Seattle’s multi-billion-dollar waterfront renovation was always about connecting Pike Place Market and downtown Seattle to Puget Sound and the new 20-acre Waterfront Park. With the Oct. 4 opening of the elevated Overlook Walk, that dream has been realized.

Elevated park and pedestrian connection between downtown Seattle and the new Waterfront Park

Photo courtesy of City of Seattle

View of Overlook Walk from the front of Pike Place Market

Photo courtesy of City of Seattle

Overlook Walk — located where the Alaskan Way Viaduct once stood — features 360-degree views of downtown Seattle, the sports stadiums, Elliott Bay, the Olympic mountains, and Mount Rainier. It also features seating with designs that honor the Coast Salish peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast.

Mayor Bruce Harrell calls Overlook Walk an iconic Seattle landmark in league with the Space Needle, Pike Place Market, and the Great Wheel. It creates the first pedestrian connection between downtown and the waterfront.

“Waterfront Park, particularly Overlook Walk, will be a dynamic landmark that honors our past, highlights Seattle’s spirit of innovation, and welcomes everyone to experience the city’s natural beauty and vibrant culture,” Harrell says. “This redevelopment will be a truly transformative change.”

Downtown Seattle Association President and CEO Jon Scholes calls the park a “game-changer” for the future of the city’s downtown.

“This is just the start of more great things to come as we look ahead to the entire waterfront being complete in early 2025,” he says. “We’re not just opening a new park. We’re opening an entirely new part of our city.”

Overlook Walk opens about five weeks after the Seattle Aquarium unveiled the Ocean Pavilion, the first project to be completed as part of the renovation. The pavilion houses 3,500 sustainably sourced tropical fish, invertebrates, and plants representing more than 100 species. The reef features five windows and a public facing oculus, where passers-by can see leopard sharks, spotted eagle rays, and reef fish.

The ambitious waterfront renovation — the mayor’s office says it is the largest public works project in the city since the 1962 World’s Fair — is slated for completion early next year.