Our experience
Through mapping the neighborhood, I observed the lifestyle available, the people in the area, and the environment. When my group first got there, it seemed to be that Belltown was one of the major neighborhoods making up the main part of Seattle. As we moved deeper into the neighborhood, there were more apartments than businesses, so it felt more residential. We found many restaurants and cafes which the residents could use. Then we moved to the east side of the neighborhood, to see the water and the many ports that were available. Finally, as we reached the edge, there was a nice big part in which people could take a break from the city lifestyle and be able to enjoy nature as well as public art.
Olympic Sculpture Park
P-Patch
What we heard...
Our research matched up to what we saw in terms of the people and buildings. By looking at the quality of the apartments available it made sense why Belltown was a desired place to live, yet it also made sense of why they were so expensive. Also, my group did also see many of the well-known places like the Olympic Sculpture Park. In terms of people, we saw many private business workers coming out of offices. In addition, even though my group wasn’t around to see the nightlife, it was clear that there was one because of the many bars available. From this information, it's clear that this district offers diverse amenities for diverse people.
Community
Asset or Barrier
I believe that the public art located in Belltown was an asset to the neighborhood. On most of the buildings, there were murals and graffiti expressing the personality of the town. Even though some people believe that graffiti is only a form of vandalism, however, I saw many pieces in which I believe that the artist put time and effort. Other than murals and graffiti, I saw many sculptures throughout the neighborhood, especially at the Olympic Sculpture Park. The whole park was decorated with pieces of art that the public could enjoy as they walked through the park. My group also saw a community garden called the Belltown P-Patch in which included many paintings and creative tiling. The people in that part of town could go to the garden and grow their own plants as well as enjoy the art. Overall, I believed that the public art in Belltown was an asset to the community because it added a creative element to the neighborhood.
From the small snapshot that my group saw while we were in Belltown, we all agreed that there is a strong community here. With the many apartments, there were many groups of people and families walking around. There were also many businesses residing, so we saw workers commuting to different buildings. Also, the cafes and bars attracted people to come together to enjoy the amenities. We saw many people walking their dogs or with their families in parks, especially in the Olympic sculpture park. This is the greatest area for the community to take a break from city life and enjoy nature and the ocean.