Harold Tollefson Plaza is slowly realizing its potential to be a center for public activity downtown. So much thought and planning went into the buildings adjacent to it – the new convention center and the Courtyard by Marriott hotel – that the plaza was something of an afterthought.
It did not even have a proper name when it opened. It had the placeholder name of Pacific Plaza until Tacoma City Council took action to name it in honor of a former mayor.
Tacoma/Pierce County Chamber of Commerce was selected to program events in the plaza. There has been some progress on this front, with the chamber bringing on a full-time coordinator for events at the beginning of the month. A logo has been designed and a website is in the works.
A summer Friday lunch series will begin on July 10, with food vendors and musical entertainment. For the next three months, an art market will be held in conjunction with the Third Thursday Art Walk.
The plaza is being run on a shoestring budget. Efforts by the chamber to raise funds from the private sector have been hampered by the recession. The city did allocate $35,000 for improvements. Chairs, tables and garbage cans will arrive this week. Making things work will require help for neighboring businesses and institutions. Courtyard by Marriott is a good example of this. The truck delivering the furniture is not equipped with a lift; hotel management agreed to have an employee use its forklift to unload the items at no charge.
It will take time for the plaza to reach its potential, but it is good to see progress is being made.
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