14th Ave NW Park
Project Information

Location: Ballard, 14th Ave NW between NW 59th and NW 61st Streets

Project Status

April 2013
This section of Ballard is one of the areas of the city that doesn't have enough parks and green spaces. Ballard community members have long voiced their desire for more useable open space, and in 2005 the East Ballard Community Association hired the consultant Carlson Associates to work with the neighborhood to prepare a visioning plan for 14th Avenue NW. From that extensive planning process, a vision report was produced.

The plan was made widely available and garnered a great deal of community support. Funding to develop the park became available from the voter-approved 2008 Parks and Green Spaces Levy Acquisition Fund. Although located in the East Ballard neighborhood, this new park is intended to serve all of Seattle.

Parking studies found 400 parking spaces available in the area around (that is, extending two blocks in each direction from) the park. The project will eliminate 89 of those spaces, leaving 311 open parking spaces.

The park will make 14th Avenue NW a safer and more pleasant place to walk, cycle, or drive. The schematic design is complete and has been approved by Seattle Parks. We contracted with Mithun to develop this schematic design into construction documents required to send the project out to public bid. As part of this construction document process, Parks is reviewing the design for neighborhood impacts including pedestrian circulation, parking and traffic flow.

Parks anticipates construction documents and permitting to be completed by the end of 2013. Construction will begin in early 2014 with completion in late fall 2014.

We anticipate full Council action to appropriate the remainder of the funding by mid-2013.

Background: A meeting to discuss possible Ballard neighborhood park acquisitions was held in conjunction with Groundswell NW on October 6, 2009. Many ideas and locations were discussed and the consensus at the meeting was that Parks should focus on East Ballard. The community prioritized this development project in lieu of acquiring additional property.

Since the meeting Parks has worked on East Ballard community's vision of transforming the wide, underutilized 14th Avenue NW corridor into a park.

Two public meetings have been held on this project. The first meeting was held on January 24, 2012. Approximately sixty people came from the neighborhood and commented on three options prepared by Mithun, in breakout sessions. To learn more about the first meeting please see concepts and notes below.

Parks held the second public meeting for this project on March 7, 2012. Approximately 45 people attended. Parks staff and the design team from Mithun discussed the final schematic design. The agenda and the written public comments from that meeting can be found below.

Fehr and Peers, traffic consultants, have summarized the Walking Audit and prepared a Parking Impact Memo.

Parks hired Mithun as the design consultant on this project. Fehr and Peers Traffic Consultants, Mayfly Engineering and The Robinson Company(cost estimators) will be assisting in the design phase.

Project Description

The Parks and Green Spaces Levy provides approximately $2.9 million for design and construction of the 14th Avenue Park Boulevard.

The project converts two full blocks of 14th Ave. NW to a new park between NW 59th and NW 61st streets with transition lanes to the park from the north and south. A park will replace the gravel parking median and portions of the existing concrete roadway. The project includes green infrastructure and incorporates safety improvements for pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles.

The design and construction of this project are funded by the Parks and Green Spaces Levy Acquisition Fund, which provides $24 million for the acquisition of neighborhood parks in up to 20 identified areas throughout the City. The Ballard Residential Urban Village was included in that list. The community prioritized this development project in lieu of acquiring additional property.

Community Participation

Public Meeting #1  1/24/2012

• Agenda
• Presentation
• Notes
• Comment Forms
• Postcard Exercise

Public Meeting #2  3/7/2012

• Agenda
• Notes
• Written Comments from Meeting Attendees

Important Links

• Seattle Parks and Recreation
• Parks & Green Spaces Levy
• Friends of 14th Ave NW Park Boulevard
• Mithun
• Fehr and Peers Traffic Consultants
• Mayfly Engineering
• The Robinson Company
• East Ballard Community Association
• My Ballard Park Article

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