Community meeting to provide feedback on new facility siting at Odlin County Park

The public is invited to a community meeting to learn more, ask questions, and provide additional feedback on Odlin County Park project direction

||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS |||

The San Juan County Parks, Recreation, & Fair Department is seeking to construct a new facility to serve as a visitor contact station, maintenance facility, and office for park rangers on Lopez Island at Odlin County Park. Feedback from a series of public meetings and the County Council meeting held on Lopez on May 12^th was used to redesign the project to better address community concerns regarding tree loss. The County Council directed Parks and Fair to connect with the community about re-siting the building where current facilities are located.

County staff are planning a public meeting for Tuesday, September 15, 2026, at 10:00am at the Odlin picnic shelter to hear from the public based on a new site plan for the facility and workforce housing impacts.

This facility would replace the existing carport structure to house appropriate facilities for the care of public lands on Lopez Island. The facility seeks to provide protection from the elements for better year-round work, securely and safely store equipment, and separate the office and visitor contact station from staff living quarters.

Community Outreach
The County hosted two prior community meetings to gather feedback from Lopez Islanders. Both meetings were recorded and are available here: Monday, March 23, and Monday, April 27. Additionally, a community volunteer group completed two walk-throughs of the site on April 7 and again on April 15, where a full range of options for siting the building was considered and discussed. The San Juan County Council provided direction to explore moving the building site to where current facilities are located on May 12 and the recording is available here.

About the Project
The location and siting of the project were carefully chosen following critical area guidelines, archaeology buffers, and limitations in the existing built and natural environment. To date, the department has completed the architectural and engineering design, cultural impact survey with no findings, local permitting (septic permit pending), tribal consultation, and has received a mitigated determination of no significance through the SEPA process.

Upcoming Engagement Opportunities 
The community is invited to participate in additional engagement opportunities, including an upcoming Council meeting on September 22, 20226. Community Meeting: An on-the-ground meeting will be held on September 15, 2026, at 10am at the Odlin picnic shelter to explore the new site plan and impacts on workforce housing.

Council Meeting: A project update will be presented to the County Council during their regularly scheduled September 22 meeting on San Juan Island. The community will have public access time to provide additional comments during this meeting.

About San Juan County’s Department of Parks, Recreation, and Fair

Odlin County Park turns 100 in 2026, and the department looks forward to stewarding county parks and public lands through the next century. Part of that effort includes maintaining park infrastructure – and the facilities that enable appropriate service levels to the public.

The best way to stay up to date with Parks & Fair news (and other County news!) is to sign up for news flashes sent directly to your email. Simply input your email to create your account, select the topics you’re interested in, and start receiving emails to your inbox. Sign up here: https://sanjuancountywa.gov/list.aspx.

San Juan County’s Department of Parks, Recreation, and Fair oversees public parks on all four ferry-served islands, manages camping, and hosts the San Juan County Fair. The department offices are located at 849 Argyle Avenue, Friday Harbor, WA 98250. For more information about San Juan County’s Department of Parks, Recreation, and Fair, visit https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/2170/Parks-Recreation-Fair.