City of Kenmore receives 2014 Municipal Excellence Award

Kenmore City Hall

The City of Kenmore was awarded the 2014 Municipal Excellence Award for Process Streamlining from the Association of Washington Cities. Kenmore is the only city to have received this award two years in a row.

“We are thrilled to be recognized for our lean management work,” said Rob Karlinsey, Kenmore’s city manager. “This was a collaborative effort between the City and the building community and optimizes our permitting processing for land-use and engineering.”

Kenmore’s Development Services Department anticipates saving 722 hours from the permitting process as a result of this lean implementation. The City worked with Results Driven and relevant city personnel to find areas of opportunity for lean management improvements. The project culminated with a daylong lean exercise that included internal team members and local partners from the building community.

“The City is committed to continuing its work to provide an efficient, competitive permitting process,” Karlinsey also stated. “We hope our no nonsense permitting process will be attractive to many developers and builders as our region continues to grow.”

The Association of Washington Cities provides support for cities and towns throughout Washington State. This is the 24th year for the Association of Washington Cities’ Municipal Excellence Awards, which aim to recognize innovative projects that significantly improve the quality of life for citizens, establish partnerships and build community support.

The City of Kenmore accepted the award on June 20 during the AWC’s Annual Conference in Spokane.