Bell Street Park sits in the heart of the Belltown neighborhood, in Seattle, Wash. The prime consultant was SvR Design Company, a landscape architecture and civil engineering firm. Hewitt Architects Inc. collaborated on the design. Both firms worked with the city of Seattle and other stakeholders. Their mission was to transform the four densely populated, contiguous blocks of Bell Street into a park environment. At the same time, street access had to be maintained so cars, trucks and emergency vehicles could get to and from downtown Seattle. Because pedestrians and motorists both use the park, bands of detectable warning pavers delineate the shared zones. Wausau Tile manufactured black and yellow warning pavers for the project. The paving design also incorporated a gradient of concrete finishes and colors "?u smooth to rough, light to dark "?u with other areas of the park, including the roadway, sidewalks and crosswalks.

A densely populated neighborhood next door to downtown Seattle, Wash., has undergone a dramatic transformation "?u and Bell Street Park might well have been the shot-in-the-arm it needed to turn things around.

Belltown's reputation hasn't always been what it is today. Just a few years ago, it wasn't a very fashionable place to hang out or even visit. It was known for illicit activities and many storefronts were empty because of the recession.

The city of Seattle decided to do something about it, despite high land values that prevented its Parks and Recreation Department from acquiring any property for a new open space or park project.

The roadway in all four blocks of Bell Street Park was elevated to the level of the sidewalk, so motorists must slow down when entering from any of the perpendicular avenues, and also while traveling through the park. The Belltown neighborhood, with Bell Street Park as its centerpiece, is now full of hip restaurants, boutiques, nightclubs and art galleries. Band concerts and dances are held there on a regular basis, so parts of the park are occasionally blocked off. Each summer weekend, the park section between Second and Third avenues is closed to cars and trucks for special events.

City officials designated a four-block section of Bell Street, in the heart of Belltown, as an "underutilized resource," and then it hired SvR Design Company to come up with an out-of-the-box approach.

Bell Street Park, a 56,000-square-foot melding of "park spirit with a street setting," is the result. Construction started in 2009, and the park was completed in 2014 at a cost of about $2.5 million. More recently, Belltown has been described as an eclectic mix of trendy shops, restaurants, nightclubs and art galleries. It's also been said to be a hip place to live, because it has everything there one could possibly need, all of it within walking distance.

Curbs serve as "raised elements" to protect vegetation from vehicles. The design team also made the curbs wider so people could sit on them during special activities. Stainless steel, surface mounted bollards with Viking caps are from Calpipe Security Bollards. Trash receptacles, Steel Sites Series SDC-36, came from Victor Stanley.

Bell Street Park has become an "outdoor living room for park experiences," a place where people can gather and socialize, shop and dine, be entertained and otherwise enjoy a chic lifestyle.

The biggest challenge facing the design firms was how to create "people oriented park experiences" in what is clearly a highly urban area. At the same time, accessibility to bicycle and motor vehicle traffic had to be maintained.

Bell Street Park is 66 feet wide and each of its four blocks is approximately 275 feet long. The new design claimed one traffic lane and one parking lane for public use. Businesses have room to grow into the park via permanent sidewalk cafe zones called "streeteries." These spaces were integrated into the park by widening the sidewalk and coordinating amenities.

"The city, community members and the design team agreed that safety, commercial and social vibrancy, and a new image for Belltown were fundamental goals for Bell Street Park," SvR Design Company said in a narrative of the project.

Bell Street Park is four city blocks in length, with intersecting crossings at First, Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth avenues.

The Tofino no-scratch bike racks are from Sportworks Northwest Inc. Because pedestrians and motorists use the park, the designers made sure there were tactile cues to keep people safe. The design team incorporated double-direction and reduced-height LED light fixtures for consistent roadway and pedestrian light levels. An average of five energy efficient LED streetlights and 10 energy efficient 14-foot pedestrian lighting fixtures were placed on each block.

The corridor is 66 feet wide and each block is roughly 275 feet long. It is an important connector for drivers and bicyclists going into and leaving downtown Seattle, and a nearby fire station considers it a critical response route to Seattle's primary commercial district.

Before Bell Street was revamped, it was a one-way street with two westbound travel lanes and flanked by parking stalls on either side.

BEFORE
The part of Bell Street that is now Bell Street Park used to be a one-way street with two westbound travel lanes, flanked by parking on either side. Its sidewalks were narrow, and existing trees, pavement and street furnishings were in poor condition. Not far underground were major utilities that hampered some of what could be installed above ground.

"Its sidewalks were narrow, and the existing trees, pavement and street furnishings were uninspiring and in poor condition," SvR Design Company said.

One traffic lane and one parking lane were reclaimed for park use. The road surface was elevated to the level of the sidewalk, creating a single continuous surface, except in the spots where Bell Street intersected with crossing avenues.

"Cars arriving from the perpendicular streets must slow and rise up to the park level, signaling entry into a special, pedestrian-oriented zone," SvR Design said. "The continuous level pavement encourages pedestrians, cyclists and automobiles to share the space."

Finally, the park and street elements were mixed with pavements, planters with lush greenery and clearly designated social gathering spots.

"On typical days, people are attracted to the seating eddies between planters, with informal perches and moveable caf????(R)???(C) tables and chairs," the design team said.

Because both pedestrians and motorists use the park, bands of detectable warning pavers delineate the shared zones.

The designers also incorporated a gradient of concrete pavers with different colors and finishes "?u smooth to rough, light to dark "?u to differentiate other parts of the park, including the roadway.

Project Team
Lead Agency-Client: Seattle Department of Parks and Rec
Agency Partners: Seattle DOT, Seattle Public Utilities, Dept. of Planning and Development
SvR Design Co., Seattle
Landscape Architecture & Civil Engineering
Prime designer of Bell Street Park
Hewitt Architects, Inc., Seattle
Urban Design and Landscape Architecture
Collaborating designer
Electrical and Lighting: WSP Flack + Kurtz
Community Involvement: ReadWagoner LLC
Site Amenities:
Fencing, Plant Protection: custom made, city of Seattle
Granite curb perches: Seattle DOT Transportation (salvaged)
Pavers, detectable warning, ADA-90: Wausau Tile
Trash receptacles: Victor Stanley