and within minutes hundreds of people had descended on the spot, connecting Pike Place Market, the Waterfront, and Downtown.
The Overlook Walk is the biggest piece of a puzzle that was created after the Nisqually Earthquake in 2001. There was immediate talk then about tearing down the aging structure because it walled off the waterfront from the rest of Downtown. The City and State eventually decided to build a waterfront tunnel, a new seawall, and a massive park with the Overlook as the connective tissue. But it still took years.
City and Downtown leaders are counting on the project to provide a boost. While data shows that visitor foot traffic and hotel stays are near pre-pandemic levels, office and retail markets still continue to struggle. Colliers reported this week that office vacancy in Seattle is now at 30% and the retail struggles are well chronicled.