A lot of those big holes and vacant project sites around Seattle are about to get a facelift. The Seattle Design Commission has just announced the finalists for Holding Patterns, an initiative to temporarily improve the look of stalled construction projects until work is ready to start again. Two proposals for Ballard made the final cut.
“Rising-Shining” (above) is one of the most visual projects of all the finalists. Helium balloons would be put into nets to create floating cubes. The cubes would be anchored to the ground and contain battery powered LED light.
The proposal suggests using it at the site east of the Ballard Bridge between NW 45th and NW 46th Streets, but also urges the City to move it around to other stalled sites across town. “It floats. It wiggles. It bops in the wind. By day it’s perceived as a playful yet mysterious intervention, and by night glows with a suggestive presence.” You can read the full proposal here.
Adam Holt wants to transform the old Sunset Bowl site (above) into a community street hockey rink for both kids and adults. According to the proposal, the rink would be simple, low-cost, and green surrounded by a chain link fence. Holt is a member of the group Seattle Street Hockey, which currently uses the playground at Adams Elementary here in Ballard. You can read the full proposal here.
There’s even one proposal that suggests turning graffiti into art with large metal panels as canvases. The next step is to bring the finalists together with vacant property owners, developers, and City officials.