Seattle Viewpoints
Four Columns Park, Downtown

LocationMap of Four Columns Park, Seattle
Corner of Pike Street and Boren Avenue, on the eastern edge of downtown Seattle.

Admission
Free.

Getting there by car
Click on the map below for directions.


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Getting there
By bus
Board any of the eastbound buses on Pike Street, including bus numbers 7 (University District), 10 (Capitol Hill), 11 (Madison Park), 14 (Summit) and 43 (University District), at the corner of Pike Street and 4th Avenue.
Four Columns Viewpoint, SeattleAlight from the bus at the corner of Pike Street and Boren Avenue.
It is about a 5-minute ride each way, due to traffic rather than distance.
To return by bus, walk one block to north to Pine Street. Take any westbound buses going down Pine Street, or from Convention Place Station take any southbound buses going through the bus tunnel (back one stop to Westlake Station).

On Foot
From the Westlake Center, it is about a 10-minute walk to the viewpoint. Walk south to Pike Street, then walk uphill along Pike Street for six or seven blocks. The viewpoint will be just past the I-5 overpass to your left.

Notes and tips
Four Columns Viewpoint, SeattleThis small triangular park takes its name from the rather enigmatic segment of architecture found there. It overlooks I-5, and is assaulted on all sides by the noise of traffic. As an open space, it provides a visual link between downtown and the adjoining neighborhood of Capitol Hill, but does not offer a place of peace amidst the bustle of downtown. It has seating and is kept neat and free of trash. However it does not appear to attract people to spend time there, such as local workers on breaks.

To gain another view of the Space Needle, you might like to continue on bus number 14 (Summit) to Thomas Mini Park.

The Views/
Four Columns Park offers a view of Queen Anne Hill, and of the Space Needle between downtown buildings. Town planners refer to it as a "view corridor/ You would probably only come here if you want this particular angle on the Needle, or you were up at this end of downtown anyway (for example at the Convention Center). Even this small offering is under threat from high-rise development, as seen in local debates over the subject.

The following photos were taken around midday on an overcast day in early March. Click on photo for full-size image.

Four Columns Park
Looking west through the columns towards the Space Needle (77kb).

Four Columns Park Seattle
The columns stand sentential along pedestrian access from Capitol Hill to downtown Seattle (50kb).

Four Columns Park
Looking west through the columns towards the Space Needle and Queen Anne Hill (44kb).

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