The Coalition is comprised of Volunteer Park Trust, the Friends of the Conservatory, and Seattle Asian Art Museum. Its mission is to make the infrastructure of the Park and its institutions more efficient and environmentally sound. The Sustainability Coalition works closely with Seattle Parks & Recreation, Seattle Public Utilities, and conservation groups to make Volunteer Park a standard for the intelligent and cost effective use of resources.
The Coalition commissioned Young Architects LLC to draft a Park Sustainability Improvement Measures study. This study examines existing infrastructure in the park and identifies potential improvements in water and energy use that will make the Park more sustainable, reduce long term costs, and improve environmental impacts.
Volunteer Park Sustainability Improvement Measures Report
Young | Architecture LLC PDF Document – 1,108 KB
In 2016, the Volunteer Park Sustainability Coalition was awarded a $25,000 Small and Simple Neighborhood Matching Fund Grant by the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods. The funds paid for a park-wide water capture and reuse feasibility study as the first facet of implementation of the Improvement Measures Study.
The feasibility study built on water-usage-related areas in the preliminary report including:
- Storm water management
- Water efficient landscaping
- Innovative waste water technologies
- Water use reduction
- Rain water harvesting
- Gray water re-use: potentially using water from the wading pool for irrigating the grounds
Read the full 81-page report here: VPSC-Feasibility-Study-2017-02-24-Final
NEXT STEPS
In November 2018, the Volunteer Park Sustainability Coalition has announced a project to design and construct an up-to-date water filtration and treatment system for the Volunteer Park wading pool, as well as rain gardens and other “rainwater retention devices” for the park.
They are now seeking grant resources to pay for the estimated $1.8 million in costs. Read their full announcement.
