Whale Tail Park

SB&A, with neighbors and friends of Whale Tail Park in a volunteer capacity, developed a site plan that was used as a vision for the park development and as a marketing tool to raise funds for the park’s construction. SB&A prepared several design alternatives that integrated neighborhood ideas for the park. Over the next two years, SB&A created the design that is the playground today. A “lagoon” with waves of play surfacing in multiple colors includes the “Whale Tail Sculpture” and a small whale watching boat, the Sasha Eli. A lighthouse playstructure with a climbing “rock” wall is embraced by dual slides. The play areas also include sculptural tide pools, a toddler’s sandbox, a hillside slide, swing set, native planting areas, grassy knoll, and meadow area. Marine mammals, crustaceans and bivalves are set as bronze sculptures in paving. Fish and kelp are set in tile mosaic. Octopus “arms” climb the railing of the “dock”, and a bronze squid sits in a tidepool.

The Seattle Times (July ‘06) cited the park as “Best Unique Playground.”