The western loop of Volunteer Park has been reopened to cars for the first time in more than a decade. Slow down.
Seattle Parks officials this week have cleared up confusion about the opening of the lower loop road to motor vehicles and confirmed that the use is temporary for construction and will eventually be changed back to its pedestrian and human-powered only status.
the W loop @ Volunteer Park is open to cars because road in front of museum where cars loop to exit on Prospect is closed due to construction. First there were no signs, then they added slow sign, then this week, they added 5mph signs. Drivers need to be reminded of common sense. pic.twitter.com/tqFoMLowmY
— Monica Kim (@monicakim524) February 2, 2022
“Our goal in reopening is to make sure folks with mobility challenges have access to the park. We also want to make sure that folks who are coming throughout the city (and the region) have access to this historic regional park as well,” a parks spokesperson tells CHS.
The western loop was reopened to drivers in December due to construction to repair the park’s stone parking plaza in front of the Seattle Asian Art Museum. That work had been hoped to be wrapped up by mid-January but “the job has been delayed and the detour will have to continue longer than the initial plan,” the parks rep said.
The detour has opened the loop to drivers for the first time since its closure in 2009 as part of changes to a group of park roads in the city. It also saw motor vehicle and truck use, as well as crew parking during construction of the park’s new covered amphitheater.
Drivers entering the park are now funneled onto the loop, sharing the road with walkers, joggers, and bikers. Parks has also now added temporary signs reminding drivers to proceed more slowly through the busy park.
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this makes no sense whatsoever.
What is wrong with our city??? This project taking so long makes NO SENSE. First it took them literally 6 months to redo about 100 square feet of concrete by the benches over looking the Black Hole Sun and now it’s taking them months longer than planned to complete this concrete work. We didn’t have access to those benches from basically late August until a couple weeks ago.
There are concrete teams that could have done the entire job in 2-3 days.
So on top of the delays halfway through the project they decide to open the lower loop to get…20-30 more parking spaces back? You know the loop that is used by hundreds of runners, walkers and cyclists every day.
How about you just leave it with reduced parking? There’s plenty of neighborhood parking in that area of Cap Hill anyways. It’s rarely full on 13th and 14th between Mercer and the park.
Everything about this project and the work is an example of how terribly run our city is.
It was election season, so it was time to pay off the unions with bloated contracts for work that should have taken 2 or 3 weeks tops. Ps I’m a union member.
The opening of the western loop was done out of necessity, because with the street closed in front of the SAAM vehicles which entered the park at 15th and Galer (the one-way street) had no way to exit the park except via the western loop. But I agree that the repaving project could have been done in a much more timely manner.
There is no reason for this to be open. The circle by the Conservatory opens to 15th Ave E. The circle to the water tower opens to E Prospect St/14th Ave E. To drive between them, cars can use the public roads outside the park. I don’t get it.