A two-block section along the unsightly stretch of 14th Avenue NW will soon be a beautiful park boulevard. The park will be between NW 59th Street and NW 61st Street.
“This is going to be a park designed the way the community wants it, because YOU are going to participate in this process,” Dawn Hemminger writes in the East Ballard Community Association newsletter (sign up for the newsletter here). “The more input we can provide to the city and our designers on what’s important to us, the better chance we have to create a Park that’s going to be enjoyed and loved by all who live, work and play in our neighborhood.”
Later this month Mithun, the design consultant, will present three design options at a public meeting. They will also talk about the history of the project and give a site analysis.
One of the sketches of the park boulevard plan presented to the Ballard District Council in February.
Here is the project description from the website:
The Parks and Green Spaces Levy provides Approximately $1.5 million for design and construction of the 14th Avenue Park Boulevard.
The purpose of the project is to convert two full blocks and two half blocks of 14th Ave NW between NW 58th and NW 62nd from an existing concrete roadway and gravel parking median to green space with green infrastructure and park elements and incorporate safety improvements for pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles.
The blocks between NW 59th and NW 61st will be completely converted and the half block north and south will be converted and used as transition lanes.
The community meeting will be held on January 24th from 7 – 9 p.m. at St. Alphonsus Parish School (5816 15th Ave NW.) Construction on the park boulevard is expected to start later this year, with completion in 2013.
