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Discovery Park is a 534 acre (2.2 km²) Park in the peninsular Magnolia neighborhood of Seattle, Washington . It is the city's largest public park and contains 11.81 miles of walking trails. United Indians Of All Tribes ' Daybreak Star Cultural Center is within the park's boundaries. Most of the park's shoreline is to the southwest, on Elliott Bay ; much of what would be its northwest shoreline on Shilshole Bay is occupied by a sewage treatment plant. HISTORY Discovery Park is a relatively recent creation, having been created in the early 1970s from land surplus to the U.S. Army 's Fort Lawton . The site for the 1,100 acre (4.5 km²) fort had been given to the Army by the city in 1898 , and the fort opened in 1900 . The Army offered to sell it back to the city for one dollar in 1938 but the city refused, citing maintenance concerns. Much of the land was surplused in 1971 , given to the city in 1972 , and dedicated as Discovery Park in 1973 . Fort Lawton still exists within the park as headquarters of the U.S. Army Reserve 's 70th Regional Readiness Command and a military housing site. ISSUES The beach has a history of sporatic Clothing-optional use in the more remote areas of its shoreline, however, such use is currently not officially sanctioned by the City. A beach rally organized by The Body Freedom Collaborative 's Seattle Free Beach Campaign on September 4, 2004 to shore support for clothing-optional use included the arrest of a man sunbathing, after a complaint was made to the Seattle Police.[http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002026865_nudebeach05m.html] EXTERNAL LINKS
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