Reopened Feb 2026
After closure that stretched to almost six years, Hiawatha Community Center at 2700 California SW reopened in February 2026. Independent coverage from the West Seattle Blog chronicled the stop-and-start timeline, the growing budget, and the community advocacy that kept pressure on the city. This page stays here as a record of what neighbors waited through—and as a reminder to keep holding Seattle Parks accountable.
The February 2026 ribbon cutting drew families back into the downstairs gym, elected leaders including Mayor Katie Wilson and District 1 Councilmember Rob Saka, and longtime West Seattle advocates. Interim Seattle Parks Superintendent Michele Finnegan acknowledged the long closure and apologized to the community. The mayor highlighted Hiawatha’s conversion to all-electric operations—“Our oldest community center is leading the way on our energy future”—and Hiawatha is the city’s first fully electrified community center, per reporting that followed the reopening.
The stabilization work’s total price tag reached about $7.5 million—roughly double early figures when the job went out to bid in 2024, as the West Seattle Blog summarized ahead of opening day. Neighbors lived with years of “almost starting” timelines: the center closed in 2020 amid the pandemic, then stayed shuttered while a major project was repeatedly expected but delayed—including stretches linked in part to federal grant timing, according to WSB’s follow-up reporting.
Programming: After “welcome back” weeks with drop-in gym and fitness-room hours, spring schedules added adult badminton, pickleball, and basketball (including youth basketball). Current hours and sign-ups belong on the city’s official Hiawatha page.
Local journalism: For timelines, photos, and neighborhood context, start with westseattleblog.com—search “Hiawatha”—and the article links in Updates below.
Primary sources below are West Seattle Blog (WSB), with cross-links to Seattle Parks where noted.
Buildings may reopen; transparency shouldn’t close. Use the steps below to request documentation of how delays happened—and to keep watch on other Parks promises in West Seattle.
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