April 27, 2022

Port says it will open new Duwamish park in July

Port of Seattle image [enlarge]

The park includes a habitat viewing platform.

The Port of Seattle recently announced that it will open Duwamish River People's Park on July 16 at Terminal 117, next to South Park Marina. It calls the park at 8700 Dallas Ave. S. one of the most significant habitat restoration projects on the Duwamish in a generation.

“More than just a park and habitat area, the Duwamish River People's Park is a living testament to the power of community leadership and the value of public partnership,” said port commissioner Toshiko Hasegawa in a news release. “Starting this summer, the Duwamish River People's Park becomes a new learning lab, a critical piece of restored habitat, and much needed green space for the community.”

The port is redeveloping the land with the help of the Duwamish River Community Coalition. The park will have 14 acres of critical fish and wildlife habitat, along with public access to the shoreline. The port says the large-scale restoration project will increase chinook salmon habitat, which will benefit endangered Southern Resident orcas.

The port's contractor, Scarsella Brothers, broke ground on the project in 2020. In addition to restoring 5.5 acres of marsh and native riparian shoreline, the project adds gathering and seating areas for humans, public art, a habitat viewing platform and a hand-carried boat launch.

The port designed and is managing the project in-house. Scarsella is doing the work under a $6.51 million contract, according to DJC records.

Total project cost is about $27 million. Funding is mostly coming from the Environmental Remediation Liability fund. About $11 million is coming from an insurance settlement.

The area has been the subject of several environmental cleanups, including a cleanup in 2015 of the shoreline uplands and in-water sediment by the port, and a 2016 cleanup of toxic contamination in the surrounding neighborhood by the city of Seattle. Sediments at T-117 were cleaned up between 2013 and 2015.