Have you been looking for a way to get directly involved with the Lid I-5 movement? Now is your chance!
Join us on Saturday, September 16, for a design charrette focused on the segment of Interstate 5 dividing Wallingford and the University District. At this free public event we’ll build a vision for reconnecting these two neighborhoods that have been divided by the Interstate 5 freeway for more than half a century.
Community ideas–that is, your ideas–are needed to help broaden the conversation and build public support for this important campaign. Pedestrian links and lids for parks and affordable housing are expected to be popular concepts in a rapidly growing area that recently underwent a major upzone and is expecting a new light rail station in 2021.
The event will include a brief presentation on the origins and goals of Lid I-5 community effort, along with a summary of two previous charrettes focused in the downtown area. Participants will be divided into small teams to identify problems caused by the freeway and develop design solutions. Perhaps these efforts in First Hill and C/ID can offer some inspiration.
Here are the details:
Saturday, September 16
12:30 PM – 4:30
University Christian Church, 4731 15th Avenue NE
Facebook page to share (optional)
The Lid I-5 Steering Committee is a volunteer group of Seattle residents advancing the concept of lidding Interstate 5 citywide to reconnect neighborhoods and create new land for public and private uses. The group is fiscally sponsored by the nonprofit Seattle Parks Foundation.
The Lid I-5 Steering Committee’s primary objective is initiating a Seattle Lid Feasibility Study. Partial funding has been offered by the Washington State Convention Center as a public benefit associated with its major expansion project. The City of Seattle’s Office of Planning and Community Development has confirmed it will manage the study if funding is secured.
Existing freeway lids in the region include Freeway Park and the Washington State Convention Center above Interstate 5 and several lids over Interstate 90 and State Route 520. Dozens of other built and planned lid projects across the nation are helping growing cities reconnect street grids, reduce pollution, and restitch urban neighborhoods to improve quality of life, economic well-being, and public health.
Lid I-5 is a community organization working to continue the effort of lidding Seattle’s freeways for parks, housing, community facilities, and other public uses. They are sponsored by the Seattle Parks Foundation, a philanthropy-based organization that encourages public-sector investment and private-sector giving to help create, activate, and care for public spaces throughout Seattle. For information visit www.lidi5.org.
