Early in 2025, construction will begin on the Garfield Super Block: a community-, culture-, and art-focused renovation of the block, north of Garfield High School. The revamp will include accessible pathways, a concession stand, multi-use courts, and updated landscaping. It will also feature a new playground, various seating areas, a parkour park, and numerous displays of art significant to the history of the Central District. The improvements are projected to take about nine months to complete.
The theme of the Garfield Super Block Coalition is “Legacy and promise, past, present, and future.” Ward described this theme as referring to “the legacy of the Central District, the legacy of Seattle, the history of Seattle, how incredibly rich and vibrant it is.” She explained: “Being able to speak to that and hold reference to it, and the promise. The promise of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and all the way down to the promise the city made to Robert back in 2005, that this [project] would get done,” she continued. “I think this is one of those projects that will spark a lot of conversation.”
The concept of superblocks originated in Barcelona, Spain. It found success by blocking off transit and cars in certain areas to create larger, park-like, pedestrian friendly blocks. They became safe public spaces with resources for the community.The Garfield Super Block will not entail closing streets, but will take inspiration from the public community focus of Barcelona’s superblocks. The idea of the Garfield Super Block was first suggested in 2005, but it has only recently received the traction and funding needed to propel it.
An art consultant for the project, Takiyah Ward, described the plan. “This particular project is comprised of two parts. There is a general landscape renovation, so the areas surrounding the playfield will all be upgraded with new walking paths and general activations around the perimeter of the playfield. And then the second part is the Legacy and Promise Art Promenade. That will be sculptural art pieces that will be installed in the park and be enjoyable by the general public.”
“The biggest focus of the Garfield Super Block project is culture and history. We’re doing it through art, and then supporting it with landscape work,” Ward said.
The landscaping aspect will improve the space’s accessibility and hopefully the area’s safety as well. A project manager for the program, Hillary Dameron, said “When things aren’t well kept, maybe that increases the lack of safety, and we know that safety has been a concern for Garfield. We’re improving lighting, we’re improving accessibility.” Safety is particularly relevant for the area’s teens, both at Garfield and Nova High Schools. “These high schoolers are on this campus, and they deserve to have a safe space.” Dameron said.
Along with the landscaping renovations there will be two art installations. The first is called Pillars of Promise, and it involves fourteen artists collectively designing eight pillars. Seven of the artists will design one pillar each, representing the seven ethnic groups that have settled in the Central District between 1800 and 1975. An eighth, collaborative pillar will be designed by the remaining artists. The pillars will reflect the local history of the Black/African American, Chinese, Duwamish, Filipino, Italian, Japanese, and Jewish communities. The second installation will be three designed tree stumps to be used as seating in the block- one of many varied seating installations.
The idea for these improvements go back over 18 years, when the Garfield Super Block Coalition’s founder Robert Stephens was inspired by the murals lining Garfield’s hallways. “He wanted to bring that mural outside to the public and put it in a public space so people could learn about those histories through the medium of art,” Dameron said. The artist who painted many of Garfield’s murals, Gabrielle Abbott, will also be contributing to the Superblock project. “The Seven Pillars project is an ode to a very specific time in the timeline of the Central District’s History,” Ward stated, further describing the historical significance of the CD. When people migrated to Seattle, the CD often served as a landing point for newcomers from areas all over the world. “It’s a very particular period of time for the history of the neighborhood when it was most vibrant,” Ward went on. The team orchestrated a rigorous selection process to find the artists best suited for the job. To preserve cultural integrity, organizers formed a panel of community members from each ethnic group, tasked to find two artists from each culture to participate in the project. “Our next step, now that we’ve compiled the artists, is to begin coaching them, advising them, on the research and history part of it,” said Ward. “If knowledge is power, then we can give them as much as we have and hopefully that will inspire them to create the art that needs to be there.” she continued.
There’s no question that the new Garfield Superblock will have a lasting impact on Garfield students and the CD community. As Ward puts it, “I think having all these sort of pieces, these cultural pieces, speak to one another will help this generation and the next generation form their own history and be able to do it from a place of truth.”
