Park(ing) Day is CHS’s kind of holiday. It celebrates transforming city spaces into something people feel they are part of. Coffee shops and local stores can do that, too, so not every empty space needs to be a park but parking spaces generally don’t inspire you to think, wow, this is my city and I can do something crazy like put down a carpet of fake grass and hang out for the afternoon.

Keith Harris, the community organizer behind many of the events that utilize the People’s Parking Lot at Belmont and Pine, says you still have time to sign up to create a space in Park(ing) Day’s 2010 Central Park that will take over the empty lot for the second consecutive year:

Park(ing) Day is three days away but you still have time to download the quick registration form and get it in by Thursday night. With the park I’m finally getting around to thinking about building and two others people are planning, we should have ten on the lot, plus maybe something else fun by the folks at Undriving. We’re still rounding up awards and also have the after party with Streets for all Seattle and Feet First which runs into the night.

Given the nature of the PPL — big, empty, free! — you can probably show up on Friday and be part of the fun in an impromptu manner, also, but sign up if you want to be in the running for prizes or have something ambitious planned.

Here’s a map of our part of the city’s planned Park(ing) Day pop-up parks.

View full map (PDF)

• 6 Friends of Capitol Hill 1 Approximately 125 15th Ave E
• 7 Schemata Workshop 2 Approximately 1720 12th Ave
• 8 University of Washington – MUP 3 North side of E Pike St between 10th Ave and 11th Ave
• 9 People’s Parking Lot MANY “Central Park” located in the empty lot at 500 East Pine, between Summit Ave and Belmont Ave