Vancouver Waterfront Park: ‘River is what it’s about’

After more than a decade of planning, fundraising and construction, Vancouver’s Waterfront Park is nearly ready for its debut. Among its multitude of features, the park will ultimately provide Vancouver what’s being billed as Washington’s front door.

As local leaders are quick to point out, the public hasn’t had access to the 7.3 acres of Columbia River waterfront in more than a century. It took more than $31 million to make that dream a reality.

“It represents not only an exceptional long-term economic development opportunity, but extends the historic legacy of Vancouver’s relationship with the Columbia River,” said Vancouver Mayor Anne McEnerny-Ogle. “Our economic history started because of this location on the river, centuries ago.”

There’s a lot riding on the waterfront’s success. The city hopes it will spark a renewed interest in Vancouver for not only tourists but companies looking to invest or relocate.

“There’s been an uptick in development of downtown in general — through new investment in office buildings and multifamily residential in addition to several recent and planned development projects on privately owned land,” McEnerny-Ogle said. “And we expect to see additional community benefits with continued development of the waterfront, such as permanent jobs, property taxes and tourism spending.”

As manager of the city’s waterfront projects, Terry Snyder has spent the last 10 years working on the development. He said it’s exciting, to say the very least, to see it all come together at long last.

“This is the first really ‘wow factor’ type park that we have along the river,” Snyder said. “This is your front door, it’s an entrance to the state of Washington and it really becomes your community’s new space.”

Showcasing the river

Snyder said everything in the park comes back to the river.

“Everything in the park is oriented toward the river. The river is what we’re showcasing,” he said. “The river is what it’s about.”

Two different overlook sites invite passers-by to stop and gaze into the river’s open waters. A curved path with granite fish sculptures follows the river’s natural flow.

“There’s a flow to the whole park,” Snyder said.

The Grant Street Pier is perhaps the most iconic feature, but there’s plenty more to enjoy. A children’s play area features sand and a climbing net. Picnic tables will offer a spot for downtown employees to enjoy lunch. And the Waterfront Renaissance Trail has been extended along the new development.

Once the park celebrates its grand opening Sept. 29, Snyder said work will begin on one more exciting element: a water feature.

“It tells the story of the Columbia River,” he said.

A granite wall will tower over a pool, complete with an etching of the Columbia River Basin watershed. Water will flow over the wall and past stones inscribed with the story of the tributaries that feed into the Columbia River. On a hot day, children can wade in and cool off. Snyder expects the feature to be quite popular once it’s complete later this year.

For now, however, the focus remains on those first few steps into Vancouver’s future and the anticipation of untold possibilities.