Selected Site: Current Location
Site Analysis
To kick off the second phase of planning, the project team conducted a detailed analysis of the current site, focusing on transit, sunlight, the urban context, and trees.
Urban Context
Legend
Building Setback from Road and Shoreline
Park
Commercial Zone
Residential Zone
AMENITIES
1Green Lake Public Library
2Fire Station
3The Hearthstone
4John Marshall Alternative High School
5Daniel Bagley Elementary School
6PCC Market
7Spud Fish & Chips
The neighborhood adjacent to the community center includes a mix of civic buildings, restaurants, shops, and residential buildings. The neighborhood public library represents a strong commercial center that provides several support services for the park.
BACKGROUND = 2017 AERIAL
Transit
Legend
Pedestrian Path
Vehicular Path
Bus Routes
Future Bus Routes
#Bus Route Numbers
Bike Route
Pedestrian Route from Roosevelt Station (0.6 miles / 15 minutes)
Pedestrian Crosswalk
Park Entry, Primary
Park Entry, Secondary
Multiple transit routes serve the site, providing quick and convenient service from Downtown and neighborhoods north of here. Vehicular access is available from Green Lake Way, and the site is a short drive from Interstate 5 or Highway 99. Several bike lanes converge around the lake, making it easy to arrive by bike. Multiple crosswalks provide pedestrian access into the adjacent neighborhood.
The future Roosevelt Light Rail Station on the east side of Interstate 5 will provide another way to get to the site that involves just a 10- to 15-minute walk. The site is also close to several schools that use the pool for swim practice.
BACKGROUND = 2017 AERIAL
On-Site Trees
Legend
TREE CANOPY
Trees in Allée
Blue Atlas Cedar
Other High Value Trees
Tree Canopy
TREE TYPES
ATulip Trees and Sycamores
BBlue Atlas Cedar
CMaples
DOaks
ESequoia
FSycamore
GHornbeam
HTypes Vary
This slide begins to identify the tree canopy so we can assess how the building can fit into the existing landscape. Mature trees grace many of the lawn and open spaces around the lake that are key components of the original planning for the site. Although the trees were not necessarily implemented as originally detailed in the 1908 plans, they are important to consider as we look to construct a new building. We will prioritize saving mature trees as we look at building location options. There are also planting areas that have not changed much since they were originally planted in the 1920s.
BACKGROUND = 2017 AERIAL
Solar Orientation
Legend
SOLAR ORIENTATION
Sunrise Angle
Sunset Angle
Summer Solstice Sunpath
(Sunrise 5:10 AM – 52.4°; Sunset 9:11 PM — 307.3°)
Equinox Sunpath
(Sunrise 6:55 AM – 88.4°; Sunset 7:08 PM — 271.2°)
Winter Solstice Sunpath
(Sunrise 7:54 AM – 124.8°; Sunset 4:20 PM — 234.8°)
Solar orientation is a key component to the sustainability of the new building, as the extent of sunlight available throughout the year is important to energy usage considerations.
BACKGROUND = 2017 AERIAL
History of Site
Olmsted Plan 1908–1910
The general plan from 1908 (revised in 1910), titled “Green Lake Boulevard,” depicts a pleasure drive along the water’s edge that is planted with trees and shrubs intermixed with swaths of lawn. In this plan, you can see the original recommendation for park development at the present-day site of the community center. The large open space was created by lowering the lake seven feet, and the shallow area was filled to provide the open fields, walking paths, landscaping, and buildings that we see today. Much of this is intact, although it has been altered as the site has developed over time.
Olmsted Plan 1908–1910
Legend
Pedestrian Pathway, Primary
Pedestrian Pathway, Secondary
Vehicular Pathway
Boat House
ELEMENTS IN OLMSTED DESIGN
AOpen Field
BRavenna Boulevard
CPark–Boulevard Connection
As we examine the general plan, we see that there are several elements used to organize the site. One of the main purposes of the park was to provide an escape from the urban built environment. Around the outer perimeter of the site, the parkway provided a place for vehicles to navigate around the lake. An important connection is made at the east edge of the site, where the parkway continues east along Ravenna Boulevard.
Next, a series of primary and secondary pathways provide a network of trails that allow pedestrians to stroll around the site. The secondary pathways provide a different experience as they loop around the large open field intended as space for ballfields.
Finally, the development of a boat house is indicated along the lake’s shoreline. The building was intended to be screened by a series of islands and landscaping. (The islands adjacent to the shoreline were never constructed.)
Early Park History: 1910–1940
Legend
Pedestrian Pathway
Vehicular Pathway
New* Site Feature
New* Vehicular Space
New* Building
*Additional site features were not part of the original design of Green Lake Park or its original construction, but were added later.
CONSTRUCTED IN 1912
ATennis Court (expanded in 1920s)
CONSTRUCTED IN 1920s
BFloating Dock
CONSTRUCTED IN 1929
CCommunity Center Building
DCommunity Center Parking
EAllée / Row of Trees
CONSTRUCTED IN 1932
FNew Pathway
Early park development consisted of dirt pathways and a single tennis court. In the 1920s, the dirt pathways and tennis courts were expanded, and the floating dock was constructed. In 1929, the community center building was constructed at the lakeshore. The front door of the building faced Green Lake Drive North and was lined with a formal planting of sycamore trees. Following the original plans for the site, new landscape plantings were also installed. Several of these planting beds and original sycamore trees are still intact today. The parking lot was later developed in connection with the building and is in its original configuration.
BACKGROUND = 1936 AERIAL
Mid-Century Park History: 1940–1970
Legend
Pedestrian Pathway
Vehicular Pathway
New Site Feature
New Building
CONSTRUCTED IN 1940s
APier (1945)
BBoat House (1946)
CONSTRUCTED IN 1955
CEvans Pool Addition to the Community Center
CONSTRUCTED IN 1969
DPlayground
Following the construction of the original community center building, the fishing pier and boathouse were constructed in 1945-46, generally following the original 1908 plan. In 1955, the Evans Pool addition expanded the existing community center. The pool building shortened the formal planting of sycamore trees that lead up to the front door of the community center. The playground is the last element that was added to the area in 1969. The playground has been upgraded several times since its original construction.
BACKGROUND = 2017 AERIAL
For generations, Native people in the area, members of Lakes Duwamish communities, visited Green Lake for freshwater fish, plant materials, and, likely, recreation. The area remains culturally significant to tribal members today.
Planning for Seattle’s park system started in 1903 when John Olmsted recommended a series of park boulevards that would link to larger open spaces forming an interconnected network of parks that was intended to ring the city. Development of Green Lake Park began in 1908 and lasted several decades.
Olmsted Design Principles
The Olmsted Brothers used ten unique design principles, four of which will continue to help inform our planning for the new community center and pool:
- Genius of the Place (Genius loci): This most important principle emphasizes preserving what’s special about Green Lake. The new community center should reflect the character of the Pacific Northwest and the neighborhood and be distinct from other existing community centers in Seattle.
- Unified Composition: All elements of the community center design should be developed within a coherent structure. The design should be intuitive to navigate and in harmony with the site.
- Sustainability: The design should build on what is present on site, avoid wastefulness, and weave environmental elements into it.
- Orchestration of Movement: There should be an elegant alignment and smart separation of different modes of travel throughout the site. Pedestrians, cyclists, and vehicles should all be able to reach the community center with ease.