SEATTLE — Seattle is looking to make changes at Gas Works Park to deter climbing after the recent falling death of a Ballard High School student last July. The proposal will be discussed at a Landmarks Preservation Board meeting Wednesday evening.
Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) is seeking the approval of the Landmarks Preservation Board to remove all catwalks, ladders, and support systems from the gas processing towers, along with the removal of one pipe that extends beyond fencing placed around them.
As far back as 2002, a structural analysis of the towers noted issues and potential safety hazards with the ladders, catwalks and piping. In its application, SPR said it believes these are now beyond repair, and allow access to trespassers looking to climb the towers.
Fifteen-year-old Mattheis Johnson was killed after falling from a platform 50 feet in the air following a concert at Gas Works Park last July.
While there is fencing and signage warning people not to climb the towers, there have been three deaths and 11 injuries resulting from people climbing the tower since October 2008.
According to an approximate timeline submitted by SPR, the agency sought to remove some or all of the stairs and landings on the south towers in 2015. The Landmarks Preservation Board initially recommended starting with “more focused removals of obvious access points.”
SPR was allowed to perform selective removal of climbable features on the south towers in 2019. SPR replaced the fence surrounding the towers and hired a landscape contractor to remove any vegetation and trees to get rid of any potential access points in 2023. A leaning support element was removed from the Cracking Tower area in 2024.
Beyond removing what SPR calls “pedestrian appurtenances,” the department will also seek to add lighting and security cameras to further discourage any climbing of the towers. If the work should be allowed to move forward, the towers will be repainted to display shadow lanes of the catwalks and ladders that have been removed.
트위터 공유: 시애틀은 향후 추락과 사망을 방지하기 위해 가스 웍스 파크 타워를 ...