Closures of grocery stores and restaurants continue to make headlines in Seattle for a variety of reasons.
That’s why it’s imperative that City Hall avoid casually inflicting financial harm on two local small businesses that have served the Leschi community for decades.
Owners of BluWater Bistro and Leschi Market say their businesses, already negatively impacted by this summer’s expanded Bicycle Weekends road closures, would experience more devastating losses if a plan to improve the Leschi South Moorage facility moves forward without a parking plan to accommodate small businesses and their customers.
When the project was temporarily halted in May, BluWater Bistro owner Bart Evans said the mayor’s office promised him that the disruption to businesses would be mitigated by the city with an amicable solution. But now the city plans to move forward, according to Seattle Parks and Recreation, with plans to rip up the city-owned parking lot with 140 parking spaces that serves the restaurant and the moorage, and the 10 parking spaces in front of Leschi Market, which has been there since 1948.
“The construction was halted by the mayor with a directive to work with businesses to form a new strategy,” said Evans. “The only parking adjustment I heard was to rezone eight current street parking spots — this creates no new spaces and doesn’t offset the 140 they are fencing off.
“We support necessary improvements to the marina and want the project to move forward. But before the city begins a construction phase … there needs to be a workable plan for maintaining reasonable access and minimizing the impact.”
That seems reasonable.
“Construction is a necessary component of park stewardship, and we recognize it has impacts on park users, neighbors, and adjacent businesses,” Seattle Parks said in a statement. The department “is working diligently to minimize the impacts and balance the needs of all stakeholders.” That seems reasonable, too.
But the two businesses’ needs appear to be ignored. They begged the city to end daily construction in the afternoon and cover the site with steel plates to allow for parking in the evening. The city said it will use the plates “where it is safe and effective to do so.” For now that means on a road crossing and a driveway to the parking lot.
The mayor’s office did not respond to questions.
Evans said he and Leschi Market’s owner met with Seattle Parks but failed to reach a compromise.
The city could not have prevented the many restaurants and grocery stores from closing this year. But it shouldn’t make it harder for two more to stay afloat. Communications and fair compromise is the only way to truly “balance the needs of all stakeholders.”
