Parks and Green Spaces Levy
Environment Projects

The $6.6 million Environment category in the Parks and Green Spaces Levy is dedicated to creating a healthy ecosystem for Seattle. This “green” funding has three types of projects: Forest and stream restoration, community gardens and shoreline access.

FOREST AND STREAM RESTORATION

The Levy provides funding for the work of the Green Seattle Partnership. The Green Seattle Partnership formed in 2004 and is working to restore 2,500 acres of forested park land in Seattle by 2025. The unique public/private effort is the largest urban forest restoration project in the nation. Levy funding contributed to the restoration of 126 acres of urban forest in the first two years of the Levy.

P-PATCH

The Department of Neighborhoods P-Patch program is managing the development of community gardens and P-Patch projects. The Levy allocates $2 million to create four new community gardens. The program will leverage its original funding to build up to 15 new and expanded gardens by 2013.

SHORELINE ACCESS

Seattle’s urban landscape is dotted with bodies of water that help shape the City’s character and defines its identity. While much of it is private or park land, 149 public streets in Seattle end on waterfronts. The Levy contributes funding to develop approximately 10 Shoreline Street Ends. These public street ends along Lake Washington, Lake Union, Puget Sound and other waterways provide Seattle an opportunity to increase public shoreline access.

Seattle Parks and Recreation is partnering with Seattle Department of Transportation to implement Levy funded improvements. (See Seattle’s Shoreline Street Ends Program) Basic actions will be taken to open these spaces for use, including signage and options such as benches, bicycle racks, and minor landscaping. The improvement designs provide physical and/or visual access to the shoreline/water environment at several locations.

Below are the first three locations that were improved in 2011.

• Spokane Street East Side/East Waterway (19)

  Located under the West Seattle Bridge overlooking the Duwamish.  Seattle Parks installed curb cut and pathway, bench, bicycle rack, signage and covered soil with wood chips.

  Improved Site

• SW Bronson Way (10)

  This project is located in the large parking lot south of Salty’s Restaurant with outstanding views of Elliott Bay and the City skyline. We created a dedicated pedestrian viewing area and replaced guard rail with low wall, replaced compacted gravel with concrete pad, installed bollards, 3 benches, bicycle rack and planting beds with pine trees.

  Improved Site

• S Fidalgo Street (26)

  Located in the Georgetown neighborhood between industrial uses overlooking the Duwamish River this project replaced asphalt with concrete pad, cleared blackberries and removed glass debris, installed bench, table, wheel stops and signage.

  Improved Site

2012 Projects:
Design to begin March/April 2012 and construction planned to be complete by end of this year.

• NE 135th Street (122)

  Located adjacent to the Burke Gilman Trail, this shoreline street end includes a low bank site with Lake Washington access. Improvements could include landscaping and a bench.

• NE 130th Street (123)

  Located adjacent to the Burke Gilman Trail, this shoreline street end includes an empty site with low bank access to the water. Improvements could include a bench, picnic table, low maintenance plantings and hand-carry boat access to Lake Washington.

• 75th Avenue S (39)

  Located in the south Rainier Beach neighborhood, this street end is a higher bank and covered with brush. Needed improvements include a viewing platform or stairway to the water’s edge, bench and signage.

• 72nd Avenue S (40)

  Located in the south Rainier Beach neighborhood, this street end is a low bank with a steep driveway access. Needed improvements include signage, benches, landscaping and potential access to the water’s edge.

The project numbers, following street end names, designate location on the Seattle Department of Transportation map located on page 2 of the Shoreline Street Ends document.

For questions or comments regarding these Street End Improvement projects please contact:

Cheryl Eastberg
SPU/Parks Project Coordinator
Seattle Parks and Recreation
206-386-4381
Cheryl.eastberg@seattle.gov
         Or
R. Frank Robinson
Sr. Landscape Architect
206-684-7035
r.frank.robinson@seattle.gov

*Note: To view a PDF, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader. Download it for free at www.adobe.com.