Seattle City Council voted today to authorize Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) to enter into a community partnership with Seattle Academy for the redevelopment of the South Park Community Center field. SPR and Seattle Academy have been working over the last year to develop a partnership with the mutual goal of providing equitable access and improved recreation facilities in South Park.
Seattle Academy will contribute $4 million to fund a full-size, multi-sport synthetic turf field with lighting at the South Park Community Center campus. Seattle Academy will have use of the field for a few hours in the afternoons, Monday through Friday, during the fall and spring sports season. This use translates to about 375 hours annually out of the 5,110 hours the field will be open to the neighborhood. SPR will take this field out of the field scheduling system for the first few years, as a pilot program, and hold the field open for local programs and drop-in by the community.
“We are to our grateful to our community partners in South Park and to the Seattle Academy for coming together to make this new field a reality,” said Jesús Aguirre, SPR Superintendent. “We will continue to work with community to ensure that the majority of hours are available to serve community need and support community programs.”
In spring 2018, SPR finalized a concept design that includes a relocated play area, a new spraypark, a new field with a circular walking trail, an outdoor fitness zone, LED lighting, ADA accessibility improvements, a sports court, an off-leash area, a renovated parking lot, and mitigation of health impacts through landscaping. The new concept design provides a safer, more accessible place for people to recreate and enjoy the outdoors.
The partnership is a critical piece of the South Park Redevelopment Project. The $4 million in funding will be combined with state and county grants, funding from the Seattle Park District Major Projects Challenge Fund and private resources that will help fund the remainder of the redevelopment plan.
For more information on this project please visit http://www.seattle.gov/parks/about-us/current-projects/south-park-community-center-site-redevelopment.