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Simon Lawton — professional downhiller and founder of first Downhill Northwest and now Fluidride — moved to Seattle in 1996. Two years later, he met Chris Leman from the Eastlake Community Council, who had seen Simon loading his bike for races, etc. Turns out both had envisioned mountain bike trails in the area below I-5 — and Chris had connections in city government from his work on the Council.
Suddenly, Simon found himself going to meetings with everyone imaginable — bike commuters, community councils, anyone who might work with him to create the Colonnade.
The process was complex and political. There was pushback from neighbors, who thought that bikes would be noisy and that somehow the homeless encampments were preferable.
Yet before the Colonnade, I-5 had divided Eastlake and Capitol Hill. Cyclists and pedestrians who needed to commute between the areas had to dash across the I-5 onramp. Studies found that an average of 150 people were making this dangerous commute daily. Simon was part of a group that created petitions to rejoin the neighborhoods, framing the development of the Colonnade as a benefit for public safety.
Simon originally envisioned a trails system that stretched from the current Colonnade area down to Beacon Hill — an urban riding area that was protected from wet weather. The system would be an international model for urban trail building.
Simon also saw it as a model to introduce the community to the sport of mountain biking, so that any trail building, including wilderness trails, would be better-received by the general public.
Simon had heard of the BBTC and knew they were active in trail advocacy. In 2002, after years of politicking, he spoke at a BBTC board meeting to see if he could get more help making the Colonnade a reality.

Next: Colonnade — The Money