This downtown parking lot closed as Bellingham cites threat to BTC students, salmon
A public parking lot along Whatcom Creek near downtown — the site of increasingly violent incidents involving homeless campers — will be limited to students, faculty and staff in the Bellingham Technical College’s aquaculture program.
In a unanimous vote Monday night, April 12, the City Council waived a public-parking requirement for BTC’s lease, allowing the college to install a drop-arm gate with keypad access.
BTC and city officials described their concerns for the school’s aquaculture students and the millions of young salmon at the creekside hatchery.
In the past two years, the city has documented 20 “significant” 911 calls near the hatchery on the west bank of Whatcom Creek in Maritime Heritage Park, said Parks and Recreation Department Director Nicole Oliver.
“Our educational tours and salmon groups have been discontinued due to safety concerns,” Oliver said during an online council committee meeting where the issue was discussed.
Al Jensen, emergency preparedness and safety manager at BTC, told the council that he’s had to hire guards, require a “buddy system” for students on campus, and take measures to protect the salmon being raised in hatchery pens.
“It’s too bad that our first-year students, the first two classes they have to take now is how to properly handle disposed-of hypodermic needles and how to properly dispose of human waste,” Jensen said.
Salmon ponds have been netted and soon will be fenced to protect them from damage because vandalism could set the salmon-recovery program back years, he said.
“We’ve netted every pond so that no one can throw things in there, climb in there, snag fish out of there,” Jensen said.
“We’re making those changes that are still aesthetically pleasing with it and as we move forward we’re taking all that into consideration to make sure that public access and the look of this thing, that this can be the pride of the city,” he said.
Jensen said the lot was designed for use by fishers during salmon runs and those visiting the hatchery and salmon education programs.
But it’s become a haven for people without permanent housing who camp in the lot and on the lawns and sleep in doorways at the Perry Center for Fisheries and Aquaculture Sciences.
In a letter to the council, then-BTC President Kimberly Perry described incidents where students were harassed, chased and threatened with violence.
“If the situation continues to deteriorate in Maritime Heritage Park, BTC may not be able to allow people there out of safety concerns,” Perry said. This risks the salmon fishery, local economy, BTC’s program and student and employee’s livelihoods.”
Jensen said the hatchery ponds contain 1 million chum salmon and 500,000 chinook that they hope will be released to the wild, helping to restore threatened species.
“We hope that this one is going to start a new run of chinooks, which you know is the main feeding source of the orcas, out of Whatcom Creek, which would be unbelievable,” he said. “It’s been 100 years since that run came through.”
Cost of the gate and fencing will be paid by BTC.
“I think losing a little bit of access to the pubic is a small price to pay for us to ensure that everybody has a safe work environment,” said Councilwoman Pinky Vargas. “But there’s too much at risk too, also for the salmon.”
This story was originally published April 14, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
CORRECTION: Kimberly Perry’s association with Bellingham Technical College was corrected April 15, 2021.
