Waterfront Seattle

Photo showing the improvements made to S Main St at Occidental Park.

New bike racks on S Main St.

Two tones of the pavers follow the original shoreline. Shoreline alley can be seen on S Main and S Washington streets.

View of S Washington St looking west near Alaskan Way S.

We celebrated the ribbon cutting of the Pioneer Square East-West Improvements Project today in Pioneer Square with Mayor Harell, Deputy Mayor Emery, Councilmember Saka, our partners at the Alliance for Pioneer Square, Trevor Boone with Emerald City Guitars and other community members. Thank you to all of the neighbors and friends who joined us for this joyous occasion!

Photo of the reinstalled Washington Street Boat Landing Pergola, an outdoor structure consisting of columns that support a roofing grid of beams and rafters that is located by the water at the end of South Washington Street

The restored Washington Street Boat Landing Pergola was returned to its original splendor, featuring new lighting and restored ornamentation, and a space for a small food concessions on the Park Promenade

Visitors to Habitat Beach enjoy the log seating, boulders, and native plantings.

Habitat Beach view looking west toward the Seattle Water Taxi Dock and West Seattle.

Adjacent to the Washington Street Boat Landing, Habitat Beach improves conditions for juvenile salmon while providing the public with an opportunity to access Elliott Bay.

ABOUT THE PROJECT

Pioneer Square East West Pedestrian Improvements

Working with community partner Alliance for Pioneer Square, we constructed improvements on portions of King, Main and Washington Streets, Yesler Way and 2nd Avenue S to prioritize pedestrians, improve sidewalks and increase greenery. By reducing the number of vehicle travel lanes this moved vehicles away from structurally vulnerable areaways and improved accessibility for people of all ages and abilities and provides safe, convenient, and graceful pedestrian connections.

Construction began in January 2024 and was completed in phases to minimize impacts to neighbors and businesses. In total, Waterfront Seattle’s improvements in Pioneer Square include nine new raised pedestrian crossings, four new blocks of curbless streets and 13,400 square feet of new planted areas.

Although major construction has wrapped up, you may see construction workers out to finish installing bollards, landscaping, and lighting. Roadways will remain open to vehicle traffic for the remainder of the work, which is expected to be completed by early 2025.

Washington Street Boat Landing Pergola

The Washington Street Boat Landing and Beach will restore access to the waterfront for Pioneer Square and the South Downtown community. The landmark pergola structure has been a piece of Seattle's waterfront since the early 20th century, and with its recent restoration, it once again serves as a symbolic gateway to the city from the Puget Sound. The pergola has been fully restored and will reopen in 2025 as a concessionaire space. 

Habitat Beach is a national winner of the American Public Works Association's 2020 Project of the Year Award!

Pioneer Square Habitat Beach

Between Colman Dock and Pier 48, a new habitat beach supports the waterfront ecosystem, including enhancing the salmon corridor by adding rocks and nearshore vegetation. Improvements to the marine habitat began in October 2018 thanks to an agreement between Washington State Ferries and the City of Seattle to make these improvements on State-owned property. The plantings on the shoreline restore the function of a natural shoreline and improve ecosystem productivity. Check out this coloring page that explains the different layers that make up the beach.

The Pioneer Square Habitat Beach opened to the public on July 1, 2023. The beach is open every day from 7AM to 10 PM. Because the beach is a key component to Seattle’s nearshore marine habitat, some rules to keep in mind before heading down include no swimming or entering and exiting the water by personal watercraft, and packing out what you pack in. Additional rules and regulations can be found on the Friends of Waterfront Seattle website and are posted on-site.