West Seattle parks 2125 results

WEST SEATTLE WEATHER: Southwest Pool opening late because of power trouble

12:29 PM: Southwest Pool would usually be open by now for its first lap swim of the day, but Seattle Parks says it’s opening late today “due to power outages this past weekend … Crews are working to get the boilers back online.” The weekend’s major power outage on Sunday didn’t stretch that far west, so we’re checking with Parks for more information.

2:04 PM: Parks spokesperson Rachel Schulkin didn’t have outage-specific info but tells WSB, “The power outage had an impact on the pool’s boilers and the pool and shower temperatures are reducing. Our HVAC crews are coming out to get it fixed and hope to have it open later today or tomorrow, but we won’t know exactly until the HVAC crew gives us a time estimate.”

4:19 PM: The pool is open again, but may be a few degrees cooler than usual.

ROXHILL BOG: Resuming the struggle to save a 10,000-year-old ecosystem

(WSB photo, April 2019)

Just before the pandemic wiped most other concerns off the map for a long time, in February of last year, a “stakeholders meeting” shone the spotlight on endangered Roxhill Bog (part of Roxhill Park). Now the struggle to save it is back on the front burner, and another community meeting is planned. Here’s the announcement/update from the Duwamish Alive Coalition:

The second public meeting for the community led restoration of Roxhill Bog will be held online November 17th from 6:30 to 8:00 pm, to provide an update on the hydrology study of why the wetland has been drying out and possible solutions along with the results of the community survey that was conducted. The online link to the meeting can be accessed by registering through DNDA.org or Duwamishalive.org

Roxhill Bog is one of the last peat wetlands of the historical 26 within Seattle, dating back 10,000 years and home to a unique ecosystem of plants and animals. It’s also the headwaters of Longfellow Creek and an important community asset where the community can experience and learn about nature. Over the last couple decades, it has been drying out, which has significantly degraded its ecosystem – with increased invasive plants, loss of wildlife, and unsuitable usage of the area creating safety concerns.

Community members, alarmed about the loss of this community treasure, created a collaborative partnership with the Delridge Neighborhood Development Association, Duwamish Alive Coalition, Roxhill Champions, and American Rivers to help restore the bog wetland. With help from Seattle Councilmember Lisa Herbold and King County Councilmember Joe McDermott. the partnership was able to acquire funding for the hydrology and soil studies and the community survey, which received over 260 responses, and restoration design.

The November 17th public meeting will review the results of the studies, and community survey and seek input on the restoration design. This is an important opportunity for the community to provide comments about the project and their hopes for the wetlands’ future.

For backstory, see our report on last year’s meeting. There’s also a lot of background on this webpqge assembled by the now-dormant Westwood-Roxhill-Arbor Heights Community Council.

FOLLOWUP: Changes for Westcrest Park Off-Leash Area users as drainage project begins

November 3, 2021 6:09 pm
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 |   Highland Park | Pets | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

Three weeks later than originally announced, the drainage project at Westcrest Park has begun. We had been checking on it after reader reports that the work wasn’t happening, even though the city had announced it would begin in mid-October. Today a reader texted that the main off-leash area is closed and the temporary OLA is open. The work is expected to continue until spring of next year.

VACCINATION VERIFICATION: Seattle Parks facilities starting Monday, too

Monday, October 25th, is the date set for vaccination-verification requirements at many establishments/facilities in King County. This morning Seattle Parks has a reminder about what that means for people using its facilities:

As directed by Seattle King County Public Health, Seattle Parks and Recreation will require proof of vaccination, or proof of a negative test, for entry to all recreation facilities starting Monday, October 25. 

These facilities include: 

-All community centers 
-All public pools 
-Amy Yee Tennis Center 
-Volunteer Park Conservatory 
-Environmental Learning Centers 
-And all indoor rental facilities owned by Seattle Parks and Recreation (community centers, pools, and event facilities) 

For visitors ages 12 and above, staff will check for the following acceptable forms of vaccination upon each entry to a recreation facility: 

CDC vaccination card or photo of vaccine card. 
Documented proof of vaccination from medical record or vaccine provider. 
Printed certificate or QR code (available at the end of September) from MyIRMobile.com.
You do not need to show identification with proof of vaccination. 

People who are unvaccinated or cannot prove vaccination status will be required to show proof of a negative PCR COVID-19 test taken in the last 72 hours. Documentation must be from a testing agent such as a laboratory, health care provider, or pharmacy. Self-administered rapid tests (also called at-home tests) will not be accepted. 

Vaccination exemptions will not be accepted. Proof of a negative test can be shown for those who cannot be vaccinated.

Proof of vaccination will be required for each entry to a recreation facility, for every visit. Vaccination proof will not be stored.

Read the full announcement here.

PROGRESS REPORT: Lowman Beach tennis-court tearout

Thanks to Mike Munson for another photo of the work at Lowman Beach Park, removing the seawall and tennis court to restore a more-natural shoreline, as was done with the south side of the park long ago. The project’s been in the works for more than four years; work is expected to last until next spring.

P.S. A brief update will be part of the Morgan Community Association‘s quarterly meeting, online at 7 pm Wednesday.

FOLLOWUP: Long-planned Westcrest Park work starting soon, city says

Another long-planned Seattle Parks project is about to get started. Here’s the announcement we received late today:

Seattle Parks and Recreation awarded the construction contract for the Westcrest Park Off-leash Area Drainage Improvements project to OMA Construction Inc. The contractor will mobilize and set up construction fencing the week of October 18.

The main off-leash area and the north parking lot will be fully closed during construction. In response to community input in 2019, SPR will construct a temporary off-leash area to the north of the existing site and west of the small/shy dog area in a space that is currently lawn. It will be set up prior to closure of the existing off-leash area for public use. The existing shy/small dog area will remain open. People interested in accessing the temporary off-leash area can access it through the south parking lot.

We anticipate reopening the parking lot and improved off-leash area in spring 2022. After construction, the contractor will restore the temporary OLA back to lawn.

Over the past few years, the maintenance project has grown from a simple drainage improvement project to a $505,000 project that will address drainage, access, and erosion. Funding is provided by the Seattle Park District Major Maintenance and Asset Management Fund. For more information, please visit seattle.gov/parks/about-us/projects/westcrest-park-drainage-improvements. If you have questions about the project please contact the project manager, Janice Liang at Janice.Liang@seattle.gov.

While not mentioned in the announcement or on the project page, the city told us back in May that the closed play structure would be replaced as part of this project.

FOLLOWUP: Lowman Beach Park crews dig in

Thanks to Mike Munson for the photo from Lowman Beach Park, where crews are in their third week of what’s expected to be an eight-month project, removing the failing seawall and the adjacent tennis court, and restoring a more natural shoreline, as was done on the south end of the beach years ago, We asked project manager Janice Liang about this work, and she explained that it’s related to another component of the project, daylighting the end of Pelly Creek: “The Contractor is currently installing new storm drain structures (as seen in the photo) to connect to the existing 18″ Pelly Creek storm drain on the uphill side. The pipe will be daylighted at a pipe outfall midway of the site, with exposed stream beds connecting down to the beach.” For a view of what the finished project is supposed to look like, you can find design documents here.

REOPENED: Programming returns to High Point Community Center

Seattle Parks and Recreation community centers continue the process of gradually reopening for programs and services. High Point Community Center (6920 34th SW) wants you to know it’s ready to welcome your participation again, HPCC’s Paula Pablo emailed to say they’re offering a variety of options, including:

Adult Tae Kwon Do
Dance classes for ages 2-6
Piano
Senior classes
Winter Activity Camps
Drop-In Basketball

Best way to find out more is to call 206-684-7422.

FOLLOWUP: Work under way at Lowman Beach Park

September 16, 2021 1:43 pm
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 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

In case you haven’t been to Lowman Beach Park since work on the shoreline-restoration project began, here’s what’s happening:

Construction fencing stretches across the entire north-south length of the park – no shore access. Through the fence, you can see crews working on the north side of the to-be-removed tennis court and seawall:

The swings, however, are still open and accessible (and are NOT part of the project zone):

McClung Construction is the contractor for the $1.2 million project, which is expected to last at least eight months.

YOU CAN HELP! Forest restoration with Friends of Lincoln Park

September 14, 2021 9:00 am
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 |   How to help | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

On Sunday (September 19th), Friends of Lincoln Park would be happy to have your help. From forest steward Lisa McGinty:

Urban forest restoration volunteer opportunity at Lincoln Park! Registration and event details can be found here. .

When: September 19, 2021, 9 am-11 am

Please be sure ALL volunteers are pre-registered (including youth). If event is full, you can find other event dates here: greenseattle.org/get-involved/volunteer. Search for Lincoln Park or any of your favorite Seattle green spaces! Large group or other questions? Please reach out to flip98136@gmail.com.

FOLLOWUP: Alki Beach Park back to regular hours

While the days are getting shorter, at Alki, they’ve also just gotten longer. Tonight is the first night that Alki Beach Park‘s closing time is back to 11:30 pm, after two months of closing at 10 pm. The early closing time was ordered in early July – first as a holiday-weekend experiment, then as a two-month trial run – days after the shooting that killed 22-year-old Tilorae Shepherd. We confirmed with Seattle Parks this afternoon that there had been no last-minute decision to extend the early closing time. One note: Though the beach is open later now, the fire pits are supposed to be closed for the season as of tonight.

Lowman Beach tennis court’s days are numbered: Six

If you want to play tennis at the Lowman Beach Park court one last time before it’s removed as part of the shore-restoration project, you have six days. Seattle Parks says its contractor McClung Construction will be starting work next Monday (September 13th) and that means, according to project manager Janice Liang, “The park will be partially closed during construction including the beach, tennis court, and the gravel walkways. The play area and the part of the lawn area close to the street will remain open.” The $1.2 million shore-restoration project will remove the failing seawall on the north side of the park, creating more beach space, and daylighting the stretch of Pelly Creek that currently leads to an outfall pipe in the seawall. The work is expected to last at least eight months. Earlier this summer, Parks ruled out building a replacement tennis court elsewhere in the park, but said it would consider allowing something smaller, like a pickleball court – provided community fundraising covered the cost; nothing is planned so far.

1 MORE DAY: Wading pools, sprayparks, Colman Pool closing after Monday

September 5, 2021 3:46 pm
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 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

(WSB file photo, Delridge wading pool)

The pandemic-shortened season for city-run outdoor aquatics ends tomorrow. Labor Day – that’ll be the last day for the Lincoln Park wading pool (8011 Fauntleroy Way SW, noon-7 pm), the Delridge wading pool (4501 Delridge Way SW, noon-5:30 pm), the Highland Park spraypark (1100 SW Cloverdale, 11 am-8 pm), and Colman Pool (at Lincoln Park, noon-7 pm). One week later – on Monday, September 13th – indoor Southwest Pool (2801 SW Thistle) is scheduled to reopen (no schedule posted yet, though). The city kept some wading pools closed this season – including E.C. Hughes and Hiawatha in West Seattle – and cut the schedule for others, citing a chlorine shortage.

VIDEO: Created Commons’ second Saturday at Westcrest Park

4:05 PM: Created Commons continues through Sunday at Westcrest Park (9000 8th SW) and right now the performances are celebrating Pacific Islander culture – Hawaii, Samoa, and now Okinawa. It’s all free, outdoors, just north of the P-patch, until about 8 pm. (Here’s the schedule.) Video and photos later!

6:48 PM: We were there for two performances – first, Ala Talo from the Asia Pacific Cultural Center introduced a trio of dancers who she said had not performed onstage before today.

They were a late substitution for a Hawaiian dance group originally scheduled for this afternoon.

The dancers’ previous collaboration: Playing on the volleyball team Pakka Hittaz. Like some other performances we covered in the past week-plus at Created Commons, this one featured audience participation. Talo talked about the mood conferred by the music, particularly a song she attributed to a 12-year-old Marshallese boy, with the lyrics: “Smile and be happy/don’t let nobody take the smile away/Live life to the fullest/As if you’re dying every day.”

Following the dancers, the duo of Mako and Noriko performed Okinawan music, with vocals, the stringed instrument sanshin, and a traditional drum.

Some of the music was hypnotic and lulling; other songs, festive and upbeat. Mako explained her instrument between songs – covered in python skin, with a pick made from a water-buffalo horn.

The afternoon was hosted by R2ISE‘s Alexia Jones and curated by the Jack Straw Cultural Center, which also presented poets and writers; Jack Straw writers are also on the schedule for tomorrow, the final day of Created Commons, a grant-funded festival of art and science that began Friday, August 27th, spotlighting BIPOC artists and speakers, produced by Lelavision. Our coverage of night 1 is here; the second day, here; third day, here; fourth night, here.

P.S. Sunday begins, as did today, with a free 10 am wellness class – this time, K-Pop Zumba!

2 Jack Block Park notes: Restroom damage; pier’s future

Two notes about Jack Block Park, the Port of Seattle-owned waterfront park at 2130 Harbor Avenue SW:

WHY ONE RESTROOM IS CLOSED: Thanks to Jessica for sending the photo and wondering what happened to the men’s restroom in the park’s easternmost comfort station:

Port spokesperson Peter McGraw says it was damaged by fire, apparently this past Monday. “Repairs are currently underway,” he said, but no estimate for reopening yet.

PIER’S FUTURE: Steps away from that comfort station is the park pier that’s been closed for months because of safety concerns.

Back in spring, the port conducted a survey asking your thoughts on the pier’s future, promising to update the community afterward. Five months later, no word. Andrew emailed us wondering what ever happened to it. McGraw says the results should go public “likely sometime in the middle of October.”

YOU CAN HELP: 3 chances to volunteer in West Seattle this weekend

September 3, 2021 11:34 am
|    Comments Off on YOU CAN HELP: 3 chances to volunteer in West Seattle this weekend
 |   How to help | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

Here are three ways to join neighbors in making West Seattle more beautiful this weekend:

ALKI CLEANUP, SATURDAY: Jessica leads this on first Saturdays:

Alki Beach, Parks and sidewalks Cleanup September 4th

Where: Meet outside at 2452 Alki Ave SW
Time: From 10 AM to 1 PM

Bring your own pick sticks, gardening gloves and a bucket (works better than bags, especially if windy). I have a limited number of pick sticks and buckets. Recommend that you bundle up if cold and if warm, best to wear closed-end shoes.

Kids welcome if supervised by adult. Text Jessica to RSVP, 206-769-6330.

FRIENDS OF LINCOLN PARK, SATURDAY: This longtime group has a couple spots for more help

September 4 9 am – 12 pm

Ivy, blackberry and holly, oh my! Join FLiP (Friends of Lincoln Park) as we work to restore our beautiful natural spaces. The Park includes 80 acres of forested areas, with a huge diversity of native trees and plants. But our urban forests are threatened by nonnative, invasive plant species and need our help to thrive and remain healthy. This is where YOU come in! We promise you a good workout and lots of eco-karma. Good for the environment and good for your health!

Sign up by going here.

SCHMITZ PARK, SUNDAY: Still some room left for help at this event too.

September 5, 1 pm – 3:30 pm

There is something for everyone! We will be pulling ivy in a shady valley, watering native plants to help them survive this hot, dry summer, and hauling wood chips to prepare for the plants arriving this fall.

Sign up by going here.

FOLLOWUP: New Alki Beach restrooms ‘very close to opening’

While at Alki for the art installation, we noticed the new restroom building (aka “comfort station”) getting painted, so we asked Seattle Parks about the newest estimate for opening. When last we checked on it, the projected opening was late July, but that’s come and gone. Parks’ Kelly Goold says, “Alki is very close to opening – waiting on City Light to reconnect power.” No date set for that yet, but they are hoping for next week. The new restroom building, which will have three stalls, has been under construction for seven months, with delays along the way including material availability.

FALL FITNESS: Outdoor classes for Lifelong Recreation at Seattle Parks community centers

August 30, 2021 9:24 am
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 |   Delridge | High Point | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

Seattle Parks is offering outdoor fitness classes at local community centers this fall, includng its Lifelong Recreation program for peopl 50+. Here are three they’re spotlighting; each class title is linked to a page with online registration and more information:

Gentle Yoga at High Point: 9/13-10/18, 10 am Mondays

Stretch and move with awareness, correct alignment and a focus on breath to increase strength and stamina, improve flexibility, and develop better balance, posture, poise, and peace of mind.

Fitness at Delridge: 9/8-10/20, 10:30 am Wednesdays

Build total body muscle strength using fitness bands, free weights and floor work. Improve balance, flexibility and agility. The instructor is a professional dance and fitness instructor and performer. Please bring weights to class

Thriller Dance at Delridge: 9/9-10/21, 11:30 am Thursdays

Learn the “Thrill the World” version of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” dance. During this session you will learn all the steps and practice the entire dance (no dance experience necessary). If there is interest, the instructor will provide quick tips on Zombie makeup, character and costumes. All participants will receive a dance script so that you can practice at home. After this class you’ll be prepared to join in on the next Thriller flash mob or be the hit at your next party! The instructor is a professional dance and fitness instructor, performer, and has taught and performed Thriller since 2008.

You can also register by phone at 206-684-5177. Classes will be moved indoors if the weather’s bad.

VIDEO: ‘Art heals’ – Created Commons, day 3

4:28 PM: The duo Dandy rapped as Created Commons got going for a third day at Westcrest Park, north of the P-Patch. Up next, a panel discussion about health-care access, moderated by co-emcee Dr. Sinead Younge, with panelists including today’s curator dani tirrell. Programming for this first-ever celebration of art and science, presented by Lelavision through September 5th, continues after the panel, until about 8.

(L-R, Dr. Sinead Younge, Candace Jackson, dani tirrell)

7:33 PM: Also on the panel, Candace Jackson from Seattle’s African American Health Board. The topic turned out to be not health-care access but the concept of caring for yourself and your community – through rest, through joy, through art. “Art transforms the way we think about life,” tirrell noted.

Art is vital to healing, Jackson agreed.

She also spoke of the importance of support. tirrell laid it out in personal terms – what could you, would you give up so that someone else could benefit? Here’s our video of the entire discussion:

That segued into the performance slate curated by tirrell. Dandy – David Rue and Randy Ford – returned with raps both sharp-edged and playful:

Inbetween, tirrell spoke of impending plans to move to Washington, D.C., and sadness at leaving the artist community here. Next up was poet J Mase III:

We recorded this on video too:

We had to leave before the rest of the slate, including Northwest Tap Connection. But all the while, Lelavision’s interactive sculpture Interspecies Connection was there for eventgoers to visit, pulling a cord to flap its wings:

The next Created Commons event at Westcrest (9000 8th SW) is Tuesday at 6 pm, in commemoration of International Overdose Awareness Day, promising “art, poetry, health science, remembrance, recovery.” Vaccinations will be offered, too. Lots going on Friday/Saturday/Sunday too – here’s the full schedule. (Our Friday coverage is here; our Saturday coverage is here.)

VIDEO: ‘Be part of the art’ @ Created Commons, day 2

August 28, 2021 5:41 pm
|    Comments Off on VIDEO: ‘Be part of the art’ @ Created Commons, day 2
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle parks | WS culture/arts

5:41 PM: You can make art, join dancers, and/or just watch as Created Commons continues at Westcrest Park (9000 8th SW). Performances continue until 8 tonight, with a DNDA-curated Arts-in-Nature showcase. We’ll add photos and video when we’re back at HQ; if you can’t get here this evening, you have tomorrow, next weekend, and multiple events inbetween!

ADDED 7:24 PM: When we arrived this evening, dancer Noelle Price (above) was performing with electric cellist Gretchen Yanover.

She invited audience members to join her in front of the stage.

Co-emcee Lash (above) observed that their work conveyed “so much love and peace and sisterhood.” She handed the mic to co-emcee Dr. Sinead Younge (see her in our Night 1 coverage), who encouraged everyone to “be part of the art” (including pulling the cord that flaps the wings of the kinetic sculpture Interspecies Communication, made by Created Commons coordinating team Lelavision). Dr. Younge also offered props for Erika Bell from DNDA, Youngstown Cultural Arts Center manager and curator of today’s showcase:

(Erika Bell with DNDA executive director David Bestock)

The performances are telling stories, observed Lash, stories “that are not fictional – they’re real.” She introduced a group whose music and movement told stories of West Africa, Boka Kouyate and the Djeliyah Band:

They explained that the Djeli people were for centuries the ones who communicated between the community and kings, so the latter could more wisely rule.

See the Created Commons schedule here; tomorrow includes not only performances curated by artist/activist dani tirrell but also a panel on health-care access, part of the Created Commons mission to elevate science as well as art. This is all free; a booth is set up if you want to donate to Real Rent Duwamish, in honor of the Indigenous people whose unceded land is where this is taking place.

ONE DAY AWAY: ‘Created Commons’ events at Westcrest Park start Friday

Last week, we previewed a first-ever event coming up at Westcrest Park (9000 8th SW) – actually a series of events spread over nine days, tomorrow (Friday, August 27th) through Sunday, September 5th – transforming part of the park into a “Created Commons,” hosted and curated by Lelavision. The Created Commons will feature what the overview describes as “BIPOC-centered performances, kinetic musical-sculpture, eco-art installations and workshops, wellness offerings, and science panels to cultivate our health as a community.” Now that it’s almost here, we have updates.

The first event is at 6 pm Friday (calendar listing here), honoring the Duwamish Tribe, with other participants sharing “stories, music, and tales of their activism on behalf of the resident Orcas in the Salish Sea.” On Friday night, families in need can get free groceries at the park, thanks to Free Food for All. A highlight this Saturday (August 28th) is the Arts in Nature Festival Showcase presented by Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association, 3-8 pm, a mini-version of the annual festival, promising music, poetry, and dance.

As you can see in the full Created Commons schedule on Lelavision’s website, this isn’t just a spectator event – there are opportunities for participation. That includes the vaccination pop-ups we mentioned yesterday as well as free wellness classes:

Those are just some of the events – we’re adding listings to the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar too. And along with scheduled events, Lelavision will bring its kinetic sculpture Interspecies Communication (seen in South Park in 2017) to the park for community interaction, noon-8 pm all four weekend days (August 28-29, September 4-5). All events over the course of Created Commons are free, funded by grants and sponsorships.

9-day ‘celebration of art and science’ to transform Westcrest Park into a ‘Created Commons’

August 17, 2021 12:16 pm
|    Comments Off on 9-day ‘celebration of art and science’ to transform Westcrest Park into a ‘Created Commons’
 |   Highland Park | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks | WS culture/arts

(WSB photo, 2017)

Back in 2017, we photographed the portable kinetic sculpture “Interspecies Communication” during a daylong event at Duwamish Waterway Park in South Park. Now the sculpture and its creators – Vashon Island-based Lelavision – are coming to Westcrest Park in West Seattle for a nine-day “celebration of art and science.” From the announcement:

On August 27-September 5, 2021, Lelavision will animate West Seattle’s Westcrest Park with BIPOC-centered performances, kinetic musical-sculpture, eco-art installations and workshops, wellness offerings, and science panels to cultivate our health as a community.

As part of the Created Commons initiative, the performance and production company Lelavision (choreographer/organizer Leah Okamoto Mann and sculptor/musician Ela Lamblin) will provide a neighborhood celebration featuring BIPOC-centered performances, wellness offerings, and science panels utilizing their interactive kinetic sculpture, Interspecies Communication. This large sculpture — 50 feet long and 32 feet wide — depicts a whale and a bird. Visitors can make the bird “fly” from 12 pm to 8 pm each weekend of the event, by setting its wings in motion.

This family-friendly, zero-waste event is free and open to the public. All are encouraged to bring picnics, camping chairs, blankets, and filled water bottle, which will help them stay hydrated during the fun. Composting and recycle bins will help keep the park clean. Visitors should pack out all other trash in the spirit of leaving the park better than we found it. Vashon Island Growers Association will provide free organic produce, and a variety of food trucks will be on site, including delicious ice cream from event sponsor Full Tilt Ice Cream. There is limited parking at the park, but plenty of surface street parking. No alcohol will be permitted on site.

An Indigenous-centered opening will kick off the nine-day event on Friday, August 27, at 6 pm. Orca Annie & Odin Lonning, UW Tacoma Students from the Pacific Islander Student Association, will share stories, music, and tales of their activism on behalf of the resident Orcas in the Salish Sea. Duwamish Tribe representatives Ken Workman, Nancy Sackman, and Billie Jane Lakey will also be present. Donations for Real Rent Duwamish will be collected throughout the event to honor the Duwamish Tribe and acknowledge the unceded land the event will take place upon.

On Saturday, August 28, 12 pm – 8 pm, the Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association (DNDA) will present an Arts in Nature Festival Showcase, a condensed version of the well-loved annual Arts In Nature Festival that has offered an eclectic experience of art and performance in a local park for 22 years. Starting at noon, the park will be full of art on the paths, fun in the field, sound baths, roving dancers, and more. Between 3:00 and 8:00 pm, poet LASH will co-MC the main stage performances, with movement artists Danza Symbiosis, Seattle Capoeira, and Noelle Price with cellist Gretchen Yanover. Music features include Troy Osaki, Jennifer Moore, and Holy Pistola.

Sunday, August 29, from 12 pm to 3 pm, the park will come alive with activities and eco-arts in the field and with trail animations. From 4pm to 8pm, the festival will feature performances curated by artist and activist dani tirrell and a science panel on health-care access. Panelists include Candace Jackson of the African American Health Board of Seattle and Dr Sinead Younge, Director of the Social Justice Inquiry and Praxis Institute in the Andrew Young Center for Global Leadership at Morehouse College. Performers Dandy (David Rue & Randy Ford), Northwest Tap Connection, Majinn (Michael O’Neal), J Mase III, Kutt’N’Up, and Malicious Vixens will take the stage following the panel. The evening’s finale will be a community dance party with DJ dark_wiley. Pop-up vaccines will be available on site.

On Tuesday, August 31, from 6 pm-8 pm, the festival will create a community event in honor of Overdose Awareness Day in collaboration with artist and counselor, Alexia Jones, the Executive Director of R2ise and Dr Seema Clifasefi of UW’s HaRRT Program (Harm Reduction, Research, Treatment). Vaccines will also be available on this day.

Friday, September 3, 6 pm-8 pm will feature a drumming circle with artist Sumayya Diop. Some drums will be provided, or participants can bring their own percussion (including clapping, stepping, and heartbeat).

Saturday and Sunday, September 4 and 5, 3 pm-8 pm Jack Straw Cultural Center joins Lelavision in presenting BIPOC poets, musicians, and dancers, including Hula Halau O’keala’Akua Naniloa Mana’oakamai; Jack Straw Writers, hosted by Anastacia-Renee; and music by JR Rhodes. Sunday’s presentations will include a Community Bon Odori; music by Nic Masangkay, Trio Guandalevin, and Seattle Kokon Taiko, and Jack Straw Writers, hosted by E.J. Koh.

You can also see the schedule details here.

NEXT WEEKEND: ‘Flutes in the Forest’ returns (UPDATE, CANCELED)

FRIDAY UPDATE: The performance has been canceled because of illness – watch for a new date.

————-

Twice this summer, local musicians have serenaded Schmitz Park visitors with free “Flutes in the Forest” concerts – the video above is from the second one earlier this month. Next Saturday, you’re invited to the third one. From organizers’ announcement:

The JBC Flute Trio (Jennie Goldberg, Barb Cotton, and Carolyn Hoppe-Denend) will play an hour of flute trios including favorites from concert #1.

Saturday, August 21, 2021 – 2:30 PM

Bring your own chair or blanket. Invite your friends and family! Bring a picnic. Feel free to come and go.

On concert day, you’re advised to enter Schmitz Park from Admiral/Stevens.