City budget cuts stall new Fremont park, neighbors press on

SEATTLE - An empty, overgrown lot wedged between an apartment building and a park along North 35th Street leaves much to be desired for neighbors in Fremont.

"It's an eyesore," said Matt Gasparich, a resident and member of the Fremont Neighborhood Council.

Two years ago, Seattle Parks and Recreation bought the 4,300 square feet of land next to Ernst Park using money from the 2008 Parks and Green Spaces Levy. Originally, the idea was to expand the park. But, Parks officials say severe budget cuts have caused the city to "land bank" the lot until they can find a way to pay for development and yearly maintenance costs.

"We agreed, based on what the levy oversight committee recommended, not to develop the property until plans could be put into place and funds raised," said Dewey Potter, Parks spokesperson.

So, the Fremont Neighborhood Council, tired of looking at the overgrown, empty dirt slope, recently met to discuss alternative plans for developing the site, Gasparich said.

"One of the concepts that was brought up was simply to create a Fremont Forest," he said. "We would plant some trees that overtime would become a gift for future generations but at the same time hopefully be fairly low maintenance in the city's eyes in terms of ongoing maintenance costs."

The Council has support for the forest idea from Brian Regan, owner of the Equinox Building, which sits next to the lot. Regan also happens to be the one who sold the vacant land to the city two years ago.

"The property has been sitting there for many years," Regan said. "It's just a pile of dirt."

Regan said he likes the idea of keeping the lower portion of the property, with access from an alley, as a parking lot for neighbors and visitors. But, he thinks planting some trees and creating more of a forest feel in the small space makes sense as long as the foliage doesn't invite unwanted activity to the area.

"We don't want to see homeless camping in the trees, which has happened before with higher bushes on the property."

Regan is even willing to chip in and help pay for the plants as well as maintenance of the property if it means seeing something done.

The city says it's open to hearing more about the forest idea and encourages the neighbors and Council to continue working on the plans.