Elliott Bay Connections Delivers a Transformed Waterfront for Seattle

Years in the making and completed just in time for the world to arrive and fans of summer to enjoy, Elliott Bay Connections has officially delivered one of the most significant waterfront transformations in Seattle’s history.

Myrtle Edwards and Centennial parks reopened to the public on June 4, and together with the new greenway that opened in April, Seattle now has 50 acres of connected parks and public space stretching 3 1/2 miles along the Elliott Bay shoreline.

EBC is a public-private partnership funded entirely by private philanthropy — with donors including Melinda French Gates, MacKenzie Scott, the Diller-Von Furstenberg Family Foundation and Expedia Group — and undertaken at no cost to taxpayers. DSA has served as the implementation partner throughout, coordinating a team of Seattle-based firms to bring the project from vision to reality.

The ribbon-cutting on June 4 brought together Mayor Katie Wilson, DSA President & CEO Jon Scholes, Melinda French Gates, Seattle City Council President Joy Hollingsworth, Port of Seattle Commissioner Sam Cho, Chairman of the Suquamish Tribe Leonard Forsman, Chairman of the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe Donny Stevenson, Port of Seattle Commissioner Sam Cho, Expedia Group CEO Ariane Gorin and Friends of Waterfront Park’s Joy Shigaki to mark the milestone.

The new greenway on the east side of Alaskan Way runs nearly a mile from Waterfront Park at Pier 62 north to the Olympic Sculpture Park, replacing obsolete trolley tracks with a multi-use trail designed for people of all ages walking, biking and rolling. More than 15,000 new plants and 121 trees line the path.

In the parks themselves, visitors will find dramatically expanded beach coves at Myrtle Edwards Park, a new children’s exploration area, improved pedestrian and bike paths, accessible routes to beaches and the rose garden and comprehensive new wayfinding signage. Centennial Park now features the new haʔłali amenities building — a name meaning “the good place” in Lushootseed, selected by the Suquamish Tribe Culture Committee — which will house beloved Café Hagen. Close to 74,000 new native shrubs and plants have been installed across both parks, with pollinator meadows and freshly seeded lawns taking shape throughout.

The project also centered Indigenous culture and partnership. A 13 Moon story walk, developed with the Muckleshoot Language Committee and featuring carved boulders and seasonal plantings selected by Valerie Segrest (Muckleshoot), winds through the parks. The haʔłali amenities building was designed by First Nation architect Alfred Waugh (Chipewyan) of Formline Architecture + Urbanism.

“With the completion of the Elliott Bay Connections project, downtown Seattle now has a connected waterfront experience unlike anything we’ve had in our city’s history,” DSA President & CEO Jon Scholes said. “These improvements will dramatically change how Seattleites use the downtown waterfront. The generous investments of private donors and the work of some terrific Seattle firms have transformed these spaces into areas to linger, recreate and enjoy, taking some of our amazing natural assets to another level with an impact that will be felt for generations to come.”

DSA will continue as EBC’s implementation partner in the months ahead, working closely with the city of Seattle and Port of Seattle to ensure these spaces remain well maintained and welcoming. Uplift Northwest will provide daily cleaning and custodial care, with private philanthropy underwriting the initial establishment costs.