Lake Union Park: a first assessment
Only a small part is done, and there are some missed opportunities. But the way South Lake Union opens up from the edges of the park is stunning and bold. The design pulls off the difficult trick of incorporating a working waterfront with a public park.
You can spot a Hargreaves landscape a mile away, or in this case, from a seaplane. Last week I landed in Lake Union, and from the window had an up-in-the-sky view of the first phase of South Lake Union Park. Designed by Hargreaves Associates (with offices in San Francisco, Cambridge, London, and New York), it is marked by elements that characterize the style of the firm: broad expanses of grass, plantings that are textural rather than colorful, and a web of paths — or desire lines — that alternately cut straight and swoop across the park.
These features are easily seen on the ground as well as from the sky, and are not particularly subtle moves in the landscape. Neither are the two boat-shaped planters, with more to come in future phases. What is elegant and complex about this first phase of Lake Union Park is the construction of a new working waterfront within a public park.
One might wonder why a firm from out-of-town was selected. Hargreaves has a high profile internationally (they completed extensive work for the Sydney Olympics) and is arguably the most experienced waterfront park firm in the country, with especially strong skills on the construction management side. It is worth visiting Crissy Field in San Francisco to experience how they transformed military land in the Presidio into an unexpected and terrific national park.
On the site of a former saw mill, asphalt plant, and garbage dump, Lake Union Park is now edged on its north and west sides by a wood-decked bulkhead. Giant cleats indicate that boats tie up here, and this working waterfront allows park visitors a direct connection to the water's edge. In a world full of fear of liability lawsuits, it is a neat trick to achieve unimpeded access to the deep end of the lake by combining bulkhead and park. (Of course, as soon as the edge transitions on the southwest side to a more naturalistic shoreline, the guardrails go up there). New parks don't often have the opportunity to take the risk of asking visitors to be mindful of their own bodies in space (if they did, our playgrounds would be much more varied and imaginative), so it's refreshing to encounter it here.
The two colliding landscape types may not look all that dramatic on the surface, but the challenge of constructing the bulkheads and preparing the ground for the lawn was substantial. Scott Smith, principal at Hargreaves (full disclosure: I worked for Hargreaves Associates in 2003 and 2004, but not on this project), told me that while pounding 100-plus foot piles into the lake to construct the seawall, they unsurprisingly encountered remnants of past activities on the site. "Imagine trying to shovel through a web of matchsticks. Many, many feet of logs from the former mill were laid over each other. It's hard to drive piles into that." The tolerances in this kind of work are within inches.
The bulkhead is higher on the west side than on the north (allowing for the accommodation of variously sized vessels). At the north side, facing the full sweep of Lake Union, the clear cedar wood deck steps down twice, bringing visitors closer to the water's edge and creating terraced seating. If nothing else, this park is a treat because it affords visitors an opportunity that they did not have before: to sit down on a generous public deck at the north end of downtown and watch the varied life of the lake go by — boats, planes, people on curious homemade floats. When I was there, I watched a pod of primary-colored kayaks filled with school-aged children paddle past and under the new steel pedestrian Safeco Bridge.
The design of the bridge belongs to the multi-disciplinary Seattle design firm Mithun (where I also used to work but again not on this project). Its steely blue-gray paint perfectly evokes the color into which Seattle sky and water dissolve on overcast days. The bridge doesn't take the opportunity for a major or iconic statement, leaving that to the vessels and the grand lake itself. It lacks that architectural quality of the best bridges that make you feel as if you are floating through steel or sticks, hovering or soaring above the water.
The deck of the bridge is flat, not arched, and it is split down the middle with steel grate on one side and wood planks on the other. This dual deck feels a bit squished by the narrowness of the bridge, and the grate is a little too tightly spaced to let you see much of the water flowing under your feet. I'm puzzled by the lack of alignment in the screws fastening down the wood. Rather than being in a perfectly straight line, they wiggle, and this continues across the entire deck of the bulkhead. It may seem like a minor detail, but it is the precise execution of a repeating pattern that makes something like a boardwalk stunning.
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Comments:
Posted Thu, Aug 21, 8:06 a.m. inappropriate
A "Working" Waterfront? Bilge Water!: Katherine's review of Lake Union Park completely ignores the missed opportunity for educating Seattle about the area's true maritime history. Calling the boat dock a "working waterfront" is like calling the Monorail a leading example of our modern transportation system. Real maritime history parks, such as Mystic Seaport or the San Francisco National Maritime Historical Park, allow visitors to see industrial history in action, by way of actual humans doing actual work on actual large ships. Apart from the Center for Wooden Boats' tiny, hidden workshop, there's nothing industrial about this park whatsover. Instead, we get boring signage, a few trees, three or four blades of grass, a bridge to nowhere, and a new home for a museum whose mission is not maritime-related. How is this a "working waterfront?" Where are the sounds of sawmilling large timbers? The smell of paint going on a newly restored tall ship? It could've happened, but the Seattle Parks Department saw fit to evict the not-for-profit at the park capable of delivering these living experiences. Lake Union Park belongs somewhere in Bellevue, not in a major urban center with an industrial history going back 150 years.
Posted Thu, Aug 21, 10:05 a.m. inappropriate
Fair Assessment: Rather disappointing that the National Historic Landmark vessels at the Wharf were totally ignored by this article (or maybe lumped into "nifty small craft"?), but at least someone else thinks that the hyped "native plants display" is underwhelming -- especially compared to the lush watercolor concept art.
Posted Thu, Aug 21, 1:40 p.m. inappropriate
Active "blue space" complement's park's "green space": Dear Crosscut,
Your article makes a great point: the most important piece to the park's success is the amount of activity it enables. Interaction with the lake is an important piece of the Lake Union Park design, and while the renewed "green space" of the park gets you to the water's edge, the organizations that call the park home activate the "blue space" of Lake Union. Vessels which have been designated as national landmarks engage people by getting underway (Virginia V, built 1921) or by dockside programs, such as Tugboat Storytime for toddlers aboard the Arthur Foss (built 1889). The Center for Wooden Boats provides free boat rides every Sunday afternoon at 2pm, and provides classic wooden rowboats and sailboats for rent to the public. Visiting sailing ships such as the Nina and the Lady Washington animate history through experience. Locals can get on the water by paddling with the Tacoma Dragon Boat Association or families can cruise the lake on one of the Fremont Ferry's weekend ice cream cruises that leave from the park. Every weekend since its opening the park has been has been bustling, and with the planned activation from MOHAI and United Indians of All Tribes the experience will only get richer. To find out what's happening, go to www.atlakeunionpark.org.
The new design does change the face of the site. The new park design does displace the area that has been used for restoration and maintenance of the historic vessels - a vital component in their preservation and the history of the region. This piece of the "working waterfront" is being pursued at a nearby site at the north end of the lake where the spectacle of traditional maritime work will be celebrated and made accessible to the public. The story of Lake Union is a maritime one, and this site at the north end will complement at the vitality of Lake Union Park with the activation and involvement of the public in the working waterfront at the north end.
Posted Thu, Aug 21, 1:55 p.m. inappropriate
RE: Active "blue space" complement's park's "green space": Can you provide any more information on the North Lake Union site?
Posted Thu, Aug 21, 5:07 p.m. inappropriate
RE: Active "blue space" complement's park's "green space": Still tentative, so probably best for an offline discussion. Feel free to contact me: jbeattie"at"cwb.org
Posted Fri, Aug 22, 10:20 a.m. inappropriate
Old Idea: The one neighborhood idea I remember from Seattle Common's days was a walking path/boulevard thing connecting S. Lake Union with Seattle Center.
Hopefully that will happen evenutually, perhaps even before the finish the light rail!
-Douglas Tooley
Posted Fri, Aug 22, 10:50 a.m. inappropriate
A good pic: http://www.hargreaves.com/news/UnderConstruction/LakeUnion/
Posted Tue, Aug 26, 10 a.m. inappropriate
More on Lake Union Park and the Lake to Bay Trail: Great to hear the many perspectives on Lake Union Park's design. You can see more images on Seattle Parks Foundation's Lake Union Park website. Construction the remaining 10.4 acres will start in September and be completed in 2010, so come down to see the transformation.
Regarding the trail from Lake Union Park to the Olympic Sculpture Park via Seattle Center - also known as the Lake to Bay Trail - Seattle Parks Foundation is working with many groups to make this path a reality as part of our Bands of Green report. An initial portion of the trail is one of the many green connection projects in the 2008 Parks and Green Spaces Levy which will be on the ballot this November.