As I poked around downtown Bothell last week, I peered through a fence over by the old Bothell Landing and noticed a flock of ducks cruising through the grass.

Who knows where they were headed, but in less than two years, cars are scheduled to be driving through that same area when State Route 522 is realigned. That’s just one change on tap for the 102-year-old city of Bothell, which recently received a 2011 Municipal Excellence Award for economic development on its downtown revitalization project.

It’s commendable to receive a prestigious award before the work is done, which means there’s plenty of action awaiting residents, business owners and city officials on the horizon.

Even those folks who drive through Bothell every day want to know what’s going on. People ask me all the time about the downtown plans — and this issue is dedicated to giving people an update on the city’s progress. Starting on page 1 and rolling through to page 8, you can read all about Bothell and its neighbor up the road, Kenmore,  and what they have in store for us over the next few years and beyond.

While the news is mostly good, not everything’s perfect. Some residents interviewed for these stories support change and like the city’s plans, but others don’t agree with everything that the city leaders have in store for them and their neighbors.

We won’t always approve of everything — whether it be how much plaza space goes into the city-center campus, what amenities to add to the park or if too much was spent on a new city hall — but that’s life.

I did find a common thread in all my interviews: hope.

People like where they live and they’re crossing their fingers that everything will turn out fine and they’ll enjoy their hometown even more after all the changes take place.

It’s all about progress, trying to move things into the future, but still maintain the charm of a 102-year-old city like Bothell or help a 13-year-old city like Kenmore (with more than 100 years of history) continue to grow and thrive.