The Berger Partnership

Construction started this month on the Washington Park Arboretum‘s new Arboretum Loop Trail, one of the largest improvement projects to date in Seattle’s flagship public garden.

The paved path will create more opportunities for pedestrians, wheelchair users, slow-moving bicycle riders and families with strollers to exercise and explore the state’s official arboretum, which features one of the nation’s most diverse plant collections west of the Mississippi River.

“The loop trail is an important part of our master plan and will provide entry into part of the gardens and collections of the arboretum that are rarely visited today,” said Sarah Reichard, director of UW Botanic Gardens, which cares for the arboretum’s gardens, trees and plant collections.

“The trail will allow the citizens of our growing city a stroll through one of the most beautiful places in North America.”