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Sound Transit begins hunt for rail yard
Play for All EXPO to let people see how park can be for everyone
Four of five possible sites in Bel-Red or Northup area
Inspiration Playground to include activities for those with all abilities BY KEEGAN PROSSER Bellevue Reporter
When Sara Ptacek was born with a rare genetic condition, her doctors said she wouldn’t live past age three. Nearly 33 years later, Sara continues to flourish - something her father Bill Ptacek says it has a lot to do with her involvement in the community. Sara, who is confined to a wheelchair, has always been part of the Bellevue community. She went to Bellevue public schools, visits the Bellevue Arts Museum and goes to church with her family every Sunday. “We really envision a life for her that is not just at home, but out in the community,” Ptacek said. That’s why Bellevue’s proposed Inspiration Playground - an interactive, sensoryfocused project planned for Downtown Park - is so important to the Ptacek family. This Saturday, Sept. 29, people from all
PLAY FOR ALL EXPO Saturday, Sept. 29 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bellevue Downtown Park FREE walks of life will have the opportunity to learn more about the project, as part of the Play For All EXPO. Sponsored by the Bellevue Rotary Club and the city of Bellevue, that have partnered to bring the plan to fruition, the event will take place at the park from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The goal of the expo is to raise awareness of, and familiarity with, people with disabilities. The event will also include a number of interactive “discovery” stations, music, entertainment and food vendors. Improvements to the Downtown Park playground, which was last renovated in 2003, were already on the docket for the Parks Department before the Bellevue Rotary Club, currently headed by President Robert Rose, approached the city with the Inspiration Park proposal. “It’s kind of Rotary’s legacy project for the
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Bill Ptacek and his daughter, Sara, visit the proposed site of the Inspiration Playground at Bellevue’s Downtown Park. ‘I don’t know if she’ll use any of the equipment,’ Ptacek said, ‘but just the fact that she can come out and there will be people of all walks of life and abilities - we thought that would be really cool.’ KEEGAN PROSSER, Bellevue Reporter
community,” Ptacek said. Ptacek, a former president of the Rotary club, says Bellevue’s Inspiration Park is expected to be a more elaborate version of
similar projects in Renton and Woodinville. Bellevue’s Rotary Club has a long standSEE PLAYGROUND, 12
Residents will have a chance to comment on which locations Sound Transit should study to determine the best possible spot for a new rail yard for East Link light-rail cars. The agency has identified five options in its early scoping documents, four of which are in Bellevue. ■ West of 120th Avenue Northeast and east of the BNSF tracks ■ Between 130th Avenue Northeast and 136th Avenue Northeast and south of State Route 520 ■ Between Northup Way and the planned light-rail in the Bel-Red corridor ■ West of 148th Avenue Northeast and north of Northeast 20th Street ■ West of the Lynnwood Transit Center Sound Transit spokesman Geoff Patrick said the locations are Bellevue heavy because the areas fit the requirements of large swaths of land (approximately 20 to 25 acres), are rectangular in shape and flat, and near light-rail track. More sites in the north were not examined, Patrick said, because much of the line travels underground or along Interstate 5. Areas in the south would be too far from downtown, and the north and east corridors, he said. The open house in Bellevue will be Monday, Oct. 8, starting at 4 p.m. at the Highland Community Center, 14224 BelRed Road. Following testimony from residents the Sound Transit board will decide which areas to include in an Environmental Impact Statement, a decision expected to be made Nov. 15. In October 2013, the board will select its preferred site.
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