Willow’s Place, a local organization dedicated to feeding the homeless, is hosting a fundraiser in May to continue to feed and provide basic needs to homeless families and individuals.

Thursday, May 10, 2012
Willow’s Place
214 N. Washington, Kent, WA  98030
Breakfast Fundraiser
7:30 – 9:00 a.m.

Breakfast is being donated by Down Home Catering, Golden Steer Steak ‘n Rib House and Maggie’s on Meeker.

Raffle tickets will be available for purchase to win gift baskets. Tickets are 6 for $5.00 or 25 tickets for $20.

To RSVP for the event, or to sponsor the event, contact Sally Goodgion at 253-852-0880.

The organization is also accepting donations. Checks can be mailed to Willow’s Place, c/o HomeStreet Bank, 505 W. Harrison St., Kent, WA  98032, Attention:  Oriana Pon.

Items Needed:  Paper plates, trash bags, napkins and coffee.

Contributed by Nathan Box, Kent Youth & Family Services

On May 2, 1,200+ nonprofits will ask for your support during the Seattle Foundation’s 2nd Annual GiveBIG. We are one of those nonprofits. Our difference is clear though. We are right here in your community. Every dollar donated to Kent Youth and Family Services stays right here in South King County. In fact, your dollars go to work providing Youth/Family & Substance Abuse Counseling to residents of Covington and youth and families throughout the Kent School District. They also provide Outreach services at three King County Housing Authority sites, as well as transitional housing to homeless single moms and learning opportunities to 400+ kids in our Head Start/ECEAP program. Our services powered by your generosity supports 8,000 individuals in our community every year.

So, from midnight to midnight (Pacific Time) on May 2, join the Seattle Foundation as they host their 2nd annual GiveBIG. The goal is to turn out thousands of new and returning individual donors to help support local nonprofits. Donations will be stretched further thanks to individuals donors and business sponsors like Seattle Sounders FC, Microsoft, Seattle International Foundation, JP Morgan Chase, Russell Investments, Starbucks and more.

KYFS is excited to participate in this local day of giving. To support us directly, visit our Seattle Foundation page on May 2.

Thanks in advance for the support. Happy Giving.

Working toward a better future,

Nathan H. Box
Fund Developer and Community Relations Manager
Kent Youth & Family Services
nathanb@kyfs.org
(253) 859-0300 Ext. 3045
www.kyfs.org

Seattle, Washington, April 3, 2012 – TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® of Seattle launches Movers for Moms®, a local campaign to collect personal items and creature comforts for mothers living at DAWN’s House, a domestic violence shelter serving South King County. True to its mission of being “movers who care,” TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® of Seattle will accept donations of robes, slippers, socks, brushes, combs and other personal items to be distributed Mother’s Day weekend.

The program was started in 2008, but this is the first year TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® of Seattle will be participating in the program. The program has spread to 24 states and more than 80 TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® franchises. This year’s goal is to collect more than 100,000 items for moms in need across the country.

Collections for Movers for Moms® begin this Friday with a kick off at Shoreline Christian School, a drop off site for the program. During the event, TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® of Seattle representatives from the Kent and Kirkland locations will pass out flyers describing Movers for Moms®, hand out coloring sheets and crayons, hear from a DAWN representative, and ask kids and their families to “Help Mom” this Mother’s Day. Other drop off sites include Renton Chamber of Commerce, Kent Downtown Partnership, the Mint in Enumclaw and iLoveKent.net. Donations will be accepted now through Friday, May 11.

“DAWN’s House relies on the generosity of the community members and partners like TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® of Seattle to provide abuse survivors with much needed items during their stay,” said DAWN’s House Director Andrea Paine. “Most women arrive at our shelter with very few belongings, so even items that seem small can make a huge difference in a woman’s day and in her entire experience of starting over.”

The idea behind the program is to collect items and gifts in honor of Mother’s Day for women and children currently staying at local women’s shelters like DAWN’s House, because all moms should have something to celebrate on Mother’s Day, regardless of their situation. Suggested items include new or gently used clothing and shoes; personal products such as soap, deodorant and lotions; new and gently-used toys and games; books and magazines; and DVDs and CDs.

“As active members of the community, we see parents and families in all kinds of different living situations. Seeing abused mothers and children is one of the most heartbreaking,” said Glenna Clendenen of TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® of Seattle. “We want to do our part to make this one weekend special for moms who give their all every day. We invite our communities to help by making donations to help moms in need.”

To learn more about the program, or to find out how you might help, contact TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® of Seattle at (253) 656-4322 or visit TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® of Seattle online.

About DAWN’s House:

Dawn’s House is the only confidential domestic violence shelter for women and their children in South King County. The shelter serves women with children from birth to age 18, and provides an array of advocacy and services including support groups, housing search assistance, children’s groups, mental health and legal and one-to-one advocacy. For more information about DAWN, visit http://dawnonline.org.

About TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® of Seattle:

The Seattle area franchise of TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® is owned by husband and wife team Rick and Glenna Clendenen. The firm serves the Seattle area out of offices located in Kent and Kirkland and actively participates in the communities it serves. TWO MEN AND A TRUCK© offers a full-range of residential and commercial moving services, senior move management, packing services, supplies and workshops. To learn more about TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® of Seattle, visit them online at http://twomenandatruckseattle.com or call (253) 656-4322.

For more information, contact:

Glenna Clendenen
TWO MEN AND A TRUCK© of Seattle
1119 Central Ave. S., Ste. 203, Kent, WA  98032
(253) 656-4322
Glenna.Clendenen@twomen.com
http://twomenandatruckseattle.com

To:    City of Kent, Council and Mayor

Re:    Proposed UGM Homeless Shelter

A Different Open Letter to the City of Kent

A subject with as much potential for polarizing various sects of the community must be discussed with a wide angle perspective.  Where there are many who would consider themselves interested parties, it is imperative that none of the interested parties be seen as more important, and certainly should be no more influential, than any other.  The recent reactions from a couple of Kent business owners, whose implication of representing the opinions of the majority of business owners is unfounded, should not be allowed to reduce the issues at hand to merely a question of money, industry and their view of progress.

I too am a longtime resident of Kent.  I have owned a business in Kent, have many commercial clients on whom my livelihood depends that are based in Kent and I have long been involved with working with two of the fine organizations that serve the homeless in Kent.  I disagree with Mike Hanis’ statement that we are all “warriors in the battle against homelessness”.  Sadly, some of the initial reaction to this very attractive proposal to improve the service levels to our least fortunate indicates that many are reluctant spectators willing to pretend that Kent does not already suffer the negative consequences of homelessness.

This proposal can be evaluated using any number of criteria.  Critical in my view is that, simply put, the population of homeless on the streets of Kent exists right now, and according to estimates, in significant numbers.  Services currently providing evening meals have no provision or resources for providing services during the day.  Our homeless population is left to wander the streets, often in retail centers or in the library.  Loitering is prohibited, but moving a person does not make the person any less real in their next location.  Inadequate public restroom facitities presents an obvious problem, leading to the necessity of using city park and retail restrooms, and of course inappropriate places.  People without shelter add a burden to police and other public services both in time and resources.

The Union Gospel Mission proposal addresses these concerns, and what’s more, they’ll pay for it, offering to fund all operating costs of the proposed facility in return for rent-free use of the space.  UGM mandates that overnight guests are drug and alcohol free, dispelling speculation that those guests would be a threat to neighboring businesses at night.  The shelter would provide meals and restroom facilities that would reduce panhandling and using our outdoors as bathrooms.  The shelter would provide a place for the homeless to go by day, reducing the burden on the library and other public facilities.  UGM provides drug and alcohol programs.  And although I am loathe to engage in the type of speculation that opponents have demonstrated, it does stand to reason that sheltering the homeless at night will reduce the burden on police services.   

It is not imperative that we even discuss so-called “warm fuzzy” aspects of the proposed shelter to see its value.  Certainly there is a significant humanitarian aspect to the proposal, perhaps best dealt with by those who see a city as more than just a conglomeration of money-generating businesses.  But we can evaluate this proposal in more practical terms.  The negative issues of a significant homeless population exist in Kent now.  The strain on public facilities and services is real.   The quality of life in Kent can be improved when citizens are not faced with their fellow citizens urinating on their front lawn and clogging the library because they have nowhere else to go.  And finally, a significant portion of the homeless population is in transition; homeless by misfortune and needing a safe place to rest and set their belongings as they seek work and permanent shelter.

A city is a living community, dedicated to the welfare of all its citizens in a dynamic array of interconnected relationships, where the good for one should benefit the many.  Kent, as the sixth largest city in Washington, has to face all of the issues of a growing city, and cannot avoid or procrastinate on the negative issues hoping they will solve themselves.  This proposal is attractive, well conceived and presented by an organization with the infrastructure and experience to manage the facility and perform as excellent city partners.

Eric Greiling
[Address Provided But Withheld by Publisher]

Reprinted with permission from Kent resident Eric Greiling

To: City of Kent, Council and Mayor

Re: Proposed UGM Homeless Shelter

An Open Letter to the City of Kent:

I have some thoughts on the Homeless Shelter being proposed by Union Gospel Mission (UGM) for the Kent Resource Center.  At the outset, let’s get a few distractions out of the way. 

First, Few in our City object to services for the homeless.  I certainly do not.  We know that our tax dollars are used for those services.  We are okay with that.  Many of us also donate and volunteer for that cause.

Second, Nearly all of us have a warm spot in our heart for Union Gospel Mission. 

Third, An issue like this quickly gets entangled in political correctness and warm fuzzies.  In this economy, those are niceties we cannot afford.  This decision needs to be by a process that is clear-eyed and hard-headed.  People’s livelihoods and Kent’s business vitality and resurgence depend on the City not botching this.

Fourth, and finally, We do not concede the high ground – that somehow UGM and the other proponents of the shelter have an exclusive on the side of the angels.  We are ALL warriors in the battle against homelessness.  Organizations like UGM are on one flank of the frontline in that battle – they are working to get folks who are homeless out of that situation.  We businesses are on the other flank of that same frontline – we are working to keep folks from becoming homeless.  I believe that the risks we businesses take, and the investments and sacrifices we make for our businesses are every bit as honorable, virtuous and praiseworthy as what our allies like the UGM are doing on the other end of the front line in this battle.  I challenge any implication that we are somehow being less compassionate as we take a position to protect the businesses in our City.

I am a long-time Kent resident and business owner.  For several years I have had a special interest in the vitality of our Downtown.  I am immediate Past-President of the Kent Downtown Partnership (KDP), which has as its mission the revitalization of the downtown retail area by helping the businesses there prosper.  My comments here, however, are my own and are not intended to represent the position of the KDP or of my company.  My business is located a couple of miles from the proposed shelter site (we’re on the West Valley Highway about a half mile from Showare), so we are not physically impacted by the shelter.  My business depends in substantial part, however, on the vitality of our fellow Kent businesses, so we do consider ourselves a stakeholder in this process.

The City, the KDP, and the Chamber have made real progress over the past several years in revitalizing the retail business district in downtown Kent.  It has been very difficult, and the successes we have had are incremental and precarious.  Even under the best of circumstances, it would not take much to tip the balance back the other way, and we could find ourselves once again facing increased vacancies, derelict buildings, blight, and the homelessness that goes along with that.  At the meeting sponsored by the KDP and the Chamber last Wednesday, representatives of several of the City’s retail success stories (grocers, restaurants, professional offices, salons, Kent Station) were nearly unanimous in the view that a shelter in that location would harm the successes they’ve achieved at the expense of their blood, sweat, tears and financial commitment in our City.

I was particularly struck by the comments of one of the owners of the Hong Kong Market, located right next to the proposed shelter.  He has been polling their customers, and nearly all have told him they would be afraid to shop there with a shelter next door, particularly after dark.   Most of their customers are women, many accompanied by children.  That’s a company that employs over 40 people.  Guess where many of them could end up if that business fails.  Several proponents of the shelter seemed to disapprove (lots of murmuring and head-shaking) at the suggestion that the Market’s customers would be afraid to shop with a homeless shelter nearby; “homelessness is not a crime” they said.  To be blunt, it really doesn’t matter why his customers would stop shopping there.  The brutal reality is that a business that loses its customers for good causes, or for bad causes, or even for politically incorrect causes, is just as ruined.  Its workers are just as unemployed.  Its space is just as empty.  And its surroundings become just as blighted.

Our City Council members are good people.  But so far as I know, not one of them is a Downtown business owner.  The “experts” on the subject of what it takes to run a successful business in the Kent retail area – particularly in that part of town – are not our politicians, and are not the good folks from the UGM and KentHope.  They are those business owners who have committed their lives and fortunes to businesses in that part of town.  What did those folks say?  Not here!  It would be the height of arrogance, and a slap in the face of our business community for our City to ignore them and substitute its judgment for theirs. 

A final thought.  This location may not even be the most beneficial to the City’s efforts to deal with homelessness.  Please consider putting the same money and effort to the benefit of our many existing services who already make a valiant commitment to deal with the homeless in Kent.  Their infrastructure is in place; and they have the local expertise.  Resources may be far better spent helping them in their mission than in bringing in a new player.  If UGM comes, and if it has the negative effects many of us believe are inevitable, it will put a stigma on all such agencies and efforts, damaging them all in their mission. 

I urge the City to return to the drawing board on this one.  Your hearts are in the right place, but this is just a bad idea.

Mike Hanis

Michael M. Hanis
HANIS IRVINE PROTHERO PLLC
Attorneys at Law
6703 S. 234th Street Suite 300
Kent, WA 98032
(253) 520-5000

www.hiplawfirm.com

[Note from publisher Dana Neuts:  This is a controversial issue in downtown Kent. It seems that there are two very distinct sides. At iLoveKent.net, we encourage discussion and comments, and will publish opposing views. Please post your comments to this letter, or send your own letter to us via email for publication.]

Contributed by Michelle Wilmot, Community & Public Affairs, with the City of Kent

Photo Courtesy of the City of Kent

The City of Kent announces the return of its Neighborhood Matching Grant Program for 2012.  Designed to stimulate community projects that build strong neighborhoods, grants are available to groups of residents who have formed Neighborhood Councils.

“The Neighborhood Matching Grant Fund is a component of Kent’s Neighborhood Program, where residents are encouraged to work together to make improvements to their neighborhoods, develop a sense of community, and build relationships with each other,” said Toni Azzola, Kent’s Neighborhood Program Coordinator.  “The Matching Grant Fund gives residents a little extra incentive to do that.”

Azzola encourages residents to use their imaginations and says projects eligible for grant funding can include such things as signage for neighborhood entrances, landscaping for traffic circles and retention ponds, planting of trees, shrubs, or bulbs, clean-up events, and neighborhood newsletters. 

“Residents often tell me they’d like to do a project but have lacked the resources to get it accomplished.  These grant funds provide some financial assistance and help them to make a difference in their neighborhoods,” Azzola said.

Neighborhood Grant Matching Funds are awarded on a competitive basis.   Community contribution of volunteer labor, professional services or cash is “matched” by a 50% grant. 

Grant projects are evaluated by a Grant Review Team and selected based on criteria including neighborhood participation, benefit to the public, planning, scope of work and maintenance of the project after it is completed.

“Over the past few years, some great projects were funded.  I look forward to seeing this year’s applications and I’m excited about helping Neighborhood Councils achieve their goals,” Azzola said.

Matching grant applications are due Monday, April 2 for funding in 2012.   Only recognized Neighborhood Council’s are eligible to apply.

For information on forming a Neighborhood Council or to obtain a Matching Grant application, visit www.KentNeighborhoodProgram.com or call Toni Azzola at 253-856-5708.

Kent, Washington, March 14, 2012 – Marti Reeder, local real estate broker and agent, has been named one of the 2011 President’s Elite by J. Lennox Scott, CEO and Chairman for John L. Scott Real Estate. This honor is presented to fewer than 3% of John L. Scott Western Washington realtors. Reeder is one of 3,200 brokers and agents working for John L. Scott in the Western Region.

Operating out of John L. Scott’s Kent-Covington office, Reeder has won a President’s Award each year since 2007. In addition to this award, Reeder closed 30 transactions in 2011 and was named a Five Star Real Estate Agent, Best in Client Satisfaction by Seattle magazine in December 2011, for the second year in a row. She has also been named “Best of Kent” for three straight years and was a finalist in 2011.

“I work really hard to provide my clients with the best possible real estate experience, so it is exciting to see that both my industry and my clients recognize and appreciate my dedication to them,” says Reeder. “It’s also great to work in the same industry with my husband. I have the best job!”

With more than 25 years of industry experience, Reeder specializes in buying and selling residential homes in the Puget Sound. Born and raised in Seattle, Reeder prides herself on her knowledge of the area, including a lifetime resident’s perspective on local schools, neighborhoods and amenities. She lives in the Kent area with her children and husband Merle, a Commercial Roofing Salesman and Remodeling Contractor for 30+ years.

In addition to her real estate work, Reeder is active in the Kent and Covington communities. She is a member of the Kent Chamber of Commerce, Covington Chamber of Commerce, Kent Downtown Partnership and the Kiwanis Club of Kent. For the second year in a row, she is sponsoring a Relay for Life team called Friends 4 Life. For more information about Reeder, visit http://www.martireeder.com. You can also find Reeder on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.

For more information, contact Marti Reeder at 253-859-8500 or 206-391-0388.

At Kent Mayor Suzette Cooke’s annual State of the City address today, Mayor Cooke asked businesses to participate in  helping the city out of the economic downturn.

“This is your city,” Mayor Cooke said. “Be a part of the solution.”

Mayor Cooke was referring specifically to the city’ significant revenue losses – including a 32% reduction in sales tax revenue and a 75% reduction in real estate tax revenue. The city’s administration and seven-member Kent City Council have been tasked with finding ways to continue offering critical services with fewer staff and less money. Among the creative solutions being considered are imposing a local Business & Occupation (B&O) tax and creating a transportation benefit district. Mayor Cooke asked businesses to stay or become engaged with the city to help it find solutions for expensive problems like the$3 million price tag to remove sandbags along the Green River.

The two-term Kent mayor highlighted several projects in the works, including the Kent City Center project which will replace the now-demolished parking garage that was located at Smith and Fourth in downtown Kent.

“It was such a dream that went awry,” she said.

But she is encouraged to see Kent City Center in the works, a five-story, 164-unit mixed use building go up to include residential units with corresponding parking, lower level retail space and 35 parking stalls for downtown shoppers and visitors. In addition to this project, the economic development department is working on a bid to the GSA and FAA to bring a 2,000 employee facility to downtown Kent. There are other properties under consideration, including nearby Renton, but the Mayor is optimistic that Kent will be considered a strong candidate.

Another portion of her discussion focused on infrastructure and the importance of maintaining and upgrading it as needed. With nine top tier suppliers to Boeing in Kent, Mayor Cooke stressed the importance of being smart with our educational and infrastructure decisions, particularly in meeting the needs of the aerospace industry.

“We cannot let our infrastructure deteriorate,” she said.

Inviting Kent Chamber president-elect Ken Sharp and executive director Andrea Keikkala, Kent City Council President Dennis Higgins, KDP president Dawn Colston and executive Barb Smith to join her on stage, Mayor Suzette Cooke urged each of them to be part of Kent’s solution, asking each of them to hold hands and recite their commitment to the City of Kent.

She closed with a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr.:  “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about the things that matter.”

Updated March 14, 2012 — Kent Downtown Partnership and Kent Chamber of Commerce are hosting a community forum for area businesses to hear from Kent Hope and Union Gospel Mission (UGM) and to voice their support and/or concerns about the proposed location of the shelter. The business event will be held Wed., Mar. 13 at ShoWare Center from 5 to 7 p.m. For more information, call KDP at 253-813-6976.

In recent weeks, the City of Kent has restarted a discussion on how to best use the vacant Resource Center on the corner of 3rd and East Meeker in downtown Kent. The issue was discussed in 2011 but a citizen’s panel did not believe any proposals submitted were viable options. The City is looking at the issue again.

This time the idea of a homeless shelter has been proposed. While there is no question that homelessness is an important issue in our community, several issues need to be carefully considered. Is a homeless shelter the best use of the Resource Center? Is this location the best spot in Kent for a homeless shelter? How would it impact downtown residents and businesses? In addition, with the city’s budget so tight, does Kent have the funds to renovate, maintain and run the building? If not, is an organization like the Union Gospel Mission who has been named as a potential resource the best option for operating the building? Who will pay for the project?

The potential use of the Resource Center as a homeless shelter has been spurring discussions throughout downtown at local organizations like the Kent Chamber, the Kent City Council and the Kent Downtown Partnership.  I encourage you to visit the links below to educate yourself on the City’s options and to respond with your comments here. I also encourage you to contact your city council members to share your thoughts. As residents and business owners, we need to make our voices heard.

Thank you,

Dana Neuts, owner/publisher
iLoveKent.net

In the interest of full disclosure, my business is located on Kent’s East Hill. However, I am a member of the Kent Chamber and I serve as the Interim Secretary on the Board of Directors for the Kent Downtown Partnership.

Kent City Council, Feb. 21, 2012, Kent TV21

Kent Reporter, Letter to the Editor by Kent Chamber Executive Director Andrea Keikkala

Direct Link to Kent Chamber Letter

Kent Chamber Survey – What Do You Think?

Updated, Jan. 20–Shelter will also be open this evening, Fri., Jan. 20.

Because of the snowstorm and its accompanying cold temperatures, the City of Kent is opening the Kent Severe Weather Shelter at the Kent Lutheran Church tonight, Jan. 18 through Fri., Jan. 20. Here are the details:

Location:  Kent Lutheran Church, 336 2nd Ave. S., Kent, WA  98032

Check-in and registration:  9 p.m.  (all guests must register)

Shelter closes, guests must leave:  7 a.m.

The shelter is giving priority to homeless families with children who are living on the streets or in their vehicles. Men and women without children are also welcome. There is separate sleeping space available for families, men and women.

The Severe Weather Shelter is operated by Catholic Community Services staff and volunteers from the Kent Lutheran Church and Kent community.

To locate shelters in Renton, Federal Way, Bellevue and Seattle, dial 2-1-1.

If you know of a homeless person or family who needs shelter, please share this information with them.

For the second year in a row, Seattle magazine names Kent Realtor® Marti Reeder of John L. Scott a Five Star Professional Real Estate Agent. Only real estate agents rated highest in overall satisfaction were selected. Winning this award puts Reeder in a select group of Seattle Five Star Real Estate Agents, representing fewer than 6% of real estate agents in the area.

To determine the winners of the 2011 Five Star Professional Real Estate Agents awards, Five Star Professional surveyed Seattle residents who purchased a home over $150,000 within an 18-month period (Aug. 2009 – Feb. 2011), 1,000 subscribers of Seattle magazine and 250 mortgage and title company representatives. Top agents were also screened to ensure that their licenses are current and that there is no disciplinary action pending against them. Only those with the top scores were awarded the title Five Star Real Estate Agent in Overall Satisfaction, including Reeder, a full-time broker/real estate agent with John L. Scott in Kent and Covington.

In addition to this prestigious award, Reeder has received President’s Awards from John L. Scott every year since 2007, has won top producer and top resale awards at John L. Scott in 2011, and was voted “Best of Kent” Realtor® by readers of the Kent Reporter three years in a row. In July 2010, Reeder was nominated for the Business Examiner’s “Women of Influence.” With more than 25 years of industry experience, she has earned the following professional designations:  Certified Residential Specialist (CRS), Accredited Buyer’s Representative (ABR) and Accredited Seller’s Representative (ASR). She is also an Accredited Staging Professional and a Certified Pre-Foreclosure Specialist.

“It is such an honor to win this award two years in a row,” Reeder said. “It means so much to me that my clients appreciate my attention to detail and continue to refer me to their friends. I am blessed, doing the work I love.”

For more information about Reeder, visit http://www.marti-realtor.com or call 206-391-0388. To learn more about Marti’s Five Star Real Estate Agent distinction, visit http://www.pageturnpro.com/Crescendo-Business-Services/32866-2011-SEARE-Marti-Reeder/index.html#1

As a lifelong resident of King County, Reeder is a full-time, full-service real estate broker. She has a wide range of experience in mortgages, home inspections and real estate. Starting her real estate career with John L. Scott over seven years ago, Reeder specializes in working with individuals and families to buy and sell their homes throughout the Seattle area. In 2011, she helped more than 30 families sell or buy new homes.

After many months of trying to regain control of the unfinished parking garage at 4th and Smith Streets in downtown Kent, folks like Kurt Hanson from the City of Kent’s Economic Development Department are excited to see progress. In fact, after all of the hard work to get rid of the garage, Hanson said at today’s KDP Downtown Breakfast Hour that he ate his lunch near the demolition site several days last week to watch the garage’s destruction.

“It was very therapeutic,” Hanson said.

In its place, a new development called Kent City Center Town Square Apartments is being planned. Owned by Goodman Real Estate, Studio Meng Strazzara is working on plans for the  a mixed-used development, an urban style apartment complex with retail space and resident parking, in Kent’s downtown core. As the designs currently look, the development will sit four stories high and include 164 apartments ranging from studios to two bedroom apartments. The focus of the development will be on residential living with a grand lobby entrance and amenities for residents and a rooftop terrace.

“This is exactly what downtown Kent needs,” explained Charles Strazzara, registered architect for Studio Meng Strazzara.

The design review and permitting process will begin in November with building starting as early as next summer. Construction is expected to take approximately 16 months, so start to finish, the Town Square Apartment project could be ready for leasing in about two years.

“We’re excited,” Strazzara said. “We’re all really committed to making this happen.”

I remember one of my very first encounters on the Sounder train, heading back to downtown Kent from a Seattle Mariners game. The man sitting next to me said, “I’m sorry,” as I got up for my stop. When I asked why, he said, “you live in the armpit of South King County.” That was several years ago, and I didn’t agree with him then. After all, I really do love Kent, and I’ve always thought it had a lot of potential.

After attending Kent Downtown Partnership’s Downtown Breakfast Hour this morning, I know he was wrong, and I’m not the only one who thinks so. Business owners, managers, representatives from the city and community members gathered to hear about all of the growth in downtown Kent.

Here are just a few of the exciting things in the works:

- Demolition of the unfinished parking garage

- Development of Kent City Center, a mixed use property on Smith Street between 4th and 2nd Streets

- Opening of Cal’s Classic American, a new restaurant at Kent Station

- Opening of a second location for Airways Brewing Co. on Meeker Street

- Improvements to downtown buildings and streetscapes

Kent, Washington is not perfect. Like all cities, it has its brights spots as well as its blight. But it has character. It has passion. It has residents who love it and believe in its feature. I’m one of them. Are you?