Bellingham purchases 29 acres for northern park, trails as part of Greenway program
The city of Bellingham has purchased 29 acres of land for a neighborhood park and public trails in a northern part of the city, according to a city press release.
The closure of the $2,310,000 sale, which was announced Tuesday, April 7, by Bellingham Mayor Seth Fleetwood, is for land in the Bakerview/Telegraph corridor, north of Interstate 5 and east of Meridian, according to the release.
Money from the voter-approved Greenway levy is paying for the acquisition, the release states. With Greenway, Bellingham voters decided to tax themselves to pay for parks, trails and other green spaces for people and wildlife. It is a property tax levy, and was last before the voters in 2016.
The 2019/2020 adopted budget included $3 million in Greenway levy funds for park land acquisition. The Bellingham City Council approved the purchase March 9 at a council meeting, according to the release.
The location of the property acquired provides ample area for a park and wooded trail, as well as “critical connectivity” to existing and future trails and nearby park property, the release states. The parcel includes about nine acres of cleared hayfields divided by a creek, and roughly 20 acres of mature forest and wetlands. Land acquisition for a new neighborhood park and public trails in this part of the city has been a high priority for several years, according to the release.
“Protecting valuable habitat, improving environmental features, securing space for a future park and completing trail connections make this an ideal addition to the Greenway Program legacy,” Fleetwood said in a prepared statement. “With most of our attention now directed toward COVID-19 emergency response, we are pleased to be able to move this important acquisition forward.”
The property sellers’ family owned the former Clark’s Bakerview Nursery adjacent to the property, as well as Clark Feed & Seed downtown, which was destroyed by a fire in July 2019, the release states.
“The sellers are enthusiastic about the property becoming a public park asset that fulfills community vision and goals,” the release states.
The purchase of the land fits with the city’s climate action plan goals of carbon sequestration, or the process of capturing and storing atmospheric carbon dioxide with the goal of reducing global climate change, by preserving a large, intact forest, the press release states.
It also fits with the city’s goals of creating more park land, open space and trails in this area of Bellingham, as outlined in the city’s Parks, Recreation and Open Space Plan.
Multiple developers pursued the site, which has been for sale for several years, but the projects fell through because of “significant environmental constraints and expensive infrastructure improvements,” the release states. The necessary improvements include daylighting an underground creek, or restoring it to its natural state, and replacing a culvert under Bakerview to be fish-passable, according to the release. Habitat improvement grants may pay for these projects, the release states.
“The acquisition of this wonderful property through our Greenway Program furthers Bellingham’s commitment to developing our park system and preserving green space for our northern neighborhoods,” City Council member Lisa Anderson, who chairs the Parks and Recreation Committee, said in a prepared statement. “This purchase will allow us to daylight a portion of a creek, preserve land and habitat within the watershed, create trail connections, and add a neighborhood park for a growing residential area.”
The design and plan for the future of the 29 acres will go through a public process that involves multiple phases over many years, according to the release. City parks staff will begin to maintain the property and start to plan for future improvements, the release states.
