Violence prompts Olympia to close city park

The City of Olympia is closing a downtown park it opened just four years ago because of ongoing violence and threats against park employees.

The Artesian Commons Park closed Friday after the city said efforts to make the park safer have failed.

Security cameras caught one incident in November, 2016 when a dispute escalated into an all-out brawl in the park. Five people were arrested after police finally broke up the melee.

While the park is closed indefinitely, access to the Artesian Well water will continue and the 24-hour restroom will remain open.

“Over the past four years, we have invested as many resources as available and put in place as many creative strategies as we could think of trying to make this a successful Downtown park,” Paul Simmons, director of the Parks, Art and Recreation Department, said in a news release. “Unfortunately, the problematic behaviors have continued and the threats towards staff have escalated. We have decided to close the park because the safety of our staff and patrons must come first.”

The parks department said it implemented several strategies to try to improve the conditions in the past few years, including adding more lighting and increasing the staffing and programming from eight hours a day, five days a week, to 10 hours a day, seven days a week.

KIRO Radio’s Ursula Reutin contributed to this story.