From a distance, the PARK(ing) Day (explained here) “park” set up on the street outside Easy Street Records fits right in, with foliage echoing nearby street trees … but if you look closely, it’s more than greenery:
As you might surmise from the display, this is the “Free Speech Garden” that newly transplanted arborist/advocate Michael Oxman told us about in a PARK(ing) Day preview three weeks ago (read about it here) – there’s a citywide design contest for the one-day “parks.” You should be able to see this one in person for another hour or so. Oxman noted in that August preview that the PARK(ing) Day concept explores what might be done “when we run out of oil” – that happens to be the topic at next Monday night’s Sustainable West Seattle Community Forum, 7 pm (September 20) at the Senior Center of West Seattle.
This Saturday, the Parks Department will pay tribute to a Seattleite who made history, while renaming High Point Playfield in his honor. Read on for the official announcement of the naming celebration for Walt Hundley Playfield:Read More
That’s Jennifer Cargal at the dedication of Dakota Place Park one year ago, an exciting occasion for Cargal and other neighborhood advocates who worked hard to get the old substation site (map) turned into a park. Last night, she was at theJunction Neighborhood Organization‘s meeting, requesting support for a possible expansion of the year-old park. She says there’s a chance that money from the Parks and Green Spaces Levy Acquisition Fund could be used to buy a parcel just north of the park, once planned for residential development. According to Cargal, this idea is in a very preliminary stage – negotiations aren’t even under way – but Parks is doing some appraisal work “and trying to get a measure of community support.” One key point, though: Levy money would just cover the costs through purchase of the land and clearing it – actual park development would then require a community campaign (which is what it took to finalize Dakota Place, and other neighborhood park projects such as Junction Plaza Park and Ercolini Park). One park neighbor who came to the JuNO meeting says she’s “amazed” at how many people use Dakota Place Park as it is now; Cargal also mentioned the students at nearby Tilden School, who (as reported here last spring) have “adopted” the park and do regular cleanups there during the school year. “I think there’s a really powerful argument for adding open space while we have this opportunity,” she said. What do YOU think? Comments, she said, can be sent to Chip Nevins, in the Parks Department’s real-estate division (here’s his contact info); Cargal’s making the rounds of community groups asking for their support, and JuNO pledged theirs. One more report from last night’s JuNO meeting – a followup on the Junction Parking Program – coming up later.
On the heels of our Myrtle Reservoir Park update (miss that story? see it here), we have two more quick updates on Seattle Parks projects in West Seattle: First, Delridge Skatepark(above: Grindline‘s final design) is going out to bid on September 15th (here’s the bid advertisement, courtesy of SeattleSkateparks.org) and should break ground in October, according to project manager Kelly Davidson. She also shares the news that the new play equipment for Fairmount Playground is scheduled to be installed next Tuesday. (The “old” merry-go-round is scheduled to be re-installed, according to our last update from when work began two months ago.)
If you’ve driven past 35th Ave & SW Myrtle lately, you may have noticed a burst of activity at the new Myrtle Reservoir Park. Virginia Hassinger, Project Planner at Seattle Parks & Recreation, says that the project is nearing completion and should be finished by late September or early October.
However, you still may see some construction equipment at the park as crews continue to finish pouring concrete, installing benches and handrails as well as grading, before landscaping and planting can begin. They still also need to complete the irrigation system.
Despite challenges presented by the topography of the site, Hassinger says they were successful in keeping pathway grades at or below 5%, which is in line with their goal of making the park wheelchair accessible.
Playground equipment is now in place and just yesterday workers were installing a fabric underlay which Ohno Construction site supervisor Lee Falk says will soon be covered with a wood-based, environmentally friendly mulch.
Situated near the top of the park, at the edge of the reservoir cap, is a new sundial area which offers arresting views of downtown Seattle and the Cascades beyond. When complete, the sundial will feature concrete markers that will be arranged in line with various hills around Seattle, visible from that point. The names of the hills and their respective elevations are inlaid into the top of each marker.
The Myrtle Reservoir Park project is one of dozens of park projects funded by the City of Seattle’s Pro Parks Levy. Construction began in June.
Tonight’s Alki Community Picnic had to move off the playfield and into the Alki Community Center due to the weather. But the gray skies, drizzle and blustery winds certainly didn’t diminish the energy of the crowd of children who danced to the music provided by The Board of Education.
Here’s guitarist Jon Goff inspiring a new generation of musicians by handing out guitar
picks at the end of the show.
And here’s a short video clip with some musical highlights:
Almost three weeks have passed since the first design meeting for the new West Seattle Golf Course driving range (WSB coverage here), so we just checked in with Seattle Parks‘ Garrett Farrell, who’s leading the project. He tells WSB the date has been set for the second public meeting: Wednesday, September 15th, 7 to 8:30 pm, at the golf course. According to Farrell, “Meeting #2 will answer questions from meeting #1 and put some of the design team’s ideas in front of the public.” As you might have read in our story from the August 4th meeting, some big issues were raised – not just for golfers, but also for those who will see the driving range’s tall nets from 35th SW, Rotary Viewpoint Park, and/or nearby neighborhoods – so they’re hoping for a big turnout at the Sept. 15 meeting.
Two years ago, The Junction was home to that PARK(ing) Day setup, calling attention to the final push to get nearby Junction Plaza Park completed. Now it’s done – but another PARK(ing) Day (explained here) is rolling around – September 17 – and the deadline to apply for your own temporary park is almost here. Friday’s the deadline to apply – this item on the Sustainable West Seattle website explains how. And we’ve already gotten word of one PARK(ing) Day “park” planned for West Seattle – arborist and tree-protection activist Michael Oxmanshares the following rendering, followed by an explanation of what it will feature – and how you can be part of it:
Now that I’m located out here in West Seattle, it’s time to give back a little to my new community. Some decoration and greenery in a vast sea of asphalt is in order. This is a demonstration project of what to do when we run out of oil, and have fewer cars. We certainly won’t need as many parking spaces. Parking Day shows what to do with them, by setting out plants, trees and oxygen-producing greenery to soak up some of that excess CO2.
West Seattle interpretive designer Pat Whempner and experience designer Sam Stubblefield are creating the design concept for the “Park.” Our Park will be a Free Speech Platform with a Free Speech Garden in the Junction neighborhood. Anyone can get up there on the podium and say anything they want for 15 minutes. No restrictions. The platform will provide space for speakers or musicians, and the garden will create a journey through a maze of plants telling the story of important historic free speech moments or asking important free speech questions.
Since the timing of the Sept 17th event is right for politicians, we usually have candidates sign up to reserve a time slot in advance to give their pitch. We’d love to have musicians serenade the strollers. If anybody wants to help with the construction, some carpentry, set up assistance, & plant loans would be appreciated. Other spaces can also be created by people that submit the $10 application for the street use permit through the sponsor, Feet First. It would be really cool to have a few spaces scattered around West Seattle.
A design competition among the expected 100 Parking Day spaces across the city will result in prizes being awarded to the most innovative projects. The Seattle Department of Transportation will be issuing one day permits to occupy the street. Did you know the street right of way footprint covers almost a quarter of the total land area in Seattle? We can certainly spare a few spots for a day.
They’ve done it again – the wants-to-remain-anonymous West Seattle dad who went on an anti-graffiti tear with his daughter in summer 2009 – here’s the resulting story – found himself back for round 2. The vandals have been busy again lately – so, he wrote:
(Thursday) we had a father/daughter outing planned for a day of swimming and enjoying the summer day. Unfortunately, the weather did not quite cooperate but we still wanted to get outside. On a recent walk through Schmitz Park, we noticed the beautiful log benches in the center of the park were once again covered with graffiti. So we decided to spend our day cleaning up the benches and other graffiti around our neighborhood. We had a wonderful time together, cleaned up a lot of graffiti, and ended the day with a great sense of accomplishment as well as a great feeling of West Seattle community pride.
He shared numerous before/after photos; we’re putting up a couple here – though, as is our policy, we’ve blurred the tags in the “before” photos.
We asked what they use to remove tags. Answer: “We use ‘Goof Off’ and some scouring pads. They make a great product, and one specialized for graffiti. As for the log benches, the only way to get it off is with a hand-held wood planer.” If you’re not up for removal but want to be sure it at least gets reported – which police stress is important – here’s how to report tagging/graffiti vandalism on public property.
A team of Seattle Parks managers and design consultants made it clear last night: They’re just beginning to dig into the details of one potential layout for the West Seattle Golf Course‘s future $3.4 million driving range.
Here’s what else they made clear: Whether you’re a golfer, a neighbor, or an occasional visitor to the vicinity, they want to hear from you about what they’re looking at – right now, and down the line as the design proceeds.
The 50-stall driving range has to go somewhere between the golf course’s 9th hole and 35th SW. The very-tentatively-sketched-out location (photo above shows roughed-out art displayed at the meeting) would require a whole lot of earth-moving and tree-removal – and would dramatically change the experience at West Seattle Rotary Viewpoint Park immediately west of the driving range (see the “dash” type marker on the left side of the drawing): What’s now a greenery-framed view to downtown would wind up on the other side of the net setup meant to keep golf balls from flying onto 35th – a net that would rise 50 to 90 feet above the street level at the viewpoint site.
He’s scheduled to ride in the Seafair Torchlight Parade downtown in about two hours, but right now, Mayor Mike McGinn is in West Seattle, at the Camp Long Lodge reopening party. It continues till 7 tonight, with tours of the million-dollar renovation work (including the expanded kitchen), cake, and other festivities, and at 7, you’re invited to stay in the park for GreenStage‘s free Shakespeare performance. More photos later; the mayor’s Twitter account just posted a photo of West Seattle-residing Councilmember Tom Rasmussen speaking (video added later):
Rasmussen was chair of the council’s Parks Committee when voters passed the Parks and Green Spaces Levy, which paid for this project – plus this pic of the grand-reopening cake, attributed to Fauntleroy’s own Original Bakery:
(video substituted for photo, 7:48 pm) And of course, it can’t be a grand opening without a ribboncutting:
While, as Parks project manager Kelly Goold told us during our sneak-peek tour last week, this renovation is meant to help extend the lodge’s life into the future, its past is also something to honor, as Camp Long’s Sheila Brown noted at the party:
Find out more about Camp Long and its programs and features by going here.
Remember Melanie‘s amazing photos of a great blue heron, published here two weeks ago? (Follow that link if you didn’t see them the first time!) This time, she shares a photo of baby seagulls, photographed atJack Block Park. Sorry we can’t crop it any closer, but even this size yields something we didn’t know – that baby gulls are speckled.
It’s the little things that matter. You’ll find paperless hand dryers in two new restrooms on the lower level of Camp Long Lodge when you visit this Saturday, during the party to celebrate its grand reopening after 7 months of renovation work – a million-dollar project funded by the Parks and Green Spaces Levy that Seattle voters passed two years ago. We asked for a sneak preview, and toured on Tuesday. Both workers and volunteers were busy with finishing touches – we found Mary Quackenbush from the Camp Long Advisory Board bringing back some of Camp Long’s historic artwork, like this self-portrait of Clark Schurman:
That’s Schurman as in Schurman Rock, which itself got some sprucing-up a few years back. More than a dozen of his paintings were rediscovered at Camp Long several years ago and were being brought back to the park on Tuesday. But the renovation project is all about the beautiful old lodge. Click ahead for photos and video taking you inside to see what you’re getting for your money:Read More
ORIGINAL 9:23 AM REPORT: We’re at West Seattle Rotary Viewpoint Park for the re-installation of the totem pole stolen eight months ago, and since repainted and restored. The official re-dedication isn’t until August 10th, but they’re putting it back into place today, and the pole is already here, about to be taken off the back of a flatbed truck by a Ness Crane that itself has been jacked up off the grass. Among those here: Duane Ruud, one of the Rotarians who sleuthed the theft even before police made an arrest, and Terry Boden, the first Parks employee with whom we spoke for our first story in early December, while trying to determine if the pole had been taken with or without authorization. This all may only take about an hour. 9:49 AM UPDATE: The pole’s been craned over to its base, where it’s being fastened. To see the winged pole briefly in flight was quite the sight:
(video added 2:04 pm)
If you missed our earlier stories, the pole is being reinstalled by a crew from Artech, the Renton-based art-restoration firm that also has given it a facelift – from fumigation to repainting. 10:30 AM: The reinstallation is almost over. The pole’s in place; the crew’s starting to fold up, and some of the onlookers have drifted away. By all accounts, it’s gone well. We’ll have a full report later with video and better photos (Christopher Boffoli was there shooting for WSB as well – here’s a great image he got as Artech’s Roger Waterhouse worked atop the pole:)
Just checked with Garrett Farrell from Seattle Parks, and he confirms that installation is complete for the final touches on the Hiawatha Playfield renovations – the rubberized track surface – so the fences are down and the field/track are open again.
Last night, a low-key celebration included arts and crafts for kids – one year after they got a brand-new playground at Delridge Community Center. The actual anniversary is today – July 17th, 2009, will be marked in Delridge history as the day hundreds of volunteers joined with KaBOOM! to make the playground dream come true.
Thanks to Fairmount Community Association‘s Sharonn Meeks for the heads-up: The date’s set for the first community meeting about the driving range scheduled to be built at the West Seattle Golf Course. Though a media announcement hasn’t gone out about it yet, postal-mail alerts have, and it’s confirmed on the project webpage: The meeting is set for 7 pm August 4th at the golf course. The $3.4 million driving range is an element of the city’s Golf Master Plan, with design under way now and construction set to start next year.
Inside a hangar-size building in Renton, the totem pole stolen last November from West Seattle Rotary Viewpoint Park lies under a ladder-suspended fan, looking for all the world like a hospital patient, which it is, in a way. The “hospital” is the secure – Department of Homeland Security seals and all – facility of Artech, which not only is a premier restoration business, but also, we learned, staffed by a team including more than a few West Seattleites. They are working on the pole, with repairs and paint, to prepare it for return to West Seattle and a rededication ceremony on August 10th. More photos ahead:Read More
The rubber track subcontractor ATLAS TRACK has been delayed on another local job and the work will not start until the Monday the 12th at Hiawatha. The contractor is opening the fence and the public will have access until Monday morning.
Along with Myrtle Reservoir Park and the Hiawatha Playfield track, there’s more Seattle Parks work under way in West Seattle right now: Drove by Delridge Playfield and noticed the fences going up around the field, which is getting new turf funded by the Parks and Green Spaces Levy. Parks’ communications team confirms that construction work is beginning – they’ve just updated the project’s webpage, which points out that the finished field will incorporate “two striped soccer fields, one softball field, one baseball field, one woman’s lacrosse field overlaying the north soccer field, one men’s lacrosse field overlaying the south soccer field, two striped Ultimate fields overlaying the south soccer field, and one smaller Ultimate field demarcated with ‘cone dots’ overlaying the north soccer field.” Parks says the field is expected to reopen by early October, as per the contract we reported here a month ago.
The fences are going up around the track at Hiawatha Playfield today, as the Parks Department had warned field users would happen – this is so the last phase of the Hiawatha renovations, the rubberized track, can be installed. Project manager Garrett Farrell says the contractor has until July 23rd to finish the job, so the track and field are scheduled to be off-limits for the next few weeks. (Summer events at Hiawatha including the July 16 Family Fun Fest and West Seattle Hi-Yu Junior Court Coronation, the July 17-18 Mediterranean Fantasy Fest, and the July 20th Hi-Yu Concert in the Park – with West Seattle Volunteer Recognition Award winners honored! – are on the other side of the community center.)
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