Mercer Island seeks a self-sufficient park

By Natalie Singer
Seattle Times Eastside bureau

KEN LAMBERT / THE SEATTLE TIMES A dog swims toward a ball at Mercer Island's Luther Burbank Park on Friday. Being one of the area's top-notch parks has become expensive, so to help the park pay for itself, city leaders are considering the addition of commercial development, such as a marina, restaurant or a user-fee system.

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With its 77 acres of woods and wildlife and nearly a mile of Lake Washington waterfront, Mercer Island's Luther Burbank Park is in the big league of Seattle-area urban open spaces.

But being a top-notch refuge is expensive.

Less than two years after the city took the park over from King County, island residents are being asked to help figure out how to make the north-end park pay for itself.

Following the example of other parks that have struggled to bring in money, Luther Burbank could end up with commercial development such as a marina, a restaurant, new sports fields, a boardwalk or a user-fee system.

Or, if the City Council can't find the public support for money-making ventures, residents could end up with a permanent tax increase to pay for the more than $400,000 the city says it takes to maintain the park each year.

Nothing has been decided, except that housing will not be considered and the park will remain in public ownership, said Deb Symmonds, deputy city manager. The city has hired a consultant and plans to solicit ideas and opinions from residents at three workshops.

"This is just the beginning of a long process," said Mayor Alan Merkle.

Public workshop First of three community workshops is scheduled from 9 to 11:30 a.m. Saturday at Islander Middle School, 8225 S.E. 72nd St. Tentative dates for two more workshops are Dec. 2 and Jan. 11.

City leaders are hoping the community can find and implement a solution before a temporary maintenance levy runs out in four years. But a public hearing last week hinted that, like many recent island battles — over the new community center, a proposal to eliminate invasive ivy, downtown's development, the Interstate 90 plan — this discussion might not be harmonious.

"Downtown Mercer Island is turning into ... New York City," said Tom Kinsman, who lives next to the park, just north of the town center. Kinsman told city leaders that instead of pursuing commercial development to focus on more important park issues such as shoreline erosion.

Diane Vanderbeek, a former Mercer Island planning commissioner, said the idea of a marina or restaurant inside the park was "terrifying."

Vanderbeek, who owns waterfront property and boats, which she moors in Seattle, said that similar pleasure craft moored at Luther Burbank would destroy the park's health and beauty.

"Large boats can spill diesel and fuel," she said. "The parking lot would be full of commuters."

She threatened to circulate a petition to stop the council from pursuing large-scale money-making ventures.

Commercial development is not a new idea for area parks.

In an attempt to generate revenue, the Washington state parks introduced a parking fee last year. Lake Sammamish State Park is considering a redesign that could include an indoor soccer arena, a retreat center, a bathhouse, a boardwalk and a restaurant.

Marymoor Park near Redmond has welcomed a deal with Subway Restaurants to open a franchise sandwich shop there. The park has also introduced recreational-vehicle camping, hosted a summer concert series and sold the naming rights to its velodrome to raise cash.

After dilapidated Fort Dent Park was transferred from King County to Tukwila last year, it was transformed into a state-of-the-art sports complex.

Jim Thornton, a Mercer Island resident who relocated from Arizona nine months ago, told leaders last week that a marina or restaurant would change the character of Luther Burbank Park.

But he suggested that the city could earn money by offering more services to boaters and by charging user fees. Island residents could get a discounted yearly membership, while nonresidents could pay by the day, he said.

After three public workshops on Mercer Island, city leaders will review residents' input and then decide which projects, if any, to pursue. If commercial development is recommended, the City Council will conduct feasibility studies and create a master plan for the park's future.

The City Council wants the master plan completed in 2005 so that any planning, permitting and construction can occur by the time the temporary maintenance levy, which raises about $415,000 a year, expires in 2009.

Natalie Singer: 206-464-2704 or nsinger@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

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