Seattle Celebrates PARKingDayPlus

Cathy Tuttle September 16. 2015 Remarkable people in Ballard, Rainier, Bryant, and Ravenna are erecting PARK(ing) Day projects to make their streets safer on Friday, September 18 between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. Four winning designs from the first annual Seattle Neighborhood Greenways PARK(ing) Day Design Competition will be built this Friday. These are tactical urbanism projects - quick, inexpensive, and effective demonstrations of how streets can be safer for all of us. PARK(ing) Day celebrates streets for people. #PARKingDayPLUS celebrates SAFE streets for people. Interestingly, all #PARKingDayPLUS projects are spearheaded by parents of very young children who want to make their streets - and their neighborhoods - safer for their families and their community. PARKingDayPlus heroesRainier Ave South. Shirley Savel bikes with her baby and young daughter along Rainier Avenue South, Seattle's most dangerous street. Savel has teamed up with other Rainier Valley residents and parents to install a one-day demonstration of a protected bike lane on both sides of Rainier Avenue South between 39th Ave S and 42nd Ave S, stretching between Columbia City and Hillman City. Savel met with Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) engineers and safety experts to plan her route and make it safe for people who walk, drive, ride the bus, and bike. Ballard NW 65th & 6th NW. In Ballard, Chris Saleeba often bikes with his four-year-old daughter to the Ballard Farmer's Market. Chris teamed up with his co-workers at Alta Design & Planning to design a protected intersection for people who walk and ride bikes across NW 65th St. at 6th Ave NW. Saleeba, along with his friends and neighbors from Ballard Greenways, will build and staff the intersection from 10 to 7 on Friday for PARK(ing) Day and 11 to 3 on Saturday during the Ballard Summer Parkways event. Ravenna NE 65th & 20th NE. In Ravenna, Andres Salomon and his three-year-old son Atom are frequently out and about walking and biking in northeast Seattle. Andres and his friends from NE Seattle Greenways will build a protected climbing lane for people who bike along NE 65th St between 20th Ave NE and 22nd Ave NE. Andres found that the sidewalk on this stretch of NE 65th was narrow, uneven, and often blocked by cars, while biking in the street felt very unsafe. Bryant Burke Gilman Trail & 40th NE. In Bryant, Kenneth Trease, father of two young children, and Jen Goldman, mother of three whose oldest is celebrating her sixth birthday on Friday, will build a protected crossing in a high conflict area for people who walk, bike and drive at 40th Ave NE and the Burke-Gilman Trail. Jen says, "I am providing mini cupcakes to hand out. Sort of a shared birthday party for my daughter, who loves to bike, frequently crosses there, and is turning 6 that day. She is excited about the idea of getting a nicer spot to cross for her birthday." PARK(ing) Day is an annual worldwide event where artists, designers, and ordinary people improve streets and transform on-street parking spaces into temporary parks for a day. It is an official Seattle event, with all temporary improvements requiring approval from the city.  People all over Seattle are celebrating PARK(ing) Day from 10am to 7pm on Friday, Sept 18th. Seattle Neighborhood Greenways staff will deliver a truckload of white duct tape, chalk, and orange cones on Friday morning, September 18 at 8am and let the building begin! Find a map here of all 59 Seattle PARK(ing) Day projects. Make sure to visit our award-winning projects on September 18. Who knows, some of them may even be implemented  permanently in the future! Contacts: Cathy Tuttle (206) 713-5869 Seattle Neighborhood Greenways Shirley Savel (206) 841-2415 Rainier Valley Family Biking Andres Salomon (617) 501-2445 NE Seattle Greenways Site plans:
  1. Rainier: https://twitter.com/NEGreenways/status/643216875749425153
  2. Ballard: https://twitter.com/NEGreenways/status/643221411142590465
  3. Bryant: https://twitter.com/NEGreenways/status/643212933208477697
  4. Ravenna: https://twitter.com/NEGreenways/status/643210336540098560
2nd Prize Winner 6th NW & NW 65th Street Crossing 2nd Prize Winner 6th NW & NW 65th Street Crossing