Following the pathways down the hillside will afford the visitor with great views of the Lake Washington Ship Canal, where foaming water flows through the spillways and ships can be observed traversing the government locks. There is the opportunity for a short, comfortable walk along the promenade, where one can take advantage of park benches and cozy shelters, before reaching the canal itself, where the fish ladder is clearly visible.
Commodore Park is named for the street that runs in front of it, West Commodore Way. The park first sprouted in the minds of the local residents, who formed the Green Belt Association in 1966 to prevent the construction of an apartment building. Although they had no money, the determined residents took good advantage of the canal’s golden anniversary. Their Fourth of July celebration–complete with parades, politicians, twenty thousand people, and a replica of the Boeing biplane–rivaled the original dedication celebration and netted $20,000 as “seed money” to buy the property. The resulting publicity helped to bring in over $1,000,000 more from federal and state governments and the Army Corps of Engineers.