Fhelsing's Fotothing

Visiting Jim Ellis Freeway Park --- #2 of 15
Seattle, Washington
Sunday, July 18, 2010

I first heard about Freeway Park when I read an article about it in "Pacific Horticulture" magazine several years ago. There was an elevated pedestrian bridge connecting the Convention Center with First Hill, which arched over the Interstate 5 freeway and a huge city-owned parking lot.

This bridge was a real eyesore, so Jim Ellis and others decided to turn it into a pedestrian parkway. Since people needed to walk on it anyway, why not make it look nice?

It was made into quite a large park, 5.2 acres (21,000 square meters), and was opened to the public on July 4, 1976.

Freeway Park is a lovely green oasis in the middle of downtown Seattle, for Convention Center visitors as well as local business owners and residents.