VIDEO: Hiawatha Community Center finally reopens, to applause and apologies

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

The first enthusiastic users of Hiawatha Community Center this morning, once the ribbon was cut and the doors were open, were the youngest ones.

Hiawatha’s downstairs gym quickly filled with toddlers and preschoolers zooming around.

(WSB photos from here by Dave Gershgorn)

Among them, Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson‘s daughter Josie, who accompanied her mom for a brief speech pre-ribboncutting, in which Wilson declared community centers to be far more than “just amenities”:

She also hailed the conversion of Hiawatha to all-electric: “Our oldest community center is leading the way on our energy future.” As you also saw in that clip, the mayor was followed by District 1 City Councilmember Rob Saka, who (accompanied by daughter Maeve) noted the “who’s who of West Seattle” present for the reopening, and acknowledged the community advocates who pushed the city steadily to make sure the work to strengthen and renovate the 115-year-old center got done.

(Wilson and Saka with former Mayor Greg Nickels, longtime Hiawatha advocate Sharon Nickels, and Maeve Saka)

The center closed in 2020 for the pandemic and then stayed closed because the work seemed imminent, but – as we chronicled here many times – was not. A variety of delays dragged the closure out to almost six years; the eventual price tag, more than $7 million. In her speech today, interim Seattle Parks superintendent Michele Finnegan apologized:

But then, as DJ George Yasutake spun party music like Kool & The Gang’s “Celebration,” it was time to hand ribboncutting scissors to both dignitaries and young community members:

Here’s our clip of the snip:

The party inside included a spread catered by West Seattle’s own Husky Deli:

Parks and Rec swag, too:

If you didn’t get to the celebration, here’s the plan for Hiawatha in the weeks ahead:

Through March 6, there’s drop-in programming –
*Tot Gym 10 am to noon Mondays and Wednesdays
*Fitness Room 10 am-2 pm Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays (18 and over)
*Open Gym 2 pm-6 pm Tuesdays and Thursday, 10 am-2 pm Fridays (18 and over)

After that and continuing into June, programming expands to add badminton, pickleball, and basketball (adults except for basketball, which also will be offered for youth) – see the schedule on the center webpage.

sbre February 21, 2026 (4:05 pm)

Sooooooooooo good to be back in that building again, today. Really like the improvements that were made (that we could see).The place will look 1,000 times better once the volleyball nets are set up!😁🏐

Azimuth February 21, 2026 (6:45 pm)

This is great! This upgrades West Seattle from “severely lacking” to “mostly lacking” in activities (in my opinion, anyway).

my two cents February 21, 2026 (7:48 pm)

Of the 11 photos/screen shots included in this article, Mayor Wilson was visible in 5 of them – approximately 45% of the content. Hhhmmm … running for re-election already? 6 weeks in the job.

WSB February 21, 2026 (8:10 pm)

Reply

She wasn’t campaigning but rather actually mingling, in a way that politicians don’t often do. She stayed longer at this event than a mayor, in my decades of covering local news, typically does. I was surprised, frankly – I thought she had taken off after the speeches, having seen in advisories that there were at least two other events she was due at, and then photojournalist Dave Gershgorn told me she was still down in the gym, with Councilmember Saka, who also lingered longer than I would have expected. Meantime, I have a bit of an addendum coming up with a few more photos, and when I get to that, your percentage will drop :) – TR
- Kyle February 21, 2026 (9:18 pm)
  
  Reply
  
  Thank you for these additional humanizing details. I don’t always agree with everything mayor Wilson or councilmember Saka do in their respective offices, but I have no doubt they want the best for Seattle at heart.
Mariem February 22, 2026 (8:29 am)

Reply

What a strange comment! Completely natural for the mayor to be there. And regarding photos- it’s also natural to show if/how the mayor interacts with constituents.

Oliver February 22, 2026 (6:50 am)

I don’t understand how reopening without full programs is a reopening. For example, why is it going to take 3 more months before volleyball can be played?