Submitted by JoAnn Jackson.
When I moved here, there was a large decorated cake outside the department store in the Villa Plaza, celebrating it’s seventh year of existence. I was told of the beginning and that there was a creek running under the south end of the property. Can someone tell me if it is still there? How will it affect the building of apartments on that section of land?
When I see the development of properties, I become nostalgic, wishing I had visited that place more often. My daughter just told me of the loss of the Windmill (a wonderful place for finding plants) in Sumner to buildings, another soon to happen in University Place.
I hope the place they find for Barnes & Noble will have ample parking as it now has and needs. I’ve seen so many changes, revisions over the years. Safeway has had, what? Three locations and becoming the major grocery store while we changed the name from Villa Plaza to Towne Center. (It’s still the Villa Plaza to me.)
I see a number of new places I haven’t been in, I guess I’ll have to see what they hold before they too fade away. I’m still wondering about that creek.
Yes the creek is still under there it runs off of 2 natural springs one coming from just about where the Barnes and Noble building is now. .
If you walk across Gravelly Lake Drive, by Firestone, you will see the creek, running from under Gravelly Lake Dr. There was also, a girls private school on that land.,
Surrounded by beautiful Oak trees. AS you can see, all the beauty is gone, only old buildings, some empty, and not so beautiful.
Under the Town Center/Villa Plaza was a marsh that was fed by under ground springs that bubbled up there. It formed Ponce De Leon creek that appears to start under Gravelly Lake Drive by the bank. There was a religious establishment on the property called Visitation Villa (hence the name). There might have been a creek on the property but that was before my time. It would have been the start of Ponce De Leon creek.
In the late 1950’s my husband and his brother used to fish in the open creek which flowed in the Visitation Villa area.
We need to let the developers and city know we want Barnes and Noble to stay where it is. The are other properties they can buy and use for their mega complex. Lakewood has too many vacant properties, why not use them?
AMEN
Gail, Lakewood Town Centre has 17 different owners and it’s almost impossible to get them all to agree on anything. The group that owns the B&N site is one of the largest and they’re probably just trying to create a greater value so when they sell later they can make way more $$$ than the property is worth now!
Just my opinion, Tim
It is so sad how here in Pierce County we have taken away all the charms of the land, bulldozing rolling hills into flat development and covering waterways over with concrete. Especially sad in Lakewood and Parkland is the wanton destruction of our beautiful Garry oaks which gave us such beautiful, interesting skylines. Now the land is flat, dry and has no overstay. Those governing Pierce County should be ashamed they have let this happen.
Overstory, that should read.
All the mismanagement we blame government for is all our fault. We voted for it!
Very true, Tim.
I was recently told that at one time steelhead trout could be seen running upstream. Sadly after the stream was covered up the trout stopped coming. A success story to refer to is the Thornton Creek Water Channel project at Northgate Mall. The City of Lakewood and Kite, the owners of Lakewood Towne Center, should look at the Thornton Creek Water Channel project as a great example of stakeholder partnerships between the city, the land owner, developers, and community to benefit all involved. The Thornton Creek Project created a walkable living space with improvement to the environment by restoring habitat. A project like this could also be used as a place for learning and for engaging local area schools to participate in environmental projects like water quality monitoring. It’s time to form a Lakewood environmental group to get involved at the initial planning stages of the redevelopment of Lakewood Towne Center.