Category Overview
Washington is famous for its gorgeous and abundant waterways, from the Salish Sea to the Nisqually River, but many communities lack open public beaches and waterfronts where everyone can enjoy picnicking, swimming, paddling, boating, and angling. Water Access projects fund public shoreline access, boat launches, and fishing docks to create more opportunities for water recreation.
Project Highlights
PenMet Parks will use this grant to purchase two parcels (totaling 3.57 acres) adjacent to Tacoma DeMolay Sandspit Park. These properties will expand Tacoma DeMolay Sandspit Park providing passive recreation, beach access, and educational opportunities. Within one year after closing, the two residential structures will be demolished.The acquisition will result in a combined park asset of nearly nine acres and approximately 2,500 feet of shoreline. The acquisition will bring the entirety of Nearns Point into public ownership. Nearns Point is an established landform of interest in Puget Sound, the subject of studies by state and local agency studies, and Harbor WildWatch. It represents a compact accessible shoreline site, with a demonstrative marine restoration program actively reconnecting the shoreline to a mature bluff and riparian area. The beach presents a substrate with uniquely accessible Olympia-age silts and clays, protected by sediment fill, particularly by the barrier embayment, a.k.a. the sandspit. The submerged aquatic vegetation of Nearns Point supports priority species as well as human aquaculture. Geoduck cultivation is demonstrated in the extended shallow mudflat, uniquely accessible due to the extended tidelands of these acquisition parcels. As a marine shoreline with multiple public benefits, the property also enhances marine recreation and includes a Cascade Marine Trail location for human-powered vessels.