The Steamboat Landing dock in Washougal will reopen this summer after being closed for more than a year due to storm damage.
The Washougal City Council approved a $137,668 contract with Vancouver-based Northbank Civil and Marine Inc., on April 11, to repair the damaged dock.
“We’re all excited that we’re finally getting this project back going again and getting (Steamboat Landing) back for our community,” council member David Stuebe said.
City officials closed the dock in December 2020 after discovering that it was damaged in several places and determined that it could pose a safety issue if left open.
City Engineer Rob Charles said a large storm caused the damage.
“It appears that the eastern dock section was under duress during (the storm),” Charles said. “The eastern dock section actually separated from the dock section which parallels the river. Installation of bumpers or rollers on the triple-pile sections to limit the dock movement around the piles should alleviate this problem.”
Councilmember Ernie Suggs summarized his enthusiasm for the project in a succinct manner.
“Let’s get it done,” Suggs said.
Stuebe, however, believes city leaders should look into the cause of the issue so the dock won’t have similar problems in the future.
“We need to make sure we don’t get into this situation again and close it down. It’s too great a facility (to close), especially when we have the cruise liner coming by and more tourists using that. We just want to make sure it’s safe, just like it was, and make sure it’s a beautiful feature for Washougal,” Stuebe said.
