Evenings On Park Lane Returns To Kirkland For The Season

KIRKLAND, WA — Evenings on Park Lane returned to Kirkland for another year Thursday, opening up the downtown core for more pedestrians and cyclists to enjoy local businesses every evening through October.

After initially launching as "Summer Sundays" in 2019, the city expanded the program during the pandemic to close off a stretch of Park Lane to vehicle traffic every night, making it easier to patronize businesses and restaurants and allowing eateries to expand their outdoor capacity.

Between May 26 and Oct. 2., drivers should expect the west end of Park Lane, between Lake Street and Main Street, to be closed to vehicles from 6 p.m. to around 11 p.m., when the last restaurants close.

During the nightly closures, visitors will have a car-free pathway running through the downtown waterfront, transit center, Peter Kirk Park and Kirkland Urban. City officials said the summer program has shown to be effective in supporting local businesses through the summer months, and the final timeline was arrived at based on public input from residents and business owners.

Last year, the Kirkland City Council approved the program through 2022 and will consider plans for upcoming summers at a later date.

Learn more about taking part in Evenings on Park Lane on the city's website.