Phase 1 of the construction on Ballard Corners Park at 17th Avenue Northwest and Northwest 63rd Street is completed and Phase 2 construction could start as early as December, though with some possible changes due to a lack of funds.

Due to work during Phase 1, paid for by the city and the Pro Parks Levy, the park has been landscaped with grass and trees and a play structure and concrete benches have been erected. But, the park will remain fenced off and unused until the spring when the grass has been mowed twice.

"People are really excited," said David Folweiler, co-chair of the Friends of Ballard Corners Park. "But, maybe a little frustrated because they can't get in there to access it yet."

The next step for the park, Phase 2, is the construction of the living room, rain gardens, and corner store.

The living room will be a quiet, contemplative area of the park that will serve as homage to the old Victorian house that once stood there, Folweiler said. It will include a concrete couch and easy chair colored to look like leather, he said.

Folwieler said the rain gardens will serve as a buffer between the park and the road and will filter runoff as well as add greenery. King County has asked the Friends of Ballard Corners Park to emphasize the rain gardens as a demonstration project that could one day be implemented around the city, he said.

The living room will cost $25,600 and the rain gardens will cost $93,700. The Friends of Ballard Corners Park have enough in their funds to cover these two projects and Dariotis Construction can begin work in December, though they have 120 days to complete the projects and may choose to wait, Folweiler said.

But, the Friends of Ballard Corners Park does not have enough money to begin construction on the final portion of Phase 2, the corner store, as planned. The corner store will cost $53,700 and there will be only $15,000 left in the park's funds after paying for the rain gardens and the living room.

Folweiler said they are looking to raise additional funds for the corner store, which will serve as the entrance to the park and a representation of the grocery store that operated on the lot from 1905 to 1954, through neighborhood fundraising and additional grants. They may decide to scale back the corner store as well if enough money cannot be raised, he said.

The Friends of Ballard Corners Park are selling name tiles to be installed in the park for $100 each or two for $150 to raise money. So far they have raised approximately $2,000 through tile sales, though Folweiler said he expects another $3,000 to $4,000 in sales.

There are also possibilities for larger donors, such as getting their name on the couch in the living room, he said.

Folweiler said the park has raised additional money through a program at Ballard Market that allows customers to donate 1 percent of their receipts to the cause of their choice.

Construction and funding of the park has brought the neighborhood together, said Haley Drage, a member of the park's steering committee who lives across the street from the park. She said at least 50 people showed up to help install the play structure, pour concrete, and do anything else that needed to be done.

"We're all just really excited to see where the park is now," Drage said. "This is a labor of love for all of us."

Michael Harthorne may be contacted at 783.1244 or michaelh@robinsonnews.com