Sixmonths after CHOP, city reopens Seattle park
SEATTLE — Seattle’s Cal Anderson Park has officially reopened after a sixmonth closure thatwas sporadically enforced and after the removal of an encampment from the park last week, the Parks Department announced Wednesday.
The Parks Department will be setting up ping pong tables and outdoor dining areas in the park to help “activate” Cal Anderson, a news release said. The department will also be creating a children’s scavenger hunt in the park, the release said.
Officials initially declared the park closed June 30, as the city grappled with the Capitol Hill Organized Protest (CHOP) in the area. But people continued to use the space for recreation, gardening and camping after the CHOP was dismantled.
Police descended on the park twice in late summer to clear an encampment of homeless people and activists. Tents quickly returned to the space, leading eventually to another removal last Friday.
Some business owners and residents complained to the city about dangerous conditions at the park, including open fires, while other residents objected to the displacement of vulnerable people, citing Seattle’s housing crunch, the city’s homelessness crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Parks Department said Cal Anderson had to be cleared to make way for “intensive maintenance and cleaning.” Therewas a delay when protesters gathered at the park last Wednesday and the removal was challenged in court, but a judge ruled last Thursday the city could move ahead.
Police made 20- plus arrests as protestersopposed Friday’s removal. On Sunday, police broke up what participants called “antifa soccer” at the park.
Work at Cal Anderson since Friday has involved “grounds maintenance, building repair, graffiti removal, and litter pick-up,” including the removal of 100 tons of debris, Wednesday’sParksDepartmentnews release said.
Repairs at the park’s comfort stations and shelter house are ongoing, the release said. Longer- term projects will restore Cal Anderson’s fountain, install new artwork and “pilot” a community garden, according to the city.
Various Seattle departments have worked with community members to “re- envision this park and the surrounding blocks to be safer, more welcoming and inclusive, and to honor the protests,” the release said.
“Cal Anderson Park has been an epicenter for activismand social justicemovements for decades and is the heart of the Capitol Hill community,” Mayor Jenny Durkan said in a statement that was included in the news release. “As we move into 2021, Cal Anderson will continue to be a hub for the entire community — neighbors and park visitors alike.”
Parks Superintendent Jesús Aguirre added, “During the pandemic, access to outdoor space and recreation activities has been more important than ever for the physical and mentalwell-being of so many in our community. The reopening of Cal Anderson Park restores essential open space in this dense and vibrant neighborhood.”
Alison Eisinger, executive director of the Seattle/King County Coalition on Homelessness, said announcements like Wednesday’s “sometimes seek to create the illusion that pingpong games and outdoor dining are the answer to the desperate circumstances” of people who can’t get housing.
“I have no problem with the city seeking to do things to make sure that parks are clean and accessible to all,” she said. “But there are people living in parks across Seattle because they don’t have somewhere else to go.”