City of Mountlake Terrace wants your ideas on designs for Veterans Memorial Park

L-R: Principal Connie Reckord and Project Manager Arielle Farina-Williams of MacLeod Reckord, Mountlake Terrace Parks and Recreation Director Jeff Betz, and Superintendent of Parks and Facilities Ken Courtmanch answered questions about the improvements to the Veterans Park’s upper plateau design.

The City of Mountlake Terrace presented initial design ideas for Veterans Memorial Park’s upper plateau during a Feb. 20 public meeting at city hall.

Principal Connie Reckord and Project Manager Arielle Farina-Williams of MacLeod Reckord presented options for park features and answered questions, along with City of Mountlake Terrace Parks and Recreation Director Jeff Betz.

A map showing the locations of the improvements.

Veterans Memorial Park is situated between the Mountlake Terrace Civic Campus and the transit center (with incoming light rail). The natural landscape provides a buffer between the I-5 corridor and redeveloping Town Center.

The park is a little over 8 acres with hilly and wooded terrain. Pedestrian trails run throughout the upper and lower sections of the park, while a playground, picnic shelter and a veterans memorial sit on the upper plateau, with access from 58th Avenue West.

The plans presented Feb. 20 for the upper section feature an enhanced veterans memorial, which includes three flagpoles, a seating plaza and seat walls. It will also have a new stone mounting for a refurbished plaque and the names of honored veterans embedded in the wall.

The upper lawn will be restored with a 12-foot-wide sidewalk including street trees, while the Upper Loop Trail will have an 8-foot-wide, ADA-accessible asphalt path with lighting and benches.

There will be a nature-themed play area for kids with an ADA-accessible entrance plus two single-user restrooms, an exterior drinking fountain, a picnic shelter and tables.

A non-ADA-accessible connection path to the Transit Connection Trail is separate from the Upper Plateau Improvements Project.

During the feedback session, one audience member suggested exercise features along the Upper Loop Trail, such as pull-up bars, Roman chairs or sit-up inclines.

The suggested park furnishings, such as tables and trash cans, have a wood aesthetic or are minimalist metal in a black finish.

Residents are asked to provide their ideas on improvements they would like to see at Veterans Memorial Park. Send your feedback to the City of Mountlake Terrace by clicking here.

As for the lower section, the city has worked over the years to develop a design and fund upgrades to the trail system in the lower bowl. The design includes paving and lighting the trails, upgrading street frontage and mitigating tree impacts with replanting and habitat improvements. Construction for these improvements is set to occur during the summer and fall of 2024.

— By Rick Sinnett



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