Thanks to Owen, for the tip on this one!!
One of my favorite places in Seattle is the beach at West Point in Discovery Park. The South Beach Trail and the North Beach Trail both offer unique and wonderful views of Seattle, Ballard, and the Olympic Peninsula. Every time I visit this area I see many other people enjoying the natural beauty that is one of Seattle’s greatest assets.The area is administrated by King County, who has a very important Sewage Treatment Plant located there, but ‘owned’ by us – the citizens of King County. When I was visiting the lighthouse and beach last weekend I was alarmed to hear that there is a proposal underway to put a ‘security gate’ on Discovery Park Blvd, a gate that would stop all vehicle traffic to the beach except that permitted with some kind of pass from the Discovery Park Visitor Center [‘DPVC’].I visited the DPVC today(Tuesday, 13 August), hoping to learn more on this topic. My web searches had not turned up any news on the project nor on the meeting I had heard about. The greeter at the DPVC told me that there was such a proposal, and the proposal was due to ‘unauthorized vehicle access’ issues, including some eager sunset watchers parking in the treatment plant! He kindly gave me some information, which I have scanned and attached to this message.Ok, I understand that people using the Waste treatment plant as a parking lot could be a problem, I replied, but I also know there are many who access this area when the DPVC is closed, for example after 5 pm Tuesday-Sunday and anytime Monday; The city employee did admit that a new gate could block access during those hours. Something still didn’t make sense to me. As I thought about it I realized that there is already a gate installed at the waste treatment plant (though I have never seen it closed, or even with the guardbooth manned). If the main problem is that people were parking in the treatment plant, then perhaps closing the already extant gate would make more sense than locking off all road access to one of seattle’s most beautiful public spots.?I was even more disturbed when I looked at the literature relating to this project. The proposed gate location is almost a half mile from the beach itself! I know that there are many runners and others who use the trails to get to the North or South Beach Trail, but many of us also use cars to get down to this spot so we can enjoy the Puget Sound and the beach with our children or simply because we can’t walk down that hill and up again without causing injury or considerable discomfort as a result!This brings me to my reason for writing to the locals’ news services(yes, I meant to put that apostrophe there): there is an ‘Open House’ set for Wed. Aug. 21 between 4:30 and 6:30 pm? This is a very difficult time for most people to attend a meeting. This fact, and the fact that I had a great deal of trouble finding any information on the Internet about either the project or the meeting leads me to think that the project organizers are not so much interested in community feedback as they are in passing a project before residents find out about it.Regardless of their intention, however, the fact is that there IS a meeting on Wed. Aug. 21, from 4:30 – 6:30 pm when residents can voice their opposition (or support, I suppose) to this proposal. I’d like to ask that you give this story as much coverage as possible because I really feel that access to this beautiful and serene spot is severely threatened. Most simply, I’ll be attending to try and find out why a second gate will solve a problem that the first gate hasn’t fixed?Thank you for your time and attention.Best wishes,Owen
It is already prohibited to go down that road without a permit from the DPVC. Have you noticed the giant sign along that road? I went over this extensively with a park ranger the last time I was there, and when the DPVC is closed, technically that road and the parking lot below are completely off-limits and you could be ticketed for using them. You can’t even bring out of town visitors for a drive-by of the beach area without a permit from the DPVC. They are trying to reduce traffic within the park to increase the enjoyability of the natural setting for the park’s visitor’s. Alas, due to the limited hours of the DPVC, that leaves evening hours and entire days of the week without coverage. The ranger suggested that we contact our city council members to increase funding for the DPVC if we want more access to that road and the parking area below.
I walk Discovery Park almost every week and walk the beach often. What I would like to see is no parking except for those with Handicap Permits but make it legal to drive down to drop off/pick up people. That way it keeps the area clear but gives the option for those with small children or who do not want to walk, a way to avoid the effort.
I like this one the best….
Not everyone with a disability has a Handicapped Permit. And some families with small kids who can’t hike 3 miles need to be able to park. I don’t like the idea of restricting this to only those with the Handicapped Permit….
It’s not safe to drop small children at a beach then drive a mile plus back to park the car and hike back… Families with children need to be able to park a reasonable distance from the beach area. I’m not saying it has to be as close as the current lot, but it certainly can’t be as far away as the visitors’ center.
The flier you scanned says that you will be able to get a parking permit at the visitors center. They just don’t want everyone and their dog parking there and blocking the road. This sounds reasonable to me but maybe I’m missing something?
Last time I was down at the lighthouse there were several cars without a park permit parked along the side of the road. We had stopped for a permit, yet still had to wait to get a space. A gate will prevent this mis-use.
Close the existing gate at the treatment plant. Leave the road open so folks who don’t want to (or can’t) walk can get dropped off. And accept the fact that some people are going to go down and park without a permit. Hopefully they’ll get ticketed, or better yet, call the police number for parking enforcement (the DPVC has it).
That sounds reasonable since a lot of people park their without a permit. Last weekend my friend and I with our 4 children took a permit like we supposed to. When we drove to the beach, we weren’t able to park because there were cars all over the place without permits. Kids were devastated!
Two points:
1: Process: It seems that King County & Parks are determined to put up a gate, not to discuss the problem and/or whether a gate is the best solution or not. From the site: “King County and Seattle Parks are currently evaluating alternatives for different gate types and exploring how the Park will provide permits to allow access through the gate to the parking area at the beach and lighthouse.”
So if you feel that there needs to be a bit more discussion about whether there should be a gate or not, you might need to make sure your voice is heard.
2: Scaling the solution to fit the problem: It seems to be that installing a gate so far from the beach is overkill, and will result in fewer users. Yes, there is a parking problem, but that’s why the City has parking enforcement officers. There are plenty of legitimate reasons to drive down there without a permit: for instance, while my kids are too old to merit a permit, they aren’t old enough to do a full hike up and down the hill, so we frequently arrange a pickup at the beach. And we also will drive out of town guest there for a peek at the view and mountains. Creating a date and permit system would eliminate both users of this public resource. There has to be a better way, especially when budgets are tight.
I agree that there should just be a “tour” option to just drive down there to show the view…or as another poster suggested, a shuttle. I regularly walk the Discovery Park loop with my dog and include the beach walk if I want to make a 7 mile hike out of it from my house. The gates don’t affect me…but I think there are so few spots down there that the only way people who cannot walk down and back can enjoy that resource is to have a shuttle. The complication of permits just seems to be a hassle….cordon off all the parking spots down there so there is no illegal use, and just allow drive bys, in my opinion. Or better, let the shuttle down be a pay shuttle, so it would pay for itself.
Discovery Park has a Master Plan that specifically warns against vehicle use into the Park, and therefore identifies 3 parking lots for use on the periphery – this is a park meant for walking, not driving.
Unfortunately we are stuck with the Sewer Treatment Plant right in the center that requires daily car/truck traffic. BUT that does not mean we should therefore allow “everyone and their dog” to start driving through the park just for a lookieloo at the view.
There are several other options in Magnolia for those who want to see the “view” from their personal car:
1. Magnolia Blvd W Park all along the bluff above Perkins Lane (lots of parking and a parking lot.)
2. The south end of 32nd Ave W has a public pocket park right on the beach (enter up by the Village and drive down the ravine.)
3. Smith Cove Park (soon to be expanded to include the Port of Seattle Net Yard.)
4. The west end of W Marine Pl has a public pocket park right on the beach (drive past Elliott Bay Marina/Palisades/Maggie Bluffs all the way to to the end of the road.)
5. The W McGraw Street end at Perkins Lane is planned for an upgrade, (see other posting on this Blog) and provides public beach access.
6. Carkeek Park beaches are readily accessible just north of Ballard.
Agree with you that this would all work for the “show the view” people..but for folks wanting to walk the beach here with their children or themselves who cannot do the hill back up on their own power…a shuttle would be a way to enjoy our beach. Golden Gardens is wonderful, but requires driving. Your suggestions are, as you say, pocket parks. If you want to take a longer walk, our beach has so many more benefits than a small park. Many of us in Magnolia would benefit from a way to enjoy the beaches right here, when a walk is the point of the visit.
The gate is proposed to control rampant illegal parking down at the Discovery Park Beach because people ignore the really BIG “access restricted to authorized vehicles only” sign. Discovery Park is dedicated to peace and tranquility, and was never meant to have a stream of cars driving through it to get to the beach or anywhere else.
SPD Parking Enforcement does go down and issue tickets, but that does not physically remove a vehicle taking up a space that someone else has obtained a permit to use. And anyone who has been down there knows just how little space there is for any vehicles to park down there.
A gate will stop the cars, but in no way impacts pedestrian access to the beach area and trails.
HOWEVER there are some ideas to help mitigate the situation, and MORE IDEAS ARE NEEDED:
1. The Visitor Center should be open 7 days a week so that one can get a permit on Mondays.
2. In the summer, Visitor Center hours should be extended later in the day to accommodate the longer sunny days and the early evening use of the Park.
3. Much better signage is needed to let people know that they need a pass to get to the beach BEFORE they drive past the Visitor Center.
4. Provide a “people mover” service that circulates to all 3 parking lots and the beach, especially on summer weekends and holidays.
5. Some scheme to allow for a person to drive down to pick people up who cannot make it back up the hill i.e. no parking, just the quick use of a 3-Minute loading zone.
6. Other ideas ???
You don’t need a permit to park in the other Discovery Park parking lots, why should there be one for the West Point lot? How about adding some parking spots?
A Permit is required for the South Beach Parking Area (as it is officially identified 🙂 because driving through the Park by private vehicles is restricted/prohibited.
The Master Plan specifically addresses parking to be limited to the periphery of the Park in the 3 lots, with the only exception being for Permit access to the beach for disabled visitors and for scheduled groups.
There is no physical space for more parking spots.
It sounds like the gate is meant to keep “unauthorized vehicles” from parking at the west parking lot. I think the root of this issue is 1) the lack of parking spots available and 2) hours of operations for the visitor’s center and 3) the ability to obtain a permit (which is dependent on #2).
When the visitor’s center is closed (on Mondays and daily after 5pm) you can’t obtain a permit, forcing people to either leave, hike through the park, or drive through illegally hoping you don’t get fined. I think the gate might help some of the parking problem, but their hours of operation and process for issuing permits is a bigger issue.
I would suggest optimizing the permitting system to allow online reservations and the ability to print out a permit. It would be nice to have the park/beach area open between sunrise and sunset, allowing those with permits to access the west parking lot. Whether it is someone at the gate or an automative system that allows access via your permit, it is evident that the current system is broken and change needs to happen.
I am one ot those who are in favor of the gate. The drive to the beach and lighthouse has always been restricted on what used to be Utah and is now renamed Discovery Park Blvd. There is a sign indicating so at the intersection with Illinois (the through street to the north entrance). People have ignored park rules to pick up a beach parking permit at the visitor’s center, and then cause quite a problem at the beach because of the very limited parking there. This happens mostly on weekends, but the problems have gotten worse, e.g. speeding on Disc. Park Blvd., illegal parking along Disc. Park Blvd., invasion of treatment plant property, and some unauthorized activity on the beach, a protected area. A gate would eliminate the some day’s gross overcrowding at the beach and reduce speeding traffic though the park (sometimes making the loop trail crossing hazardous for pedestrians). I favor making gate passes availble off days and hours, and making that as easy as possible for beach goers. For those who are not handicapped, a walk to the beach is great exercise. My doctor just told me this week that it’s the best thing to offset aging.
Tony, I hear you on the things that have happened down there that have been problems. What I don’t hear anywhere is a list of all the good things that happen to and for people who use this area. I am sure such a list would be orders of magnitude longer than the list of problems spurring this project.
The other idea I had on this issue is that the renovation plan which made the beach at the waste treatment plant a place where people WANTED to go has been a huge success; people love going there. Now how can we, as a city, support our love of going to this place and help people continue to enjoy this site that looks pristine but is, in fact, a successful renovation project?
Why not a keypad operated gate (pin number changed daily and attained from DPVC staff during regular hours for those that NEED/require parking at beach)? … during off hours gates remain open on a first come first serve basis, with the obvious inclusion that Handicapped Only spots remain clearly identified and used as such.
Admittedly, eventhough we do use the trails (with our kids) to get to the beach, even that is getting challenging with the parking at DPVC being almost non-existent; and the safety of unattended vehicle being an issue at both North and South lots. … The hike back to South Lot is a challenge with small kids… so the option of a loop for drop off and pick-up (if that is an option when having two or more adults) would be great in an ideal world.
I’d like to add an after thought to the discussion. Some have called for more parking at the beach. Space is very limited at the beach because the Treatment Plant occupies so much of the lowland adjacent to the beach. The beach and lighthouse vicinity is a protected, scenic, natural area. There just isn’t room for a big lot down there without despoiling the area. More pavement would not benefit what’s left of a pristine area. Another serious, recent problem is shoreline erosion during storms. I have seen projections for the impact of global warming on Puget Sound. In the long run we may expcet more severe storms, and hence more problems with erosion.
its not that far of a walk from any of the other parking lots.
seems most of the hand wringing is by parents who don’t want to deal with walking the kids and just want to swoop into the free parking they are entitled to etc etc.
the less cars down there the better. heck, the less people down there the better!
now, if only there was a way to get rid of the poo-treatment center. could never understand why that is located there.
A lot of objection to a gate seems to be coming from people who realize that the gate will block them from driving down to the beach without obtaining a pass (which will open the gate). If that is what you fear, you fear correctly. That is exactly what the proposed gate will do once it is installed.