The property from above in the summer of 2022
$5 A MONTH TO HELP KEEP CHS PAYWALL-FREE
Subscribe to CHS to help us hire writers and photographers to cover the neighborhood. CHS is a pay what you can community news site with no required sign-in or paywall. To stay that way, we need you. Become a subscriber to help us cover the neighborhood for $5 a month -- or choose your level of support 🖤
The 1125 Harvard Ave E project will meet its next major milestone Saturday with a community meeting to unveil the proposal held at Volunteer Park’s Asian Art Museum:
125 Harvard Ave E Park Public Design Meeting
Sat, Oct 15, 2022 , 10:00am-11:30am
Seattle Asian Art Museum, Alvord Boardroom 1400 E Prospect
The 1.6 acres of land and 1955-built home on the property left to the city after the death of philanthropist Kay Bullitt stretches out on the northwest slopes of Capitol Hill in the prestigious Harvard-Belmont Landmark District.
CHS reported here on the early planning for the project including a survey that planners said showed preferences for developing the new park land “as a quiet, contemplative place” while making space for the Cass Turnbull Garden as part of the site, a project from Seattle nonprofit Plant Amnesty honoring its late founder.
A plan must also be shaped for the 1955-built Bullitt residence — “a unique A-frame house” designed by Pacific Northwest architect Fred Bassetti that stands on the property. The one and a half story, 3,400-square-foot open design home must be structurally assessed and could be worthy of historical protections while remaining a centerpiece of the new park.
The full Seattle Parks document including survey responses and answers submitted by community members about the planned park is below:
Saturday’s Seattle Parks and Recreation meeting will feature the first public unveiling of a design concept based, the city says, “on “the input we’ve received to date, along with regulatory requirements, and other constraints” as part the community work led by Karen Kiest Landscape Architecture. Parks says the meeting is “an opportunity for the community to learn about the project, provide input on design options and learn about the next steps for the project.”
Upcoming milestones beyond the release of the “concept/early schematic design for the park” will also include a “rough order of magnitude cost estimate for possible inclusion in the next round of the Seattle Park District funding,” Seattle Parks says.
Opened six years ago, Broadway Hill Park’s third of an acre construction budget weighed in at around $400,000. But that land cost the city $2 million.
Next steps on Harvard Ave E will also include submitting the Bullitt house and property for landmarks review, maintenance work that could include repairs to the property’s old masonry walls, and studying accessibility throughout the property.
With the land now under city ownership, Seattle Parks is also considering changes to its future parkland including removing a fence and hedge along Harvard “following principles of CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design).”
You can learn more on the 1125 Harvard Avenue East park project page.
$5 A MONTH TO HELP KEEP CHS PAYWALL-FREE
Subscribe to CHS to help us hire writers and photographers to cover the neighborhood. CHS is a pay what you can community news site with no required sign-in or paywall. To stay that way, we need you. Become a subscriber to help us cover the neighborhood for $5 a month -- or choose your level of support 🖤
