The Magnolia Community Club (MCC) has won a minor concession from Seattle Parks and Recreation over lighting at the West Magnolia Playfield near Catharine Blaine School.
Under normal circumstances, games played on the field are supposed to end at 10:45 each night, with the lights being turned out at 11 so people can get to their cars safely, according to the Parks Department.
But there's a problem.
The playfield was refurbished almost four years ago, but nothing was done to fix the warped and twisted light poles, which caused spillover light and glare to shine into homes of nearby residents, according to community club president Lindsay Brown. "We heard a lot of complaints at the Magnolia Community Club meetings," she added.
"Here and there, we have just been on top of this issue ... for two years at least," Brown said. "We finally wrote to Ken ... " she said of Parks Superintendent Ken Bounds.
Written via e-mail on July 14 by MCC vice president Vic Barry, the letter notes that Barry chaired a meeting of the City Neighborhood Council last summer in which Mayor Greg Nickels was questioned about the controversial issue of ballfield lighting.
"In his response," Barry wrote, "Mayor Nickels notified the CNC that it is possible for a neighborhood to apply for a variance from the Parks Dept. to allow a 10 p.m. lights out deadline."
So the MCC did just that. It turns out that a variance is possible if residences adjoin two or more sides of the field unless topography provides a buffer that blocks the lighting, said Parks spokeswoman Dewey Potter.
In fact, the variance is already in effect because of lighting glare and spillover at the Ballard Playfield, Bitter Lake Playfield, Loyal Heights Playfield and Miller Field, she said.
Furthermore, a study commissioned by the Parks Department itself showed that there was a problem with spillover and glare caused by the lights at the Magnolia field, Potter noted.
Bounds, in his response to Barry, wrote that he had reread the report about the poor condition of the lights on the Magnolia field. "Due to these conditions and our review of scheduling needs in your area," Bounds added, "I am willing to make a partial exception to our policy."
That exception - which went into effect Sept. 1 - means that games must end at 10 p.m. with lights out by 10:15 from Aug. 15 to April 30. The original schedule of games finishing by 10:45 with lights out at 11 applies to the rest of the year, according to Bound's letter.
Looking at the historical use of the Magnolia field during the past couple of years, it was determined that the reduced hours won't be a problem for the sports teams that use the field, Potter said. "They found they could reschedule those games earlier during the (fall and winter) season without having a big impact," she said.
The lighting schedule would return to the extended hours all year long once new lights are installed at the field, which also needs drainage work, Potter noted.
But nearby residents don't have to worry about that happening in the foreseeable future. "There's no money to do any of that," she said.
Brown said the MCC had hoped the lights would be turned off at 10 each night, but she's happy the lights will be turned off by 10:15 at least. "I think it's a good thing for the neighbors," Brown said.
