Published: 5/1/2009

Learn about possible land exchange at open house May 6

Metro Parks Tacoma and the Tacoma Public Schools will hold a joint, drop-in open house on Wednesday, May 6, from 5–7 p.m. at Baker Middle School, 8320 South I St., to share information with the public about a possible land exchange between the two organizations.

Metro Parks Tacoma owns Harmon Park at South 80^th and I streets adjacent to Baker Middle School, which is situated on a five-acre site, much smaller than the average middle school campus. The Tacoma Public Schools owns the property at South 60^th and Adams streets on the lower part of the old Mt. Tahoma High School site adjacent to Metro Parks SERA Athletic Complex.

Metro Parks envisions building South Tacoma Community Center on the old Mt. Tahoma site next to Metro’s SERA Athletic Complex. The community center would be strategically sited for shared facility space with the new Gray Middle School and Boys and Girls Club’s Topping Hope Center. The school district property allows for the best placement for the community center adjacent to the Boys & Girls Club. Owning the land would also place Metro Parks in a better position when applying for additional funding.

If the school district owned Harmon Park, the Baker Middle School campus would become a master-planned, 15+-acre site that would better meet the programmatic needs of a middle school, including adding athletic playfields and needed parking. With a larger campus, the school district could build a new Baker on site while students continued to attend classes in the old building.

“We want to emphasize that Metro Parks Tacoma already has a good working relationship—and partnership—with the Tacoma Public Schools,” said Lois Stark, chief planner for Metro Parks. “The general public will still have access to the school’s open space if our boards agree to the land exchange. For example, the community would have access to athletic fields after school hours if the school district constructs a new Baker on site.”

Metro Parks Tacoma and the school district will provide community feedback from the open house to their respective boards to guide the board members in any future decisions about the potential land exchange.

Contact Lois Stark, chief planner, Metro Parks Tacoma, at 253.305.1077 if you have any questions or e-mail her at loiss@tacomaparks.com.

Superintendent Arthur O. Jarvis, Ed.D., ajarvis@tacoma.k12.wa.us
Superintendent-Elect (Interim) Carla Santorno, csantor@tacoma.k12.wa.us
Central Administration Building, P.O. Box 1357, Tacoma, WA 98401-1357, 253.571.1000

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