River City update
It’s been really quiet in the RCSP camp, so I shot Mark an email and he sent me this update. It sounds like things are getting ready to jump off down there in a big way, and with Delridge on the way we could have two Grindline parks in the South end by the end of 2009!
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Since November 2007, River City has been working away at the technical hurdles required for a public construction project. The SEPA review (http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/sea/sepa/e-review.html) is complete and the building permit review is right around the corner, so construction should start in September with the park built by the end of the year. We have learned alot about making a park outside of the lines of city agencies. Where a Parks dept. entity has some perks with their direct linkage to the building department and public review agencies, the grassroots approach has to follow the same path any developer would where the applicant must prove the merits and potential impacts of the project on the surroundings. There is a process called "Determination of Non-Significance" that a city agency can state - without review - for a project if it feels it meets what the title suggests. A private entity must prove it's "Non-Significance" through a review process - in our case requiring 6 months and $5,000+. I am not criticizing the system, just stating the experience, as the SEPA / DNS process is instrumental in controlling reckless, inconsiderate development. While the benefits of building the park outside of municipal process outweigh the challenges (namely total project cost and the ability to design/build), there is a whole lot more up front legwork for everyone involved. Huge kudos to James and Grindline for sticking with the permitting process that has led to them producing a full construction drawing set and numerous city reviews. Grindline's donation to this park is huge. I don't have any numbers on the actual value yet, but there is no way this project would happen without them. Mark Hubbard is back from building parks on the other side of the world and Grindline is stoked to be making TWO parks within a few miles of their headquarters. Get ready to make some noise when the dump trucks start rolling in. More later. - mark