Two Items of Interest for Seattle Schools

The first is whether any SPS schools will be closed tomorrow; the district closed 14 today. It looks like several regional districts like Renton will be closed another day. I see nothing at the SPS website but I would guess parents are contacted personally.

Boy those photos in the Times are jaw-dropping. 

The second item is a story in the Seattle Times that I have seen elsewhere. Namely, Lincoln High School does not have a practice field. The district kind of set themselves up for problems because they knew that both Lincoln High and Hamilton International Middle School needed practice space. I understand they have been going to Woodland Park which is relatively nearby but still problematic.

To note, the park at Wallingford is NOT big and any rejiggering of it would take away the main swath of park space from regular users.  

The Times reports there is a community meeting tonight.

From the Times:

It’s a case of competing needs and perspectives in a growing part of Seattle.

SPS has been considering multiple potential sites for the project but says Wallingford Playfield is ideal because it’s located next to Hamilton and kitty-corner from Lincoln, which reopened in 2019 after being closed for decades. The 4.5-acre park includes a large grass expanse, plus trees, a playground, a wading pool, tennis courts and public restrooms.

SPS initially proposed a full-size football and soccer field with lights, covering most of the park, but recently scaled back in response to opposition from some neighbors and is now proposing a half-size field without lights. In that case, SPS says it could subsequently work up to a full-size field for Lincoln at Woodland Park, a half mile away. SPS also wants to upgrade a Woodland Park running track for Lincoln’s use.

And

The city hasn’t taken a stance yet, according to Seattle Parks and Recreation. 

No decisions have been made at this point and no project can move ahead at Wallingford Playfield without approval from Seattle Parks, Tina Riss Christiansen, a spokesperson for SPS, wrote in an email Monday.

Again, keep in mind that Mayor Harrell and Superintendent Jones are good friends so this could be a sticky wicket for both. 

One issue is grass versus synthetic and everyone has an opinion.

 What else?

Lincoln is the only public high school in Seattle without its own athletic field. Its varsity football and soccer teams currently practice and play at Seattle Center’s Memorial Stadium. Its junior varsity teams use existing sports fields at Woodland Park. Its track teams bus to Ingraham High School’s stadium.

A property tax levy approved by voters in 2022 for SPS capital projects promised a new athletic field for Lincoln, among other things.

More than 700 people have signed an online petition to support the original SPS proposal for a full-size sports field at Wallingford Playfield.

Meanwhile, more than 900 people have signed an online petition to oppose the SPS proposal. A group called the Wallingford Park Alliance says the project would replace grass with plastic, reduce opportunities for activities like picnics and prioritize student-athletes over sorts of other park users.

The park was created 100 years ago as a play area for “small children”; was expanded in 1970 as “open space”; and is protected by a 1997 city law that says parks must be preserved for park use, Aramburu wrote. In a 2017 environmental review of Lincoln’s renovation, SPS said Wallingford Playfield would not be used for the school’s sports programs, the attorney added.

And a big surprise to me:

“Lincoln is the biggest public high school now in Seattle,” added Tim Randall, a Parent Teacher Student Association board member with a child who plays soccer at Lincoln, describing the need for a nearby field partly as a matter of supply and demand.

According to OSPI, Lincoln has 1,707 students, Garfield has 1,643, and Roosevelt has 1.533. I was surprised to learn this.