SR- 520 to Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition (University of Washington)

Jennifer Ott, Lake Washington Boulevard (Seattle)

At the northwest corner of the park, the University Extension began, traveling along the south end of the isthmus separating Lake Washington and Lake Union.

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...owners of the land at the Montlake Portage, as the isthmus between lakes Union and Washington was known, likewise incorporated a 150-foot-wide boulevard into their Montlake Park subdivision in preparation for the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition. Olmsted had originally recommended the boulevard extension be carried along the eastern shore of the isthmus, but as plans for the fair developed, a more formal entrance, which incorporated a streetcar line from Capitol Hill, was built to access the south gate of the fair and link to the pleasure drive of Lake Washington Boulevard and its extensions south.

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At the north end, Montlake Boulevard, which was known variously as the University Extension or University Boulevard, was officially designated separately from Lake Washington Boulevard in the early 1920s. The section of the University Extension east of Montlake Boulevard became part of Lake Washington Boulevard at that point. At about the same time, the entire length of the boulevard was united under one name, Lake Washington Boulevard, extending from Seward Park to Montlake Boulevard.

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Jennifer Ott, Lake Washington Boulevard (Seattle)

For the Montlake Boulevard connection to the University, [Olmstead] called for two feet of turf closest to the private property lines, 8 feet of cement sidewalks, and 14 feet of turf and trees between the sidewalk and street. Between the two 24-foot roadways, he laid out a 54-foot center strip with four rows of tulip trees and small shrubs, with vines running up the trolley and utility poles. The tracks for the trolley line that would run down the center strip were laid flush with the ground level so they would not intrude upon the visual effect of the design.

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At the middle of the isthmus, which was not yet bisected by the Lake Washington Ship Canal, the road turned north and continued to the south entrance of the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, a plaza where Pacific Street meets Montlake Boulevard today.

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