Improvement project guru Sam Star is at it again, and this time he's taking the lead on the Salmon Bay Elementary and Middle School playground renovation.

After getting input from Salmon Bay students and staff, a preliminary sketch of an estimated $225,600 playground was presented at the first public meeting last week. Star is working with the Salmon Bay Parent Teacher Association on the project and is still seeking community and parent input and approval from the Ballard District Council before the design is finalized.

The playground at Salmon Bay is mostly asphalt with a play area and basketball court. It has very little green space. Students said they wanted more welcoming lawn space, a nice place to sit and eat lunch and less asphalt.

The new design leaves the existing play area in place and adds a new play area with structures geared towards older students.

The design also includes a lawn area near picnic tables and two garden plots opposite each other across the playground. The garden areas would be raised a few feet so seniors and handicapped students have easier access. What type of garden, whether a vegetable or flower garden, was left "intentionally vague" until more input can be gathered from students and parents, said Star.

New asphalt and a basketball court would cover the northern half of the playground.

"Now it reflects most of the student's interests, but the sky is not the limit," said Star.

The project will ultimately depend on acquiring a $100,000 Matching Fund Grant from Seattle Department of Neighborhoods. The grant provides money to neighborhood groups or organizations for a broad range of neighborhood-initiated improvement projects.

A Letter of Intent, including the budget, background information and project summary, must be submitted to the department for approval by Feb. 6. If approved, the group has to match the funds with volunteer labor, materials, professional services, or cash.

Thomas Whittemore with the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods said the project will be competing for the grant with others in the district, but said he didn't know of any other projects coming up for approval.

"One strength is that the project shows a capacity of a planning group, that it isn't just a solo effort," said Whittemore. "And the improvements create a good place for the community to congregate."

The department considers the feasibility of the project and its possible contributions to community involvement and activity. But the donation in volunteer match is the most important part, said Whittemore. The group must show there are people committed to the project.

There are about 15 volunteers so far.

"However, we'd like to have about five people working on fund-raising, and 50 to100 people volunteer to help install the play structure, the landscaping beds, create attractive in-laid hopscotch areas, paint a mural, and paint the lines for basketball, four-square and kickball," said Star.

If approval is granted, Star plans to seek other grants along with the King County Youth Sport Facility Grant.

"It's been 30 or 40 years since anything has been renovated at Salmon Bay," said Star, adding that the school basketball games can't even be held in the gym because it's too small.

But the playground rebuild is meant to be only a temporary fix. The school hopes to be chosen for Seattle Public School's Building Excellence Program Levy (BEX), a voter approved levy that renovates Seattle schools by assessing improvement needs, such as safety and building condition.

The school district is conducting a building condition survey to determine what schools should be renovated next, said Peter Daniels, communications director for Seattle schools. Nothing can be determined until that survey is completed later this year.

BEX I completed 19 projects by the end of 2003, including Ballard High School and Whittier Elementary. The district is near the end of BEX II that will rebuild 17 schools by the end of 2008. Star said that if Salmon Bay were to be approved for the next levy, 2013 would be the soonest students could return to a renovated school.

"Let's do something for the kids during those years," he said.

To get involved in the Salmon Bay renovation project, contact Sam Star at 789-3483.