Microasis

Arcade Plaza (Park-Man Park) Pavement-to-Park Kick-Off, 5/11/17

Welcome to Arcade Plaza…or [whisper-voice] “Park-Man Park”—our latest Pavement-to-Parks project—part of the Seattle Department of Transportation’s partnership program with communities citywide to activate public spaces that are going to waste.

These are spaces that clutter the block with excess concrete and parked cars instead of filling it with neighbors.

SDOT’s Mission: Upcycle these neighborhood dead zones into a neighborhood microasis.

Along with parks in 1st Hill, Rainier Vista, Ballard, Belltown, Phinney Ridge, and Capitol Hill, this is now the 7th one we’ve opened

People here used to jokingly call this spot “Four Car Park” … and they would close the block and take over the space for impromptu hang outs.

Following the lead of your neighborhood instincts and your neighborhood ingenuity, we’ve made your priorities official.

We share your priorities.

The population boom we’re experiencing provides an opportunity to transform our city into a model of sustainability… We must seize our exponential growth to tie housing and transit and retail together to enhance affordability and equity.

But that plan…

… these increasingly dense, increasingly pedestrian-oriented neighborhoods…

will only work when we reclaim and reactivate public space for the neighborhood.

A big thank you to SDOT Urban Designer Susan McLaughlin for her great Pac-Man design. And thanks to community activist Brie Gyncild.