Mercer Island Arts Council reviews Clark and Groveland parks plan, flags public-art opportunities and decade-long timeline

City staff outlined a joint infrastructure plan for Clark and Groveland Beach parks and asked the Mercer Island Arts Council to identify public-art opportunities to document in the final plan.

Sarah Blavas, capital project manager, said the City Council approved the joint planning effort in 2022 and that staff have combined technical assessments with community engagement, including a Let’s Talk survey that received 229 responses and targeted outreach to youth and teens. “The reason I’m really here tonight is to start discussing opportunities for public art integration for the preferred plan,” Blavas said.

Blavas described structural and accessibility problems at both parks: Groveland’s in-water structures are in fair condition while Clark’s have “reached the end of their useful life,” citing degraded concrete stairs, timber piles and a sheet-pile wall. At both sites restrooms were found to be functional but noncompliant with several ADA guidelines, she said.

The draft preferred plan for Clark Beach shows a fully accessible route from parking to the waterfront if feasible, replacement of the restroom with a smaller, likely gender-neutral facility, removal of much of the hard armoring and a transition to a zero-entry natural beach, and restoration of the two fixed piers rather than raising pier heights. Blavas noted the waterfront work is likely to require extensive shoreline permitting. “Based on the experience with Luther, we’re looking at probably a 5 to 10 year timeline before significant improvements are implemented,” she said.

At Groveland, Blavas said steep slopes (she cited study estimates of slopes up to 80%) limit the feasibility of full parking-lot–to-water ADA access; the preferred plan focuses on improving the waterfront path that can be made accessible and on renovating the play area. The plan designates a flexible teen hangout area to respond to youth feedback about preserving an active space for games and gatherings.

Blavas highlighted several public-art opportunity areas the council could document in the final infrastructure plan: integrated discovery elements and railings along ADA paths, sculptural seating at a North Beach seating area (a fish-shaped bench was shown in renderings), interpretive signage about shoreline ecology and park history, and potential murals or landmark treatment for renovated restrooms. “There’s a lot of opportunities for integrating public art at both Clark and Groveland,” Blavas said.

Council members emphasized conserving the parks’ forested character and avoiding intrusive lighting that penetrates the water, noting ecological concerns such as salmon migratory paths at Clark. Ryan Daley, a city parks staffer, said materials for docks and gangways will need to meet permitting and habitat-protection requirements; Blavas pointed to experience from the Luther Waterfront project for choices such as graded decking.

Blavas said staff submitted a request to include early design in the 2027–28 capital improvement program, likely in the $150,000–$200,000 range, to begin design work and permitting. She said the plan will guide 10–12 years of capital priorities and that future capital projects arising from the infrastructure plan will return to the Arts Council for specific public-art decisions and calls for artists.

The Arts Council offered preferences for themes that preserve natural character, highlight shoreline ecology and create layered discovery for visitors — a combination of “showstopper” elements attractive to youth and interpretive, low-impact installations that educate the public about habitat. Blavas said staff will compile council feedback into a memo to be included in the final infrastructure plan, which staff aim to adopt by the end of the year.

The presentation also prompted questions about wave attenuators at Groveland, potential changes to docks (floating swim docks versus fixed piers), and what elements staff will fund or bank into the city’s 1% for Art in Public Places contributions when capital projects proceed. Blavas said the Arts Council’s input now will be documented so future projects can integrate public-art commissions or use banked funds for separate public-art projects.

Next steps: staff will document tonight’s feedback in the final plan, add the teen hangout area as an opportunity at Groveland, pursue early design funding through the 2027–28 process and return to the Arts Council during future capital-project design stages for specific public-art decisions.