— from San Juan County Communications —
San Juan County officials have won funding and identified property to solve a serious parking problem on Orcas Island and potentially make it easier for residents, businesses, and visitors to travel to the Island.
In recent weeks, County Manager Mike Thomas has consulted with the Governor’s office and Washington’s Department of Transportation about using 4.5 acres of state-owned property adjacent to the ferry staging area at Orcas Landing. This, after Councilmember Rick Hughes successfully lobbied the legislature for a $760,000 appropriation to develop a park and ride facility. In addition to parking, anticipated uses for the property include a picnic and overlook area, charging stations for electric vehicles and possibly auto rentals.
“This project will solve a long-festering parking problem for Waldron residents, who need to leave their vehicles on Orcas for long periods of time,” Councilman Hughes said. “It will also make the island more accessible to visitors who will be able to walk onto the ferry in Anacortes and access the many attractions here by renting a smart car or other vehicle at the landing.”
County Manager Thomas said Transportation Secretary Lynn Peterson expressed interest in the project during a visit earlier this year.
“Secretary Peterson was excited that this project could increase the number of people who can, practically, use the ferry system without increasing the number of automobiles the system has to handle,” Thomas said. “While this will certainly be a great benefit to islanders who need parking, we also expect it to be a boon for the tourist industry, by increasing access to Orcas Island.”
Thomas is confident that the County will be able to negotiate either a long-term lease for the property or perhaps obtain title to it through a grant from WSDOT. Meanwhile, preliminary project planning is expected to begin in 2016 with construction slated for 2017 when the state funds are made available. County staff will seek public input as the design process moves forward.
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Smart idea! Sooner the better.
I hope this project goes through. As most of us know, there is limited parking at the ferry landing. Overflow parking ends up along the county road, and not just in the summer months. When cars are parked on both sides of the road, particularly along the curves, the large semis we depend on to bring us our goods, and take off our recycling, etc, have a heck of a time negotiating those tight curves. And to park way out on the county road is a long haul for elderly folks or families with kids headed as walk ons to the ferry, as well as a bit dangerous given no sidewalks, the narrowness of the road, and the high traffic flow when a boat is in. In general I hate the thought of trees cut down and replaced by asphalt, so more cars can park, but in this case, I think it is very much justified, and I have heard the plan is to take out as few trees as possible.
I hope they will install some EV charging stations in the lot. As more people drive Electric Vehicles, having charging stations outside Eastsound can help.
Brilliant, and long-overdue. Let’s fast-track it!
We have to thank Rick Hughes for pushing this idea through to reality. Let him know we appreciate his diligence. It’s been a while in coming.
I think our input will be valuable, also,(access drives, parking layout design) as the parking area proposed is quite high above the drive-in area where the new ticket booth will be. Careful planning is needed to get passengers from there to the dock and ticket purchase area (sky bridge, escalator??)
Rick has also been a constant supporter of the WSF reservation system. I’m glad he’s our representative….let him know what’s on your mind. He’ll respond.
Good going, Rick Hughes. Thanks for your efforts in this and many other issues.
This does NOT solve parking problems for Waldron residents. Look at a map.