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The
Olmsted plan had both populist and elitist elements. On the one hand, it intended to place a park or playground within half a mile (800 m) of every home in the city. On the other hand, their boulevards connected wealthy residential neighborhoods and bypassed the tawdrier popular amusement areas.
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As of 2007, the department managed 450 parks, 485 buildings, and 22 miles (35 km) of boulevards, with facilities including 185 athletic fields, 122 children's playgrounds, four golf courses, 151 outdoor tennis courts and an indoor tennis center, 26 community centers and two outdoor and eight
189:. The department maintains properties covering an area of over 6,200 acres (25 km), which is equivalent to roughly 11% of the city's total area. Of those 6,200 acres (25 km), 4,600 acres (19 km) are developed.
320:(A-Y-P Exposition) as White City Park. Leschi Park, which had become less profitable, was purchased outright by the city at that time. Madison Park also became less profitable (especially after Washington state adopted
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The
Seattle Board of Park Commissioners was established in 1887 to oversee the city's first park, then known simply as Seattle Park. Originally the Seattle Cemetery, the site was donated in 1884 by Seattle pioneer
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and gave authority over not only parks but also playgrounds, parkways, and boulevards; the board was additionally granted its own tax base. Over the next eight years, voters approved $ 4 million in
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lines and were already privately developed as parks of a sort by the promoters of those lines. Leschi had a hotel, cottages, and footpaths leading through virgin forest, and
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to design a comprehensive plan for the city's parks. They used
Cotterill's bicycle paths as the basis of a citywide plan for a system of boulevards and parks.
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For example, Lake
Washington Boulevard bypassed the Leschi waterfront, leaving the lake shore and passing through the uplands. The Olmsted plan became a
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in support of the
Department of Parks and Recreation. At the time, it was the largest parks and recreation bond issue ever passed in the United States.
350:, assistant city engineer and chairman of the Paths Committee of the Queen City Good Roads Club, organized volunteers to build 25 miles (40 km) of
424:. The resulting construction and landscaping projects made the Park Board a significant employer, especially during times when the economy slackened.
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being the office's inaugural holder. There was no budget at the time to purchase parks, but
Schwagerl envisioned parks extending north along the
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paths, mainly along the lake. He was possibly inspired in this venture by the ideas of
Schwagerl. In 1903, the park commissioners hired the
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It was no coincidence that
Schwagerl would single out Leschi and Madison Parks. Both of these stood on the lakeshore at the end of
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that had previously been privately operated at Leschi. Most of
Washington Park would become an arboretum in 1941.
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Beede's and Cort's facilities both began by offering family entertainment, but eventually became
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The department's operating budget in 2007 was US$ 117 million. Its largest park is
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By 1917, nearly all of the major
Seattle parks of today already existed.
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in his honor.) In 1892 the position of Park Supervisor was created, with
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indoor swimming pools. It also maintains fishing piers, boat ramps, the
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In the 1890s - long before the city took over the commercial parks -
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with a boulevard along roughly the northern third of this area, from
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Nickels names park chief who's on a 2,600-mile (4,200 km) hike
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Parks and Recreation: 2007-2012 Adopted Capital Improvement Program
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Christopher Williams, Deputy Superintendent of Parks and Recreation
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Seattle 1900-1920: From Boomtown, Urban Turbulence, to Restoration
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were obtained before the 1909 A-Y-P Exposition using the right of
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for the purchase of parklands. Seward Park (Bailey Peninsula) and
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564:, Seattle Parks and Recreation. Accessed online 11 February 2008.
535:, Seattle Parks and Recreation. Accessed online 11 February 2008.
508:, Seattle Parks and Recreation. Accessed online 11 February 2008.
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in 1916) and was eventually sold to the city parks system.
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552:, September 10, 2007. Accessed online 11 February 2008.
637:, HistoryLink, May 10, 1999. Accessed 9 February 2008.
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Seattle Parks and Recreation's Sherwood History Files
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park (eventually used by an early incarnation of the
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Jesús Aguirre, Superintendent of Parks and Recreation
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were purchased in 1900. From 1903, Woodland Park on
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258:shore from the Bailey Peninsula (today's
436:program, Seattle passed a $ 118 million
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738:Parks Code of the City of Seattle
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432:In February 1968, as part of the
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144:Parks Code of the City of Seattle
342:List of Olmsted parks in Seattle
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704:Berner, Richard C. (1991),
533:Board of Park Commissioners
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246:. (The park is today named
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450:List of parks in Seattle
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104:47.619195°N 122.341928°W
612:, pp. 101, 104–105
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328:on Lake Washington and
900:Boards and Commissions
742:Seattle Municipal Code
472:Seattle Municipal Code
322:prohibition of alcohol
220:, while the oldest is
109:47.619195; -122.341928
938:Government of Seattle
886:Transportation (SDOT)
851:Fire Department (SFD)
120:Department executives
866:Parks and Recreation
468:Parks and Recreation
398:Seattle City Council
734:(official website).
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633:David B. Williams,
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410:University District
348:George F. Cotterill
237:Early Seattle parks
187:Seattle, Washington
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912:Women's Commission
861:Municipal Archives
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281:built a six-story
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270:to Madison Park.
207:Woodland Park Zoo
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390:city charter
388:In 1904 the
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307:horse racing
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264:Madison Park
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137:Key document
72:Headquarters
62:Jurisdiction
837:Departments
675:Jones, Nard
662:Berner 1991
647:Berner 1991
622:Berner 1991
610:Berner 1991
598:Berner 1991
586:Berner 1991
574:Berner 1991
521:Berner 1991
506:Quick Facts
402:bond issues
260:Seward Park
244:David Denny
107: /
95:122°20′31″W
927:Categories
846:City Light
799:Washington
791:Government
456:References
438:bond issue
394:initiative
340:See also:
330:Alki Beach
314:beer halls
287:vaudeville
248:Denny Park
222:Denny Park
92:47°37′09″N
82:Washington
279:John Cort
677:(1972),
444:See also
371:Woodland
364:de facto
299:baseball
218:Magnolia
795:Seattle
679:Seattle
420:of the
352:bicycle
289:venue.
275:trolley
232:History
158:seattle
153:Website
78:Seattle
52: (
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283:casino
268:Leschi
205:, and
201:, the
162:/parks
84:, U.S.
47:Formed
813:Mayor
383:a zoo
262:) to
183:parks
710:ISBN
683:ISBN
373:and
160:.gov
54:1887
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179:DPR
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