by Kirby Lindsay Laney
originally published 19 September 2008 in the North Seattle Herald-Outlook
This month, advocates have launched entertaining efforts regarding two distinctly different issues. In common is the magnified attention they focus on something many of us take for granted: our on-street parking space.
National Park(ing) Day
On September 19th, Seattle will be home for a day to 30 mini-parks created in parking spaces. This is National Park(ing) Day. Several cities across the country will experience an increase in temporary green spaces grown along our sidewalks, particularly in metered (pay station) stalls.
“Giving people closer access to natural areas, parks and trails is as important to a good quality of life as access to schools, safety and sewers,” according to Karen Macdonald, regional marketing director for The Trust for Public Land (TPL.)
TPL – in collaboration with Feet First, the Seattle Parks Foundation and many community groups and schools – has coordinated this annual display.
“This is not a particularly political event,” Macdonald explained. “We don’t proscribe what it has to be. It is as easy as laying turf down and putting in some benches.”
National Park(ing) Day “empowers people to think about their space in a different way,” Macdonald said. People see the temporary oasis of green and think, “Where is my nearest park? Wouldn’t it be nice to go there during lunch?”
Transformation of on-street parking required advance planning. “A parking space is reserved specifically for a motor vehicle,” Macdonald said. Through the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT,) “we had to get permits, even for non-metered parking.”
Macdonald insisted, “This is not either/or,” between parking and parks; “We encourage people to minimize their carbon footprint through being more thoughtful and playful.”
Keep Fremont Free
Surprisingly, no group had planned to build a flash micro-park in Fremont. Considering the current battle engaged over on-street parking here, that may be best.
In August, the Fremont Chamber of Commerce (FCC) launched a campaign called ‘Keep Fremont Free’ and hopes to engage public support for continued free on-street parking.
On July 30th, SDOT representatives attended an FCC board meeting and met an angry mob. Over its 25-year history, the FCC has consistently rejected the idea of parking meters in the business district. This time, when presented with a map of proposed sites of the pay stations, the FCC gave yet another resounding, “NO!”
SDOT representatives have said they can’t accept that answer. The website for their new 1-2-3 Park Community Parking Program explains that they want, “to improve on-street parking management in Seattle business districts and adjacent residential areas.”
Fremont is one of the first neighborhoods under consideration, and so far SDOT improvements consist of financial gain for the city (after they spend $1.5 million to install kiosks here,) without an increase in parking availability.
West Seattle is scheduled next, with another 35 neighborhoods including Greenwood/Phinney, Wallingford, Green Lake and the Aurora corridor slated for implementation before 2013.
For Fremont, SDOT proposed pay stations (parking meters) throughout the business district and a restricted parking zone (RPZ) over the surrounding residential area.
According to the SDOT website, if the affected area “…fails to gain 60% support for an RPZ, then an RPZ will not be installed.” However, that support has not been documented, although SDOT representatives promised the Fremont Neighborhood Council an RPZ in July.
Not A Motley Crew
While FCC representatives continue to discuss the proposal with SDOT, they’ve engaged in yet another grass-roots campaign on our art-soaked streets.
Colorful, communal approaches to problem-solving form the framework of Fremont. In 1994, the neighborhood came together – residents, artists and business owners – to fight an Urban Village designation. We seceded from, well, everything, to declare Fremont an ‘Independent Imagi-Nation.’
Ten years before, in 1984, the FCC held a vote among Fremont Fair attendees on the color of the Fremont Bridge: orange, green or blue? The vote split, and we gained a blue and orange color scheme.
In 1973, we held elections for Mayor of Fremont, voted in recycling visionary and carpenter Armin Stepanian and succeeded in creatively publicizing our community’s reawakening.
Sure, such efforts sometimes leave Fremont looking less like a force to be reckoned with and more like a motley crew of Don Quixote-wannabees.
Still, a bad idea is a bad idea no matter how many people drink the Kool-Aid. In Fremont, the emperor may run around naked, but if he starts charging us for the unwelcome show, we reserve the right to respond.
Other parking management methods do exist beyond charging an additional tax when drivers choose to leave their cars parked. A civic parking garage, time limits, parking enforcement and, most especially, building regulations that demand adequate off-street parking in new construction would all help ease the pressure.
Ultimately, this campaign to fight pay stations will depend on Fremonsters and Seattlites alike. Just like with National Park(ing) Day, everyone is invited to step out and consider creative options. Go, enjoy your parks and then speak up, and keep Fremont free!
Related Articles
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- Public Parks, And A Public Responsibility?
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©2017 Kirby Laney. This column is protected by intellectual property laws, including U.S. copyright laws. Reproduction, adaptation or distribution without permission is prohibited.