18 Replies to "LOWMAN BEACH: Next step for sport-court proposal"

• Craig October 4, 2020 (7:32 pm)

  I’d prefer to keep this area natural and all of its space usable by everyone. What a great opportunity to bring back a space to closer to natural. I don’t think it’s a good idea to take up 1/4 of the park just for people to maybe play a game of tennis when there’s a 6 court tennis area just up the hill…one with parking, fences for capturing balls, and more. The counter point of ‘but this court has a water view’,  or ‘but it’s been a tennis court for a long time’ isn’t good enough. 

• oakley34 October 4, 2020 (8:16 pm)

  Completely agree. Well said Craig.

• Kadoo October 4, 2020 (8:21 pm)

  I’m with Craig. Also — should the link to the meeting be posted in public like this? Last time I attended a meeting with a public link it was zoom bombed. 

  • WSB October 4, 2020 (8:26 pm)

    We have covered dozens of meetings with public links since the pandemic started. A grand total of ONE has been “zoombombed.” And I feel sorry for the lame person who had nothing better to do than to disrupt a neighborhood-level meeting. (The disruption didn’t last long – the moderators took care of it quickly.)

• Joseph October 4, 2020 (8:34 pm)

  I played on that court many times with our daughter over the years, but I’d rather see no court of any kind in the little gem of a park. No more tall chain link fencing, no slab of concrete, and no nets, hoops, or backboards. The natural setting is rewarding enough and tennis courts are just up the road.

• hj October 4, 2020 (9:35 pm)

  I’m in favor of bringing the courts back. Not because I play myself, but because during the hearings a few years ago when the future of the park was debated, I heard a lot of nice stories of people who did enjoy the courts through the generations. I’m big enough to recognize that not everything is about me and I appreciate the diversity of activities that Seattle Parks brings to the city. And honestly, the argument of “well there are courts ‘just up the road'” is also not good enough when you consider that the entirely of Lincoln Park is available a few blocks to the south if quietly enjoying the seashore is your personal activity of choice.

  • Anne October 4, 2020 (9:51 pm)

    No-leave Lowman alone.Go up the hill to play tennis-go to Lincoln Park-but for heavens sake leave this lovely space the heck alone. 

    • Ron Swanson October 5, 2020 (9:30 am)

      The tennis court’s been there longer than the people complaining about it.  Replacing it *is* leaving Lowman alone.

• Genevieve October 4, 2020 (10:32 pm)

  I agree with HJ, walk a little further and there is ample park. as a tennisplayer its a whole other level of playing rec tennis right by the water it never ever gets old ,its invigorating. Please consider leaving a court. It’s something special for our tennis players. 

• Save Green Space October 5, 2020 (7:00 am)

  Absolutely agree with Craig and Joseph and others who want to preserve this sweet little space.  I see so many people just enjoying solitude in this rare, easy to access park.  We do not need a new sports court, whatever that means.  Fix up the existing tennis court if you must, but save our $$ and open space!

• seaweed October 5, 2020 (7:01 am)

  There are enough paved and concreted surfaces in our parks. The City cannot maintain the Parks we have presently, yet we end up with more proposals to pile on to the management mess going on at Seattle Parks Dept. One example is the condition of the seawall stairways at Alki. The Parks Dept. seem to be incapable to carry out the simple task of filling in the cracks that are slowly degrading the concrete outlook walls. They just get deeper each year. Any home owner could patch these with any number of cement epoxy products available at a local hardware store. 

  • oakley34 October 5, 2020 (9:24 am)

    Good point about the city struggling with basic park maintenance as it is, and this is before any COVID related budget issues.  We can barely empty trash cans sufficiently…

  • John W October 6, 2020 (9:14 am)

    Those seawalls are under strict regulations.   The epoxy patch may be toxic leaching into Puget Sound. In a perfect world for orcas, salmon and people, these seawalls would be removed and a natural beach restored. 

• Lincoln Park Mom October 5, 2020 (11:29 am)

  I would love to see more sport courts around.  Kids need to have something to get their energy out.  A basketball court would be great too.  All great cities have a public basketball court for kids in the neighborhood to come together and play.  I have a teenager up the street that I see outside dribbling his basketball all by himself.  I’ve offered him to come and use our basketball hoop anytime but it would be lovely to have this close by where other kids can come and join in.  I’m all for this.

  • JVP October 5, 2020 (12:05 pm)

    I agree, a small basketball half-court would be great here. Our city has a weird lack of active sports things for kids to do once they’re beyond swing set age. Especially West Seattle. Why so few basketball courts in West Seattle?  They really should have put some hoops above the sewer tank on Lowman.

• Kadoo October 5, 2020 (4:56 pm)

  Lincoln Park is a unique, open space park, not unlike Discovery Park. Those who love these parks are always trying to fight people who want to use the park for other purposes, a little parcel here and little parcel there. Lincoln Park needs to remain an open space park where people can enjoy a respite from the busyness of city life. I vote for leaving paving and tennis courts out of the park. The courts that were already at Lowman were fine. I see no justification for bringing them into the park itself. 

  • alki_2008 October 7, 2020 (1:00 am)

    The proposal is for a sports court at Lowman Park, not Lincoln Park. The existing tennis court at Lowman Park that you said is “fine” will be removed with upcoming seawall work, so the discussion is whether another court should be placed within Lowman Park. This is not changing anything at Lincoln Park.

• donita October 14, 2020 (9:09 pm)

  I was a member of the community advisory group that worked closely with King County to prevent Lowman Beach from being replaced with the stormwater detention tank that is now across the street.  During that process we learned how well-loved and well-used the park is, especially for its green space, trees and beach. I support replacing the tennis court in its current location and footprint. If that is not possible, the tennis club should find a better spot. The “Opportunity Area” is not theirs to take, and  it is shocking that Seattle Parks is even considering this idea. 

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