SEATTLE—
Tens of thousands of people showed up for 4th of July celebration at Gas Works Park. Organizers expected at least 50,000 people to gather at the park and throughout the neighboring community of Wallingford, making traffic and parking a big concern.Police closed streets in the Wallingford area and stationed officers at checkpoints to stop anyone who does not live or work there from trying to get in. Wallingford neighbors had an up-close view of all the action. Some set-up lemonade stands or sold snacks to thousands who walked through the area. Many were concerned about people blocking their driveways so they placed orange cones or makeshift parking barriers outside.
In past years, they've had complaints about people going to the bathroom on lawns or outside businesses. This year, the Wallingford Chamber of Commerce organized a sponsorship program and had dozens of portable toilets brought into the neighborhood. Organizer Kara Ceriello said "you need to take care of a basic human need and since the city wasn't doing it, didn't seem to have any plans to help out with it, so we said we better see what we can do."
The main event was the fireworks show that started at 10:15 and lasted nearly 20 minutes. The show was set to patriotic music and some top 40 songs. After the show wrapped up traffic snarled throughout the area. Cars were backed up throughout Wallingford, Fremont and into the Westlake part of Seattle.
