Introduction
Though gas production ceased in 1956, the buildings and manufacturing structures were still intact in 1962 when the City of Seattle began purchasing the abandoned gas works. The $1,340,000 purchase price was provided by Forward Thrust bonds, and H.U.D. payments were made from 1962 to 1972, and the debt was retired.
During this period there was a considerable public discussion about whether the site should be developed or made into a park. Park advocates led by Myrtle Edwards prevailed. In 1970, Richard Haag Associates (RHA) were retained by the Seattle Park Board to do a site analysis and master plan for a new park at the gas plant site. RHA opened an on-site office to research and analyze the plant site. Richard Haag realized that the site contained the last gas works and a unique opportunity for preservation. Haag recommended preservation of portions of the plant for its “historic, esthetic and utilitarian value”. (Master Plan, April 1971) After an intense public appeal to convince the public of the value of the plant, RHA's 1971 master plan for an industrial preservation park was unanimously approved by the Park Board. The proposal centered on recycling the buildings, production structures, machinery and even the grounds themselves. Through bio-phyto-remediation techniques the soil and water would be “cleaned and greened”. Through preservation and adaptive re-use of key structures, the rich history of the site, and thus of an important aspect of Seattle, would be preserved and revealed.
Reason to Be Selected
Details
Standing on the grassy hills of the park, you can look out over the high-rise buildings of Seattle's Downtown across the lake and the Aurora Bridge on the right. This is an elevated iron bridge that connects Seattle to Downtown and Union Lake. On the edge of the Fremont area, the bridge is always busy, a busy scene. The bridge was originally named the George Washington Memorial Bridge, but because it is a bridge that connects to the Aurora Highway, locals are used to calling it Aurora Bridge.
Gas Works Park was originally a gas plant, and some facilities in the gas plant, such as gas pipes, remained in place. After the factory was shut down in 1956, it was converted into a park in 1975 under the lobbying of a city official and became the first park in the world to be rebuilt in a resource-recovery manner. The park was originally named after the government official, but was later changed back to the gas factory park. Now the park has become the best place to relax for walks, dogs and other outdoor sports.
Recommended
| Lat: | 47.6148 |
| Lng: | -122.336 |
| Type: | |
| Region: | NorthAmerica |
| Scale: | Region |
| Field: | Landscape |
| City: | Seattle |