Advocacy
Header photo: Varied thrush in the Sorbus Collection (courtesy Larry Hubbell).
SR 520 Bridge impacts, Parks Levy & more
As part of our core mission to sustain and protect the Washington Park Arboretum, the Foundation engages in advocacy at the local, city, and state levels. Examples include:
- Our work to minimize the impacts of the SR520 Bridge replacement project on the Arboretum and secure mitigation funding from the project for improvements, such as the Arboretum Loop Trail.
- Our support of the 2008 Parks and Green Spaces Levy, which allocated roughly $2.5 million to Washington Park Arboretum to fund Master Plan projects such as the Pacific Connections Garden.
Other important advocacy initiatives have included working to secure funding at the state level for Arboretum curation, and working at the city level to secure funding for Arboretum maintenance and operations.
How You Can Help
Please help support our advocacy efforts by joining as a member, by donating to the Foundation, making your voice heard at public meetings, and/or voting to protect our treasured urban green space at the ballot box.

Arboretum Partners doing a celebratory “vine cutting” to open the new Arboretum Loop Trail.
Photo by: @samfuphoto

Remembering Volunteer Extraordinaire Elizabeth Moses
Jan 28, 2023
Elizabeth and husband Allen feted at the 2017 Opening Night Party.The Arboretum Foundation would like to acknowledge the passing of one of its most beloved and dedicated volunteers, Elizabeth Moses. She died in late December, 2022, at the age of 91. Elizabeth’s record...

Parallel Artforms: Garden Design and Photo Composition
Dec 17, 2022
Winter is an ideal time to take stock of your garden and consider whether to tweak or rework your design. In the latest issue of the Arboretum Bulletin, landscape architect and Foundation staffer Jason Morse simplifies the garden design process by comparing its...

Arboretum Master Plan Turns 21
Nov 20, 2022
Approved by the City of Seattle in 2001, the Arboretum's comprehensive Master Plan has come of age! Over the past two decades, the plan has propelled the completion of many projects, renovations, and accessibility improvements, such as Arboretum Loop Trail pictured...