EDMONDS — Cities with a 125-year old history don’t often get the opportunity to plan an eight-acre downtown park.
That’s the chance Edmonds now has with Civic Field, the athletic grounds of the former Edmonds High School.
The city had leased the nearly 8-acre site from the Edmonds School District for nearly 40 years. It reached an agreement with the school district to purchase the land near the Boys &Girls Club at 310 Sixth Ave N. for $1.9 million.
Now that the city owns the land, it wants to decide how to develop it. The city has posted an online open house for people to continue to make their suggestions.
The city is open to all ideas, said Carrie Hite, the city’s parks, recreation and cultural services director.
“It’s a blank slate,” she said. “With eight acres, it’s quite an opportunity to plan.”
A range of activities could take place at the park from exercise paths to informal playgrounds and an activities clubhouse.
A report by Walker Macy, the Seattle consultants working on the project, say it could also be home to picnic areas, strolling paths and a horticultural garden, and home to events such as theater and musical performances, art installations and a covered market space.
It could host annual events, such as the Taste of Edmonds and the city’s Fourth of July fireworks shows.
The city received several grants to purchase the land, including $500,000 from the Washington State Recreation Conservation Office and $500,000 from the Snohomish Conservation Futures Program.
Conservation funding sources brought with it restrictions on how six of the park’s eight acres can be developed, including no parking, and having the land preserved as open space.
The next public meeting on park planning is scheduled for Aug. 24 with a preferred plan for the park expected to be ready for review Oct. 12.
“I’ve asked the consultant team to do a phased approach, what makes sense to do over time or how much we just do all together,” Hite said.
“This is really a rare opportunity for a city to have eight-acres in the heart of the downtown to create a legacy for the future of Edmonds,” she said. “The citizens of today are part of shaping the future of Edmonds.”
Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486; salyer@heraldnet.com.
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