Park CommUNITY Fund
Updated: April 4, 2024
Program Overview
The Park CommUNITY Fund is open for submission! Visit the link below to share your ideas to help advance park equity in your neighborhood. Submissions are open until April 30.
- Engage home page: Project: Park CommUNITY Fund
- Submit an idea page: Project • STEP 1: Project Selection
The Park CommUNITY Fund advances park equity in Seattle through a community-led funding process. The fund invests in large and small capital projects using participatory budgeting and equitable grant-making practices. Seattle Park District has allocated $14.8 million to the Park CommUNITY Fund for investment in Seattle communities between 2023 and 2028.
Pilot Cycle
Program Planning/Design
During the summer of 2022, program staff were hired to conduct early engagement with City of Seattle staff, partners, and frontline community groups to gain feedback about SPR’s park development process and how best to develop a new community-centered funding program.
Using lessons learned through this engagement work, program staff have developed a 4-stage pilot cycle launching in 2024. The pilot cycle will test the initial program framework to ensure it meets the department’s vision for the program to create partnerships with communities and continue investment in parks and park facilities in neighborhoods with a history of racial disparities in access to green space and safety from environmental harm.
During the 2024-2025 pilot cycle, $5.2M will be available for project funding and projects will be awarded through two tiers.
Project Selection
Frontline communities will work alongside Seattle Park and Recreation (SPR) staff through a Project Selection process, which includes three phases.
- Idea Collection: Community members submit ideas for improvements in-person or online.
- Project Development: Ideas are developed into proposals, reviewed for priority, and narrowed to a small list of finalists.
- Final Selection: Finalists undergo a three-part selection process to determine awarded projects, including community selection, selection by the Board of Park and Recreation Commissioners, and Superintendent final approval.
Project Implementation
SPR planners and project managers will follow SPR’s park development process to implement awarded projects.
Evaluation Workshop
Following Project Selection, the program will conduct an Evaluation and Workshop series with communities to gain feedback on improving the program, creating a more equitable park development process, and creating a space for Frontline communities to share/build resources
