9 Best Things to Do With Kids in Seattle's Pioneer Square
Photo:
Giant Connect Four and foosball table at Occidental Square. Credit: JiaYing Grygiel
Occidental Square play area
Find it: 117 S. Washington Street, Seattle
Occidental Square is a leafy plaza at the center of the Pioneer Square neighborhood. It has a new nature-inspired Kompan jungle gym with a wooden bench circling it. Artificial turf provides cushioning in the play area. The rope climber is small, but it’ll let the kids work out some wiggles. Through an agreement with the city, the Downtown Seattle Association manages this urban park, as well as the one at Westlake that opened in 2013.
Since 2010, the number of children living downtown has doubled to nearly 4,850, according to the DSA. Increasingly, downtown is a place where families live, and those kids need a place to play.
Over on the south end of Occidental Square's cobble-stoned plaza, there are colorful bistro tables and games set out for everyone to enjoy. Look for an over-sized Connect Four, ping pong tables, foosball, wood blocks and a reading corner stocked with kids’ books. A wood-and-glass pavilion is planned for this area; construction is scheduled to begin this month.
A note about safety for parents: There’s a lot of homelessness in this part of Seattle. Have a conversation with your kids before going about what they might see. Occidental Square is staffed 7 days a week, 8 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Use your common sense, be safe, have fun.
