Form revised December 9, 2004

FISCAL NOTE FOR NON-CAPITAL PROJECTS

Department:	Contact Person/Phone:	DOF Analyst/Phone:
Parks and Recreation	Michael Shiosaki, 615-0823	Tyler Running Deer, 684-8075

Legislation Title:

AN ORDINANCE relating to off-leash areas; adding a new off-leash area at Boren-Pike-Pine Park to the list of designated off-leash areas; deleting obsolete material; and correcting an outdated cross-reference; all in Subsection 18.12.080 B of the Seattle Municipal Code.

· Summary of the Legislation:

The proposed legislation establishes an off-leash area for dogs at Boren-Pike-Pine Park effective May 1, 2005. This scope of work is part of the Boren-Pike-Pine Park Redevelopment Project (K733067) funded by the 2000 Parks Levy Fund, and is also listed in the 2005-2010 Adopted CIP. This project improves Boren-Pike-Pine Park (also referred to as "Four Columns Park"), a site lying in a highly urbanized location along Interstate 5. Possible improvements to the park include a pedestrian corridor, a paved gathering place, a dogs-off-leash area, and new landscaping.

This legislation authorizes the use of a portion of the park as an off-leash area, to provide recreation opportunities for dogs and their owners and to improve the utilization of Boren-Pike-Pine Park. The use is strongly supported by many community members. The impacts of off-leash activities will be reviewed after eighteen months of operation.

The proposed legislation also deletes obsolete material and corrects an outdated cross-reference in Subsection 18.12.080 B of the Seattle Municipal Code.

· Background:

Boren-Pike-Pine Park was constructed by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) in 1966 as part of the Interstate-5 construction. The land on which the park sits is WSDOT land, but since the park's establishment, the Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) has maintained the park under an agreement with WSDOT. The park lies between Pike and Pine Streets and is bisected by Boren Avenue. The four columns stand at Pike Street and Boren Avenue; the second parcel, a long linear-shaped piece, lies between Boren Avenue and Pine Street. The off-leash area will be located in this linear parcel.

There is an existing CIP project to redevelop this park (Boren-Pike-Pine Park Redevelopment) funded by the 2000 Neighborhood Parks, Green Spaces, Trails and Zoo Levy, an eight-year $198.2 million levy approved by Seattle voters in November 2000. From October 2002 through February 2003, the DPR conducted a community process to develop a design for the park. A

user survey was mailed to 7,000 residences in the community and three public meetings were widely advertised and convened. A design for the park was developed and put out to bid for construction in April 2004. The bids came in higher than the budget allowed for, and DPR began to redesign the park to meet the budget constraints. From July through December 2004, DPR again conducted a community process, and held another public meeting to develop a new design. The new design includes an off-leash area, which is strongly supported by many community members.

The Board of Park Commissioners held a public hearing on January 13, 2005, to take comment on the site plan for the development of Boren-Pike-Pine Park, including the off-leash area. On January 27, 2005, the Board of Park Commissioners recommended that DPR adopt the site plan that includes an off-leash area at Boren-Pike-Pine Park.

The Levy budget for this project is $825,000. In addition, the Pike-Pine Urban Neighborhood Council has requested that $250,000 in mitigation monies, collected by the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) in response to the Convention Center expansion, be contributed to this project. This funding was transferred from SDOT and appropriated to the Boren-Pike-Pine Park project in 2004 (Ordinance #121556).

The addition of an off-leash area to the project is not expected to create the need for additional capital or O&M appropriation. The off-leash area will be managed by DPR, and the community organization Citizens for Off-Leash Areas (COLA) will contribute to maintenance through work parties.

· Please check one of the following:

__X__ This legislation does not have any financial implications.