Landscape Information
Located in the Rainier Beach neighborhood, this twenty-acre, L-shaped park was originally developed by nurseryman and gardener Fujitaro Kubota as a drive-through nursey and demonstration garden. In 1927 Kubota acquired five acres of cleared swampland crossed by a creek to serve as a base of operations for his business, the Kubota Gardening Company. He gradually improved the property, designing Japanese-inspired display gardens with Pacific-Northwest plants and materials.
In the 1930s Kubota laid out curvilinear drives and established several water features, including a series of five interconnected pools. In 1940 he acquired additional acreage and established a residence on the property. During World War II the Kubota family was interred and the site became overgrown. Returning in 1945, the family rehabilitated the property, pruning and clearing vegetation. In 1962 Kubota directed the construction of a 65-foot-tall landform. Intended to evoke a mountain, the feature includes a series of naturalistic cliffs, pools, and waterfalls, and is capped by a memorial stone.
Following Kubota’s death in 1973 the property was threatened by development and community members advocated for the site’s protection. In 1987 the city purchased the grounds for use as a public park and engaged landscape architects, Murase Associates, to prepare a master plan. Completed in 1990 the document was updated in 2019 by Jones & Jones Architects + Landscape Architects + Planners.
Presently accessed from the east via an entry gate (2004) by artist Gerard Tsutakawa, curvilinear crushed stone paths lead to overlooks, water features, organically shaped lawns, and carefully maintained gardens planted with specimen trees and flowering shrubs. Naturalized groves of nursery stock planted by Kubota, including pine and false cypress, are interspersed throughout.
In 1981 four-and-a half acres of the park were designated a Seattle Landmark. Seattle Parks and Recreation and the Kubota Garden Foundation serve as the park’s stewards today.
