The city of Vancouver and community partners are holding a dedication ceremony at 11 a.m. Thursday for the new waterfront extension of Columbia Way.
The public is invited to the event, which will take place at the newly built intersection of Columbia Way and Grant Street on the south side of the railroad tracks. Vancouver Mayor Tim Leavitt and Gramor Development President Barry Cain will speak, and artists’ renderings of the future development and park will be posted along the street. Restored Ford Model A cars will make the first official public drive of the road, which will open to traffic afterward, according to a city press release.
The Columbia Way waterfront extension was built as part of Gramor Development’s 32-acre private commercial/retail and housing project called The Waterfront. The road also will connect downtown Vancouver with the formerly industrial stretch of the Columbia River for the first time in 100 years through the construction of a new city park and the extension of the Waterfront Renaissance Trail.
Aside from construction of the 7-acre public park, the street work wraps up the city’s portion of the project, which is expected to create new jobs and housing. The city’s $4.7 million street project was funded through state and federal grants and Columbia Waterfront LLC, a private investors group led by Gramor Development.
For more information about the waterfront redevelopment effort, go to www.cityofvancouver.us/waterfront.
