, new businesses and wonderful new amenities that contribute to our great way of life. We are now in to the second year of our 2019-20 biennial budget and well positioned to continue providing the over 300 services that directly impact our daily lives. Some major projects for 2020:

• Final design is complete for the Ridgeline/395 Intersection in partnership with the Washington Department of Transportation and the project will go out for bid this year. This will provide significantly enhanced connectivity to our growing Southridge area.

• We were recently approved to realign our Urban Growth Area south of Interstate 82 by 240 acres. Less than 4% of our land use has been available for industrial development and this area provides future light industrial and job creation opportunities. Next steps are to work in partnership with property owners and developers to further implement the vision for Southridge.

• Due diligence work this year on our public/private partnership aims to expand the Tri-Cities Convention Center with a performing arts theater and bring a new convention hotel, retail space, residential towers, and exciting new public spaces that all align with the community’s transformational vision for Vista Field.

• Our award-winning partnership with the Port of Kennewick at Vista Field and Columbia Gardens will continue as we work on projects and look for creative financial options — Rural County Capital Funds, legislative efforts and community partnerships. Our partnership with the Port of Kennewick allows us to leverage our individual resources and expertise to implement unique development opportunities that we would not have been able to do as easily alone. These projects are shaping the future of our region, both in the center of the Tri-Cities and along our historic waterfront.

• We continue to work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, in partnership with our neighboring jurisdictions, community stakeholders and federal legislators, on conveyance of Columbia Park. In addition to $500,000 spent annually on park maintenance for land we do not own but lease from the Corps, additional recent investments include the new golf course clubhouse and the partnership with local businesses to rebuild the Toyota of Tri-Cities Playground of Dreams.• Substantial infrastructure investments this year with a 5.7-mile sewer interceptor project, a 10-million-gallon water reservoir replacement and new water transmission lines.

• Continuing the commitments made to our community in fighting criminal gang and drug activity with the public safety sales tax Benton County voters approved in 2014. This funding has supported additional police officers, additional support positions, implementation of a cadet program and an additional mid-shift patrol unit. We will continue to work with Benton County and other partner jurisdictions on a unified strategy to implement our regional program commitments for the safety of our community.

• Work has already begun in developing the 2021-22 budget. One of the tools includes using the results from a Citizen Budget Survey on the budget priorities identified by our businesses and residents. Our budget provides a sustainable strategy to achieve the goals in the five priority areas established by City Council: Responsible Government; Community Safety; Quality of Life; Economic Development; and Infrastructure and Growth.

Preparation and strategic focus has minimized the challenges we face. Our biggest challenge continues to be identifying funding for critical infrastructure projects and closely monitoring proposed State legislation that could negatively affect the City.

The bottom line is that our opportunities outweigh our challenges. These opportunities come from the contributions of hard-working individuals, thriving local businesses and strong community partnerships.

This story was originally published April 23, 2020 at 5:01 PM with the headline "City of Kennewick: Continuing to lead the way!."