YAKIMA, Wash. -- The quarter-acre Perfomance Park is no small contributor to the "urban texture" of downtown Yakima.

The Committee for Downtown Yakima held its first formal event there Saturday to demonstrate how the little plot of grass at the corner of Second and A streets can play a key role in making central Yakima more alive.

The park was finished this spring, and a 10 a.m. ribbon-cutting is planned July 13 to dedicate the project.

But Saturday, CDY board members and staff arranged for a series of performers -- dancers, musicians, a magic show, and costumed cartoon characters -- to give an early preview of the active place they want the park to become.

"This park is one of the most exciting things I've seen happen in downtown in a long time," said attorney Victor De Long, who has a downtown office and serves on the board for the Committee for Downtown Yakima.

De Long said that small parks are an important part of a city's "urban texture," a point he saw firsthand on a visit to Washington, D.C.

Committee members said the new park is drawing interest.

Folks downtown are beginning see it as a lunch spot, county employees recently used it for an event highlighting children's mental health, and Yakima Valley Libraries is holding a summer activity program there. A change of command ceremony for Yakima's Army recruiting station was also organized at the park.

Events such as Saturday's performances help publicize downtown businesses, De Long said. Those who attended might not buy that day, but they will remember the Second Street Grill, perhaps choosing it for a meal later on, for example.

Rhonda Haffner's experience indicates the strategy may be working.

Haffner, a Yakima-based counselor who lives in Selah, arrived early Saturday with family members, so they scooted over to the Northtown Coffee House for some coffee and cocoa.

Haffner said it was her first
visit to the park, but she apprec-iated how quiet it seemed even though it's right next to First Street.

"This is the perfect thing to draw people down here. It draws the whole family downtown, rather than just coming for errands," she said.

The space for the park was made available after Yakima County decided to demolish old buildings on the county-owned piece of property.

The county provided most of the $50,000 that was needed to build the park, with help from downtown interests.

The Committee for Downtown Yakima now leases the property from the county for $1 per year. The committee is responsible for managing the property, including rental reservations.

* Mark Morey can be reached at 509-577-7671 or mmorey@yakimaherald.com.