26th/Dakota project: ‘Green, welcoming place’ across the street


Last Monday, we published an update on the 193-unit apartment project that’s now under construction at 26th/Dakota. Then that night, developer and architect representatives visited the North Delridge Neighborhood Council meeting to present their newest plan for undeveloped city right-of-way across the street that they see as a neighborhood mini-park with access to Longfellow Creek. They said they are hoping to create a “green, welcoming place” as an asset for not only residents of their building, but others who live in the area.

The design is above (see an expanded version here); they are asking for comments before they take it to the Seattle Design Commission for review, which is required since it is city right-of-way. (They are not seeking a street vacation, anticipating instead to have an annual permit for use of the area.)

The area connects to a stairway, and also has to provide access for city crews to change lights. Other than that, the project team hopes the improvements will “create some clarity for the space,” which currently isn’t even recognizable as potential public access. They’re suggesting a simple walkway topped with as-yet-undetermined material, “maybe even asphalt”; the dark green you see in the rendering is “grass-crete.” The project team says the trees they hope to plant are no taller than 15 feet, and the shrubbery would be below knee-level. They’re also working to have as little impact on west-side-of-the-street parking as possible. They are proposing a curb-bulb feature to help pedestrians and provide “traffic-calming.”

In addition to paying to create it, the project/ownership/management team (headed at this phase by Legacy Partners and Barrientos LLC) will be accountable for paying for the annual permit and maintenance. They are also extensively landscaping their side of the street (where dozens of pre-existing trees were taken out for the parking-garage excavation) in hopes of “trying to add a lot more lushness to the area,” as Hewitt ArchitectsKris Snider told the NDNC meeting. If you have comments on the “mini-park,” send them to Steffenie Evans at Legacy Partners, sevans@legacypartners.com.

(As previously reported here, the project team also is gearing up for an extensive art-procurement process targeting local artists; here’s that story from earlier in the week.)

3 Replies to "26th/Dakota project: 'Green, welcoming place' across the street"

  • Joyless November 18, 2011 (2:25 pm)

    I am happy to see this comprehensive update.
    I attended the meeting that included four members of the project team there to present their project.
    Unfortunately, one neighbor in attendance repeatedly interrupted the presentation with uninformed selfish questions. Even after she was told that the library had to close the meeting space in five minutes, she continued to interrupt and stymie the presentation of the project. Because of her domination, we were denied the complete presentation. I suspect he four people involved in the project left frustrated, as did I.
    I hope in the future the person chairing such meetings respects the rights and desires of the majority and the developers to hear such well thought-out and planned presentations.

  • Jake November 18, 2011 (3:22 pm)

    Very excited about this, and how it fits in to neighbors’ visions for the 26th Ave SW greenway. It looks like a great use of that right-of-way.

  • Mike Dady November 30, 2011 (11:03 am)

    I wonder about the feasibility of diverting some of the storm water runoff from the west side of 26th into a runnel that would flow through the Dakota Street ROW and then cascade down into Longfellow Creek.

    I believe the current situation is finding all the storm water along 26th flowing into a tightline drain system and ending up in the creek anyway and that by having stormwater flowing into the creek within view of people walking by it might serve as an educational tool as to where all the water goes after being saturated with lawn fertilizer, engine oil, etc.

    http://www.penick.net/digging/images/Harris%20Blvd%20Garden/8%20Runnel%20curving%20along%20path.JPG

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