Myrtle Reservoir Park ‘soft opening’ set for Wednesday

Seattle Parks just sent word the fence at Myrtle Reservoir Park (35th/Myrtle/Willow; map) will come down on Wednesday. This park has been in the works for four years and has had some speed bumps along the way, including a series of public design meetings in 2008 that grew contentious over the possibility of a skatepark on the site (long since dropped), and a multimillion-dollar problem last year that extended the time needed for Seattle Public Utilities to finish covering the reservoir itself – the project that created the park site in the first place. (The dispute over the waterproofing problem eventually went to court; we’re checking on its status.) The new park has a viewpoint, pathways, and a playground, among other features; this September story took a closer look with a video tour.

Diane November 29, 2010 (12:58 pm)

hurray!!!

MLJ November 29, 2010 (3:55 pm)

I hope the neighbors up there get the contemplative, teenager-free, empty and unused park they wanted so bad in those skatepark meetings.
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I am still ashamed of the behavior of my fellow human beings exhibited during those meetings.
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Meanwhile, the kids are still waiting on the Delridge skatepark, and the middle school kids that were in those Myrtle meetings are in their final year of high school.
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Stay classy Myrtle neighborhood.

Lou November 29, 2010 (7:14 pm)

@MLJ…I hope we get that too. Parent of up-n-coming teenagers in the classy Myrtle Neighborhood.

Oliver November 29, 2010 (8:46 pm)

MLJ – thanks for the broad insult based on a vocal minority. Talk about classy.

Many of us in the classy Myrtle Neighbor, such as myself – the parent of two young boys – would have loved to have a skate park. Nevertheless, at least we now have a playground within walking distance that doesn’t require crossing I-35.

kgdlg November 29, 2010 (11:30 pm)

we live around the corner and cannot wait for this to open!

MLJ November 30, 2010 (2:36 pm)

Well Oliver, if it doesn’t apply to you then you should’t be offended. I had to stand there as the only skater and listen to grown adults refer to skateboarders and teenagers as “criminals” and “degenerates”. The West Seattle Herald disagrees with your account as well, referring to the crowd as “many”.
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Sandra Price actually was quoted as saying:
“It’s not going to be in my backyard. It will be as far away from my backyard as it can be.”
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At this point it’s not even about the skatepark. It’s about adults acting less mature than the kids they apparently hate.
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If you weren’t at the meeting then shame on you for not showing up and speaking up for the skatepark you supposedly want.
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If you were at the meeting, shame on you for not speaking up for your kids when your awful neighbors went on their incredibly biased fear-based witch hunt.
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Enough revisionism, the real story is well documented:
http://seattleskateparks.org/?p=193
http://seattleskateparks.org/?p=262
http://seattleskateparks.org/?p=248
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=578156&hp
https://westseattleblog.com/2008/01/myrtle-reservoir-meeting-skatepark-or-no-skatepark

MLJ November 30, 2010 (2:47 pm)

If classy is sitting there quietly in a public meeting while your neighbors refer to kids as “degenerates” and “criminals”, then count me out.
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As far as I’m concerned, there were two people who spoke up when it got nasty, and they get all my respect. But the rest of that packed room doesn’t represent a “minority” regardless of whether or not they were vocal. If you sat there complicity, you were the silent majority. (I’m not stupid, I know that wasn’t the entire community in that room and not everyone can make those meetings)
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Enjoy the 500th toddler playground in West Seattle and your empty view lot.

Barb November 30, 2010 (3:12 pm)

A skatepark would have been fantastic. But it probably would have been filled with little scootering kids all day anyway. Just look at the dahl playfield skatepark for example. I really hope that delridge skatepark gets on track and finished before summer. I dont even care who builds it at this point.

Sorry, comment time is over.