By LEAH WEATHERSBY

For years, Ballard community activists have been advocating for a renovation of the Bath House at Golden Gardens Park, located at 8498 Seaview Ave. NW.

Currently, the 5,000-square foot building contains restrooms, a snack bar that's in use only during the summer, and a large room with two former changing rooms on either side. The building doesn't have any heating or ventilation equipment.

The renovation project, which will be funded though the year 2000 Pro Parks Levy, includes the addition of heat, improved ventilation, seismic strengthening, updated electrical service and probably an enhanced food service facility.

Despite its current limitations, the building has housed a summer teen program (run by the Seattle Parks Department) for several years. But several area residents have long seen the Bath House's potential to be more than just a summer shelter or storage facility.

Jeff Cleaveland, a science teacher at Ballard High School, was instrumental in planning a renovation for the Bath House that would have turned it into a year-round teen center. In 1995, Cleaveland and other members of the community received money from the Neighborhood Matching Fund and the Ballard Advisory Council to study the building as a possible place to house teen programing.

Eventually, a project, described as a renovation for teen use and other community programming was added to the Pro Parks Levy, which allocates over $1.7 million to the Bath House remodel. Thanks to the detailed cost information provided by that study, the Golden Gardens Bath House project was able to win more funding in the Pro Parks Levy than some other community-initiated projects.

Now, over a year after the levy's passage, planning for the Bath House renovation is finally underway. However, the building's uses will expand far beyond the initially proposed teen center, according to Mark Johnson, the Parks Department's project manager for the renovation.

"It's clear that (teen activities) are not going to be the primary focus of this project," Johnson said. "But there certainly will be activities for teens in this building. We're open to all kinds of ideas right now."

Johnson added that the idea of teen programs in that location has made some neighbors of the park nervous, given that Golden Gardens is somewhat secluded and difficult to police. For his part, Cleaveland said he's not against to expanding the Bath House's uses, but hopes that the original idea behind the renovation won't be forgotten.

"I am certainly not adverse to it being a community center," Cleaveland said, "but I don't want the original intent (of the renovation project) to get pushed out of the way." There are also other voices in the community hoping to weigh-in on the Bath House project. Fred Felleman, a North Beach resident and founder of Friends of Golden Gardens, said that whatever else the Bath House design does, it should acknowledge the close proximity of the marine environment.

"If we're going to spend a million bucks renovating the facility, it should embrace its location," Felleman said. He added that he would like to see one of the building's smaller rooms turned into a marine lab with salt water aquariums.

Both Felleman and Cleaveland may get a chance to help guide the the Bath House renovation. Johnson said that a project advisory team is being formed, though it isn't known yet who will get a spot on that committee. Johnson said he hopes the group will start meeting sometime in February. The Bath House renovation is scheduled to be completed near the end of 2003. For more information, contact Mark Johnson at 684-0978.