Following three years of planning and a successful fundraising campaign, Jimi Hendrix is to have a park created in his honour in his hometown of Seattle.
The decision to transform the 2.5-acre site in the city’s central district into a community focused music park has officially been given the green light, and work will now begin to create an area which will celebrate Hendrix’s life and music.
Hendrix was born in the city in 1942 and his sister Janie, President and CEO of Experience Hendrix LLC, says the new park has special significance for the Hendrix family.
“Every project endorsed by our family bearing Jimi’s name is meaningful to us, but this park holds special significance as Seattle will always be Jimi’s home,” she says. “This very area is where he grew up, where his dreams were cultivated and his creative energy awakened, so to see this amazing place of beauty dedicated to Jimi and his artistry blossom into reality is indescribably fulfilling.
“Having been involved in each facet of the park’s creation, I can honestly say this musical garden is a fitting representation of Jimi’s imagination – it is truly inspired.”
In addition to a fundraising campaign which raised $1million since it launched in 2012, a city grant of $500,000 was given to help drive the project forward.
The first phase of construction will get underway in early 2015, and will include paved pathways, a timeline of Hendrix’s life and career and a butterfly garden. Future plans for the site, which lies adjacent to the Northwest African American Museum, who also donated, include a performance space and the Shadow Wave Wall, which will depict silhouettes of Hendrix.
Last month, it was announced that 88 rare Hendrix tracks will be remastered and released over the course of the next three years following years of litigation.
