A common goal of the committees who look after Seattle’s parks and public spaces is to improve their premises in as many ways as they possibly can. Ravenna Eckstein Community Center is known and loved by many in and around the neighborhood, and this objective is true for the facility as well. Dave Colescott is the president of the advisory council of ARC, a nonprofit that works with Parks and Rec. A major priority of the council is to make sure that the park is fun and safe for everyone, and he says that “Parks, along with the recreational side are always doing our best to improve our grounds.” In recent months, Ravenna Eckstein Community Center has done several renovations focused on meeting ADA requirements in order to make its facilities, as well as the surrounding park, more wheelchair accessible.
The community center has done work on the sidewalk of the southeast parking lot, adding a curb cut at the designated handicap spots. There are also van spots with enough room for people to get in and out of their vehicles with wheelchair ramps. A sloped entrance from the lot to the park has replaced what was once a step, improving wheelchair accessibility. The asphalt courts have been repaved to remove cracks and bumps, and a cement path has been made through the middle of the court and extends all the way around the lower play structure. Furthermore, the ramp that leads to the track and upper play area has also been redone and is now less steep, and many of the preexisting cement paths around the park have been repaved.
While the majority of renovations were done on the exterior, the bathrooms of the community center have also been improved to meet ADA standards. The stalls have been widened, and the sinks are now more wheelchair accessible.
While the renovations were mainly focused on meeting ADA requirements, the community center has also done several things to improve the overall safety of the park. The asphalt of the track and basketball courts has been redone to get rid of bumps and cracks. One particular step taken by the community center’s advisory council was to install lights next to the track so that people can be more aware of their surroundings while walking through the park during the night.
Parks and community areas in Seattle are constantly trying to improve the safety and inclusivity of their grounds. By making their public space more wheelchair accessible, Ravenna Eckstein Community Center has made sure that their facilities can be enjoyed by everyone.
Thanks for the article, Maya. Good to hear about the improvements to the grounds of the center. Have automatic openers been added to the doors of Rav-Eck? Getting in and out of the building has been a struggle for many people. It is surprising that a city property did not have this feature when it was built, more than a decade after the ADA became law.