If the Smith Cove land swap goes through, Port of Seattle officials may construct an office building and parking lot on the soccer fields that currently cover most of the park property.
Mark Griffin of the Port of Seattle’s real estate division said the Port has initial plans to place a building either on its existing property, known as the West Yard area, which is adjacent to Smith Cover and next to the soccer fields. If the swap goes through, the Port would give West Yard parcel to the Parks Department and build the structure on the current ball fields, next to the Magnolia Bluff.
Under city regulations, the building could be 45 feet in height, allowing a three or four-story building on the site. However, with waivers from the city, the building could be built higher.
The Port wants to swap properties with the Parks Department because it would free them from building restrictions that exist within 200 feet of the shoreline.
“The specifics about the building are yet to be determined,” Griffin said. “We haven’t made any plans yet.”
Griffin said the catalyst for making a change on the West Yard property, which has remained undeveloped for decades, is King County’s decision to place an underground sewer overflow tank somewhere in the Smith Cove Park area. The Port doesn’t want the tank under their property because it would limit how the site could be developed. Instead, the Port wants the tank to be placed under the park site. Port officials also want the swap to be financially neutral, so no money needs to change hands.
The benefit for the swap for the park would be new ball fields and extensive access to waterfront property. Part of the cleanup and refurbishing of the Port’s West Yard site would be paid for by the King County Wastewater Treatment Division. But exactly how much was still to be determined. It was also unclear where the money would come from to create the new park. The current Smith Cover soccer fields cost an estimated $300,000 to develop, according to the Parks Department.
Parks officials and representatives of the Port of Seattle unveiled four different initial designs for the site last Thursday during a community meeting in Magnolia. The first showed how the property would be developed if there was no land swap. The other three options show various ways the two properties of approximately equal size could be divided up. Only a few of the options offer the soccer fields on the West Yard site. The West Yard’s proximity to the water could be problematic for soccer, but Parks official Donald Harris said that fences and buffers could be designed to keep balls from going into Elliott Bay.
Harris maintained that no deal had yet been made and the Parks department would listen to the concerns of the Magnolia residents when deciding whether or not to go forward.
“If we walk out of here tonight and no one is in favor of the swap, then it’s probably dead,” Harris said. “People sometimes think we come to these meetings and the idea is baked, cooked and read to go. It is not. That is not the case. We’ve made no decision.”
The crowd appeared split in their support, with some members, such as Magnolia activist Elizabeth Campbell, telling attendees to voice their opposition to the plan. Others said the Port had plenty of other nearby land to develop and should turn over the West Yard property to the Parks Department. A few in the crowd embraced the swap and said the details could be worked out later.
In any case, King County officials say they are going forward with the overflow tank, which needs to be under construction by the end of 2013.
Despite the lawsuit filed against the city of Seattle, director of the Seattle Department of Transportation, director of Seattle Center, and chairperson of the Seattle Special Events Committee, Seattle Hempfest President Vivian McPeak says the famous celebration will happen one way or another.
The lawsuit, filed on Feb. 10 in the United States District Court, resulted when the city of Seattle refused to grant a permit for the annual “protestival” put on by Seattle Events, Hempfest’s producers, due to a foot bridge construction project at the festivals location in Myrtle Edwards Park.
“Hempfest has been held at Myrtle Edwards since 1995 and this is our twentieth anniversary,” said McPeak.
The “West Thomas Overpass project” will provide a connection to the waterfront from the Lower Queen Anne and Belltown neighborhoods. The bicycle/pedestrian overpass project was slotted to begin construction in 2005 but was later delayed to 2006 and again until March of 2010 due to funding issues.
Now more than five years later, the city is in possession of the funds to begin construction and wants to move ahead this year.
“What the city and Seattle Events agreed to do is hold off on the lawsuit until March 16,” said McPeak. “That’s when the construction bids will come back and let us know if starting the bridge project after Hempfest will overrun the project’s cost.
“We knew the overpass project was going to happen five years ago,” he added. “We contacted them last year and were told this would have no affect and the project would be completed before the festival. It was no surprise Hempfest was coming.”
Gaining the required permit from the city isn’t the only problem facing Hempfest producers though.
“If we can’t obtain the permit, then we have to discuss the viability of another venue,” McPeak said. “We are trying to find a workable solution but there are only a few other venues with major issues surrounding there viability and only a few months left to put all of it together. We are months behind now and still don’t have a date or a location.”
The more than 100,000 people who attend this enormous annual event aren’t the only ones who will suffer if an agreement can’t be reached between the city and Hempfest.
“There will be a negative impact on local businesses with a substantial loss of revenue,” said McPeak. “Vendors will lose out, parking lots will lose out, hotels will lose out, this festival brings a significant financial gain to the local communities. The city is only willing to take unlimited steps to help make this happen and it is very frustrating.”
According to a joint status report and stipulation filed on Feb. 18, the city and Seattle Events agree in the interests of resolving the litigation to the following:
1. Seattle Events withdraws its request for a temporary restraining order and will not file any new requests for temporary restraining orders before March 17.
2. Seattle Events renotes its motion for preliminary injunction for March 25.
3. Seattle Events agrees that the city may file and serve its response to Seattle Events’ motion for preliminary injunction no later than noon March 23, notwithstanding local court rules to the contrary.
4. The city will not enter into a binding contract with a general contractor for the Thomas Street Overpass Project before March 28.
5. The city and Seattle Events will use their best efforts to work together cooperatively to develop plans, including but not limited to transportation plans, for one or more alternative locations for Hempfest on August 19 - 21, and to determine before March 16, whether and within what parameters such alternative location(s) will be feasible locations for Hempfest 2011. Seattle Events requests and the city agrees that Magnuson Park will be one of the alternative locations considered.
6. Discovery will not commence until March 17.
7. Should this litigation not be resolved by March 17, the parties agree to make arrangements for all reasonable discovery permitted under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, including document production and depositions, to take place on March 17-18.
“The reason behind Hempfest is free speech, we don't oppose the bridge project, we just don't understand why a project that is five years behind schedule can't wait a couple more months for Hempfest,” said McPeak. “Even if we can’t secure a venue, Hempfest will happen, we’ll just have to have an old fashioned protest down in front of city hall.”
McPeak went on to say that if the city does not grant the required permit, then the lawsuit will resume. Attempts were made to contact Carlton Seu and John Schochet with the Seattle City Attorney’s Office for comment regarding the lawsuit but as of press time no reply was received.
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