Lake Union Park facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Lake Union Park |
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Lake Union Park and the Armory
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| Location | South Lake Union, Seattle, USA |
| Area | 12 acres (4.9 ha) |
| Created | 2010 |
| Operated by | Seattle Parks and Recreation |
| Status | Open |
Lake Union Park is a 12-acre (4.9 ha) park located at the south end of Lake Union in Seattle, Washington. This awesome park is in the South Lake Union neighborhood. The City of Seattle owns the park, and Seattle Parks and Recreation takes care of it. The city slowly bought the land for the park over time. The last 5 acres (2.0 ha) were given to the city by the United States Navy in 2000. After a big makeover, the park officially opened on September 25, 2010.
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The Park's Story
The city wanted this land to be a public park for everyone to enjoy. For a while, it wasn't used much because it didn't have many cool features. The Seattle Parks Foundation decided to help fix this. They started a campaign to raise money to make the park much better. Their goal was to raise $20 million! The Seattle City Council also gave $4.228 million to fix the waterfront. Another $5 million came from a special vote in 2000 to improve parks. Thanks to these efforts, Lake Union Park became the amazing place it is today.
What You Can Do at the Park
Lake Union Park is designed to help people get close to the water and enjoy green spaces. It also connects different parts of the city. The park celebrates Seattle's history with boats and industries.
The park has many cool things to see and do:
- A restored shoreline where you can walk by the water.
- A pedestrian bridge for easy walking.
- A special pond for model boats.
- A history trail to learn about the area.
- A fun fountain with water jets.
- A beach where you can launch small boats.
- A future Education Center for The Center for Wooden Boats.
- A peaceful grove of trees.
- A large open area called the Great Lawn.
- Lots of footpaths and park benches.
The park also has a stop for the South Lake Union Streetcar. This streetcar started running in late 2007.
Historic Ships Wharf
One of the coolest parts of the park is the Historic Ships Wharf. Here, you can see several old and important boats. These include:
- The tugboat Arthur Foss.
- The fireboat Duwamish.
- The lightship Swiftsure.
- The steamer Virginia V.
Other large historic ships sometimes visit the wharf too. These include the Hawaiian Chieftain and the Lady Washington. The Lady Washington was even featured in movies like Pirates of the Caribbean!
The Armory Building and MOHAI
The park has several buildings. The biggest one used to be a Naval Reserve building. People often called it the Armory. In 2012, the Armory was fully fixed up and opened as the new home for MOHAI. MOHAI stands for the Museum of History & Industry, and it's Seattle's main history museum.
Before MOHAI moved in, the Armory had offices for Seattle Parks and Recreation. It also housed several non-profit groups. These included the Center for Wooden Boats, the Virginia V, and the Seattle Parks Foundation. Renovations began in early 2011 to get the building ready for MOHAI. The new MOHAI museum officially opened its doors on December 29, 2012.
