Cushman Commons: Weigh In On an Important Tacoma Project

In 2017, the Cushman and Adams substations found their way to the Tacoma Register of Historic Places, cementing their statuses as the sites of some of Tacoma’s most monumental achievements. Notably, in 1918, Tacoma City Light (now TPU), set about creating dams on Lake Cushman, and running cables all 44 miles to the Cushman-Adams substation.

The rest of the country took notice, as this was one of the first public power projects, inspiring future projects like the Grand Coulee dam. In a symbolic move that would solidify the Cushman-Adams substations in American history, President Coolidge “turned on” the facility, via a golden key fabricated by Lincoln High School students.

Over a hundred years after they became iconic building blocks for Tacoma, the Cushman-Adams substations are being renovated, with the express purpose of repurposing the buildings to provide spaces for generations to come. The North End Neighborhood Council (NENC) has been initiating dialogue about the buildings with fellow Tacomans, which they’re calling the Cushman Commons. The goal: take the temperature of the city and find a use for the buildings that will aid the community in the best way possible.

Recently, we caught up with Kyle Price, chair of the NENC, about the importance of preserving and reenvisioning the Cushman Commons, and what use it can provide for the community. First and foremost, Price says, the dream is for the Cushman Commons to become a community center, which the North End of Tacoma desperately lacks.

“Public amenities are almost always hard to establish, but once they are established, the community benefit for generations to come is something that really can’t be counted,” says Price. “Just think of any park space in other dense neighborhoods. Cushman is located in an area underserved by open space, probably partly because there’s so little open space available. That’s a little ironic. The densest areas often have the highest need for open space, but because of the density, there’s not much space. Sometimes it’s hard to establish amenities when there aren’t a lot of opportunities.

“That’s perhaps why we’re so excited about Cushman,” Price continues. “That site offers a rare opportunity, both for open space and for indoor programming. A community center can be accessible to everyone. Everyone can be served and feel welcome; it’s the kind of place that can really build a strong sense of community.”

When asked what the NENC’s dream future for the Cushman Commons is, Price says it’s all about what the people want. Discussions have been taking place for a good while, speaking directly with the folks who will get the most use out of the Cusman Commons, and these talks are all in service of figuring out the best form these buildings can take to enrich the community.

“The NENC doesn't have a specific vision, but we are deeply supportive of public access to the buildings and of the creation of open space on that site,” says Price. We don’t really know the form either the building or the open space will take, but we’ve heard a lot of great ideas from the community—workshops or classes, senior center, artist spaces, offices for nonprofits, community meeting spaces, indoor market, indoor/outdoor food spaces, performance spaces, dog park, community garden, walking path, multipurpose and multi-age play area, really too many exciting ideas to list. The buildings themselves are recognized historic structures, so they’ll remain. … There’s a lot of potential for greatness.”

These public forums have been necessarily halted, due to the pandemic. At this point, it’s uncertain when formal discussions of the Cushman Commons’ future will be held, though Price is hopeful that may happen in the winter. In the meantime, if you’d like to make sure your voice is heard, and that you have a say in this public project with so much potential, Price tells us of a number of avenues you can take.

“The uncertainty about when we will get going again is part of the reason we’re working now to get people signed up on email and connected through Facebook,” says Price. “If we have a large network of interested Tacomans—and it really is an asset that’s much more important than just for the area where it’s located—then it’ll be easier to update people and increase involvement, even if there’s not a lot of advance notification for when things do restart.

“Right now, signing up on our email list and following us on Facebook are important things people can do, largely for the connectivity reasons I mentioned before,” Price continues. “People can also start talking to their city council members about this site, just to keep it on council’s radar. And maybe most importantly, people should go watch the video and do the reading at cushmancommons.org. Like I mentioned before, this is a rare opportunity for the neighborhood and for the city. The community should know about the exciting opportunities ahead of us.”

What form do you hope the Cushman Commons takes? Do you want a performance venue? An eclectic market? A locale for outdoor recreation? Or do you want something completely out of the box? Let us know your thoughts, and more importantly let the city council hear your wishes for this historic Tacoma site.