Editor's note: We compiled this representative day in the life of Seattle Center to give readers a sense of the scale and range of activities that go on at one of our most dynamic public spaces.
4:15 a.m. Janitors arrive and begin cleaning up from previous night’s events
6:30 a.m. Gardeners arrive • Laborers arrive and set up for special events in Exhibition Hall and Fisher Pavilion, and begin preparing for major festival in one week
7 a.m. Armory opens • Sound engineer turns on music • Security meeting begins; staff reviews projected attendance and potential issues for events scheduled for the day • Gatehouse opens for delivery trucks bringing food and supplies to Armory restaurants, Chihuly Garden and Glass and Space Needle
7:30 a.m. Seattle Monorail begins operations
8 a.m. Operations engineers perform water-quality tests and check filters at all fountains • Students begin to arrive for various summer camps housed at the center (Pacific Science Center, Seattle Children’s Theatre and other venues)
9 a.m. Workshop begins at EMP • Engineers receive call from summer-course instructors at Pacific Northwest Ballet — please turn down the A.C. (students warming up are chilly)
10 a.m. Engineers turn on the fountains • Summer camp begins at Academy of Interactive Entertainment (AIE, the video game school on fourth floor of Armory)
11 a.m. Most maintenance work is completed as crowds begin to grow throughout the campus
Noon Gatehouse closed; no deliveries permitted until the next day • Events in Exhibition Hall and Fisher Pavilion open to public • Live in-studio band performance at KEXP begins
1 p.m. Shift change for janitors and laborers
1:30 p.m. A leak is reported in the Armory basement; staff plumber and cleanup crew are dispatched
2 p.m. Event services representative meets with a nonprofit to evaluate space considerations for a fundraiser in three months • Free tour begins at Gates Foundation Visitor Center
3 p.m. Shift change for engineers
4 p.m. Summer camp at AIE ends • Lines begin to form for event at KeyArena
5 p.m. Pacific Northwest Ballet summer school students are released for the day
6 p.m. Cornish box office opens, TeenTix members arrive to purchase $5 tickets
7 p.m. Event in Exhibition Hall closes; janitors start getting the building ready for day two of the event
7:30 p.m. Curtain rises on Cornish Playhouse stage
10 p.m. Armory closes • Sound engineer turns off music • Event in Fisher Pavilion ends
10:30 p.m. Cornish production finishes • Mercer garage begins to empty
11 p.m. Last monorail departs • Only night-shift security and engineers remain on site
Midnight: Grounds close to the public
