Going to Gas Works Park? Good luck

Janet Stillman will not mince words.

"We have a big Porta Potti panic going on over here," said Stillman, director of the Wallingford Neighborhood Office.

It's true. Two weeks ago, a Seattle police officer told Wallingford business and community leaders that authorities are prepared to turn thousands of revelers away from the Gas Works Park fireworks show Saturday if the crowds get too thick, she said.

And the crowds are likely to be very, very thick. Ivar's Seafood Restaurants discontinued its Elliott Bay fireworks display, so if you want to see fireworks in Seattle, it's Lake Union or nothing. And though the Lake Union display can be seen from other locations around the city, Gas Works will draw the biggest crowds. Organizers say they're expecting 50,000 in the park.

Wallingford leaders knew there would be throngs. But it was the details that sent them into a panic.

Overflow crowds, the officer said, will be funneled up the Wallingford Steps all the way to North 40th Street, where they'll still get a view of the show.

"He said not to worry, because they can fit 5,000 people on each block," Stillman recalled. "The officer was so proud because they'd thought of this ahead of time and they really planned for it."

The group, on the other hand, was not so thrilled. They thought about families dragging coolers full of sodas. They thought about the beer garden that will be located in the park. They thought about front lawns. And it wasn't long before their minds began to race.

"We said, 'Where are you putting the Porta Potties?' " Stillman recalled. "Because we need to know."

The police, she was told, aren't in charge of Porta Potties. Stillman's group turned to the city, but officials there, too, deflected, explaining that the event is sponsored by Chase bank.

"And Chase said our event is at Gas Works; we're not in charge of city streets," Stillman said.

And so it came to be that Stillman and other Wallingford leaders found themselves scrambling to rent portable toilets just days before the big event.

They're not the only ones worried about crowds.

Seattle police have devised an elaborate traffic-control plan that involves shutting down a number of streets beginning at noon on Saturday. The closures will expand at 6 p.m. The fireworks show starts at 10 p.m.

All throughout the day, officers will be stationed at checkpoints with strict instructions to stop anyone trying to drive in who doesn't live or work there. If you're attending a party in the neighborhood, police said, bring an invitation to show at the checkpoint. Alternatively, residents can provide officers with a list of expected guests.

It's all to ensure that everyone's safe and that emergency vehicles can get in and out, police and fire officials said.

"We really want to emphasize if people have the opportunity to seek out other venues, that would be highly recommended," said Seattle Police spokesman Jeff Kappel.

The Seattle Fire Department will have an engine company assigned to the event and will staff it with more medics than in previous years, said spokeswoman Helen Fitzpatrick. As the day progresses, they'll decide whether the crowd has grown too large. In that case, they'll prohibit anyone else from entering.

"I think part of the message is if you plan on attending, get there early and have a Plan B," she said.

Meanwhile, Wallingford leaders were able to resolve their problem. They rented 32 portable toilets — they're calling them "relief stations," Stillman said — for Wallingford Avenue. Local businesses stepped up to foot the bill. "They can get their name posted on the potty — if they want to," Stillman said.

Some of them, alas, "don't want their names on a potty."

Maureen O'Hagan: 206-464-2562 or mohagan@seattletimes.com