Myrtle Edwards Park

Seattle Hempfest, which takes place this weekend in Myrtle Edwards Park, was going to require cyclists to dismount and walk through the park between today, August 11, and next Wednesday, August 19. That would have been a nine-day closure—for a two-day event. The closure has since been reduced to four days: Friday through Monday. About 500 people commute by bike through the 1.25-mile park every day.

According to the city's special events coordinator, Virginia Swanson, the special events committee initially recommended the nine-day closure because "we wanted to cover all the safety issues" associated with loading vendors and stages in and out of the park. Since the initial decision, however, "we got a big lobby [push] from bicyclists so we decided to reduce" the closure, Swanson says.

"We were trying to talk to [Hempfest] about this six months ago, and they waited until the last minute" to get their permit, says Cascade Bicycle Club policy director David Hiller. "[Imagine trying to] close Elliott [Avenue, adjacent to the park] for nine days. How long can it take you to pack a bowl?"

Repeated attempts to contact Hempfest or its director, Vivian McPeak, were unsuccessful. McPeak's cell phone directs callers to a number where the answering machine says that it's "Friday, July 31" and says, "You can also leave a message for Forrest, Alex, or Rob." An email to McPeak bounced back, and Hempfest's main line is not accepting messages.