Update: Highland Park Spraypark will open tomorrow!

| Highland Park | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

(Seattle Parks photo from spraypark testing earlier this month)
Less than an hour after we last checked with the Seattle Parks project manager for the new Highland Park Spraypark, Kelly Goold, he’s written back with big news: They JUST got approval from King County Public Health, and the spraypark opens tomorrow – just in time for the heat wave! It’s at 11th and Cloverdale (map).

2:11 PM UPDATE: Just checked on the hours: 11 am-8 pm. An official community celebration is expected later this summer, probably August, when a nearby art project is complete. The spraypark has been four years in the making. We had first word in July 2009 that the old wading pool would be converted. Then in early 2010, Carolyn Stauffer (now co-chair of Highland Park Action Committee) circulated a proposal to seek more Parks and Green Spaces Levy Opportunity Fund dollars to add to the functionality and sustainability of the spraypark. It eventually won approval; community meetings began in May 2011, and the spraypark was built this year.

Westside June 27, 2013 (1:05 pm)

Awesome.

sam-c June 27, 2013 (1:22 pm)

hooray! looking forward to it.
thanks to Seattle Parks and EVERYONE else (contractor, consultant, etc) for this!

WSB June 27, 2013 (1:33 pm)

There’s a whole lot of backstory on this and we’ll be adding a few links here – I’m waiting for word on what time they throw the switch – but one big acknowledgment is Carolyn Stauffer, who, long before she became HPAC co-chair, put together the request for Parks Opportunity Fund dollars to make this more than an old wading pool with a sprinkler head (seriously, the original Parks plan was little more than that) – we covered so many presentations, meetings, etc.; that kind of process, as all neighborhood advocate/activists know, is a LONG slog through red tape and bureaucracy, taking time and energy and perseverance. I hope it’s a whole lot of fun for kids from all over West Seattle. – TR

sam-c June 27, 2013 (1:36 pm)

yes- thank you Carolyn !!!

low bridge June 27, 2013 (1:46 pm)

Yes!

christie June 27, 2013 (1:52 pm)

OH MY GOODNESS!!!! Yes and with the free lunch/snack program in the park the kids will have something to do all day.

Meg June 27, 2013 (2:01 pm)

I live on this block and it’s actually kind of a let down that it’s so small. For the cost and time put into it, it’s a couple sprinklers on cement. I was thinking (and hoping) it would be at least on foam material of some sort like the other Seattle spray parks. I’m curious to know why this cost so much and took so long? Hopefully kids over 3yrs of age will be able to enjoy this spray park without getting hurt.

WSB June 27, 2013 (2:10 pm)

A large part of the cost is the infrastructure – recirculating water so there’s little evaporation. You can see some of it in our 2011 story from the first public meeting about the project:
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https://westseattleblog.com/2011/05/highland-park-sprayground-centerstage-for-hp-action-committee
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which points to the background of Carolyn’s initial proposal to expand the project:
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https://westseattleblog.com/2010/01/excited-about-a-west-seattle-spray-park-help-pump-up-the-plan

Andi June 27, 2013 (2:50 pm)

Woooohoooo! Just in time for the predicted heatwave!!

AJP June 27, 2013 (4:50 pm)

YES YES YES!!!!! Can’t wait! We’ll be there!

pupsarebest June 27, 2013 (10:50 pm)

Looks great to me—but I’m of an era where we had fun playing in a simple lawn sprinkler on hot Summer days.
If I know kids, they’ll find little to complain about. ;)

cs in hp June 28, 2013 (9:20 am)

Thanks Tracy and all, especially to the community for showing up and giving feedback to Parks and Site Workshop about what you wanted to see here. Excited that it’s finally opening and hope that it’ll absorb a lot of kids! picnic tables and artwork coming soon… and then access from Cloverdale and Thistle waiting final approval in this round of Opportunity Funds, so a few more years for that to be implemented… stay tuned!

Lisa June 30, 2013 (2:57 pm)

Thank you to all the wonderful people that dreamed this idea and worked to make it a reality!

Sarah July 1, 2013 (10:07 pm)

What are the days & hours of operation going forward? Some of the wading pools are only filled on certain days so I didn’t know if this operated 7 days/week.