Lakewood maps public art for American Lake, Wards Lake and Nisqually Trail with community workshops and modest CIP support

Stacy, a parks development manager for the City of Lakewood, told the Arts Commission that public-art opportunities are being incorporated into three active park construction projects: American Lake Park, Wards Lake Park and a Nisqually Trail interpretive project at Fort Silken Park.

The presentation outlined site-specific proposals that include mural wraps for dumpster enclosures, graphic wraps for signal and utility boxes, a community tile-mosaic workshop and a separate RFQ for a Nisqually tribal artwork to appear on interpretive kiosks. “We’re really navigating that sensitively — we don’t want to force something that’s not included in them telling their story,” Stacy said of the partnership with the Nisqually tribe.

Why it matters: the park improvements are sizable and visible, and staff want art in place as sites open to shape visitors’ first impressions. Stacy said American Lake Park’s construction program is about $4.42 million and described Wards Lake Park as a two‑phase project totaling roughly $5.7 million in improvements. The city has placed $25,000 in the capital improvement program (CIP) for artwork at American Lake and $15,000 for Ward’s Lake; those sums are intended to cover wraps, installation and modest artist stipends.

Staff detailed timelines and community engagement: American Lake Park is expected to complete and open in early July, Wards Lake in September and the Nisqually partnership project by year‑end. A tile‑mosaic community workshop, led by a contracted tile artist and supported by staff, is planned for a Friday/Saturday in June with related public events. Stacy said the mosaic will be created using a community‑assisted method and later permanently installed by the contracted artist.

Project specifics in the presentation included five freestanding trash‑bay enclosures at American Lake that staff plan to wrap or otherwise decorate, a small single‑stall pilot restroom (the “Portland loo”) identified as another wrap opportunity, and a city‑owned signal box at Pine and 80 Fourth that is visible at the main park entry. Utility cabinets clustered near the same intersection are owned by a telecommunications company (Lumen); staff said the city has a draft agreement seeking Lumen’s permission to decoratively wrap those boxes but emphasized the company must approve alterations.

Stacy encouraged artists and commissioners to attend site tours and the upcoming community workshops and said printed images and construction drawings will be shared with the commission. She also said the Department of Commerce grant is supporting trail work that ties into the interpretive project and that the Nisqually kiosks will feature seven exhibit sites with plant identification, tribal narrative and metal cutout elements.

Commissioners raised visibility and timing questions, including how quickly wraps can be produced after construction and whether plain‑color wraps could serve as temporary placeholders if design development takes longer. Staff replied that wraps can be fast if artwork is already digitized and that they will coordinate site measurements with vendors once construction permits safe access.

Less critical details: staff estimated the main new parking expansion at one park at about two dozen stalls (approximate), said several trail types (10‑foot paved main path, gravel nature trails and improved compacted gravel routes) will be added, and noted additional features such as a 75‑foot pedestrian bridge, new playground equipment, a dog park and a concrete pump track.

Staff asked commissioners to share artist contacts, offered to send the mosaic workshop flyer to the commission for promotion, and invited commissioners to take part in on‑site measurement sessions. The commission did not take a formal vote on artwork design or artists during the meeting; staff said procurement, RFQs and final contracts will follow established city procedures and any necessary approvals.