The Seattle Parks Department met with the northwest Seattle community May 13 to discuss their plans on how to split up funding from the 2008 Parks and Green Spaces Levy between neighborhoods and community projects.

An extension of the 2000 Pro Parks Levy that created more than 27 parks and green spaces around Seattle, the 2008 Parks and Green Spaces Levy will be split into three types of improvements: development, environment and the opportunity fund.

The levy will provide $33 million for improvements to 23 neighborhood playgrounds, the development of parks on top of two water reservoir lids, and development of 11 new neighborhood parks.

Ross playground, located between Ballard and Fremont, will receive $450,000 worth of improvements from the levy. Play equipment will be replaced, and safety improvements will be made to the existing playground area.

The Seventh Elect Church site, which will for now be called the Ninth Avenue Northwest Park Development, will receive $200,000.

The existing structures on the site will be removed with remaining 2000 Parks Levy funds and a park will be developed following the removal of the structures.

Michael Shiosaki, presenter and deputy director for the parks levy, said some open house attendees wanted to know the about a timeline and possible P-Patch for the Seventh Elect site.

“We plan to start on the public involvement planning process in the fourth quarter this year, so basically this fall,” Shiosaki said. “The Seventh Elect site is kind of a clean slate, so we’ll start the public meeting process and see what the public’s ideas are to see how the site should be developed.”

He said they will be contacting key neighborhood groups, posting signs and sending out mailers in the area around the site to get Ballard residents involved in the planning process.

The levy allots $7.25 million to expand Seattle’s urban trails system, and a portion of that will be used to complete the missing link for the Burke-Gilman Trail in Ballard.

Approximately $6.6 million of the levy has been dedicated to create a healthy ecosystem in the city, according to the parks department. The funding will be split into forest and stream restoration, community gardens and shoreline access.

Lastly, $15 million has been set aside for the Opportunity Fund for community-initiated projects, such as Ballard Corners Park, partially funded by 2000 Opportunity Fund.

The May 13 meeting was one of four open houses hosted by the city.

“It’s amazing,” Shiosaki said. “The north meeting (at Greenlake Community Center) was the best attended of all the meetings. There were over 50 people from the community there.”