City backs off on bonfire limits… for now

Just hours after the Seattle Parks and Recreation staff recommended restricting the number of bonfires at Golden Gardens and Alki — which generated quite the reaction here on MyBallard and elsewhere — parks superintendent Tim Gallagher issued a press release saying his department will not tackle the issue this year. In other words, no change for the immediate future. However, the press release says the department “continues to receive a steady trickle of complaints about associated behaviors — drinking, loud music, and huge amounts of trash, and continues to have concerns about the costs of managing the program.” Those costs are $60,000 a year, the department says.

(Photo by TheWayoftheGun). Meanwhile, the West Seattle Blog quotes City Councilmember Sally Clark’s reaction to the whole thing: “We have a God-given right to have bonfires on the beach. Yes, I care about global warming and I believe that we all must make changes small and large in our lives to keep the planet alive. However, I cannot support extinguishing beach bonfires. Beach bonfires are not killing the planet. Hummers, coal-fired power plants, routine air travel, and single-occupancy car commutes are killing the planet.”