Seattle Parks Foundation is working with the City, the State, and the Wallingford community to restore Waterway 18, one of the only natural beaches remaining on Lake Union. The Parks Foundation is seeking more than $200,000 for design, construction, and maintenance of the restored waterway. When complete, this project will enhance the waterway’s natural and recreational assets, protecting the beach for native plants, lake access, and salmon.

Waterway 18 is an important public open space, jointly managed by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources and the Seattle Department of Transportation. The quarter-acre public beach habitat is used as a base of operations for the Seattle Outrigger Canoe Club and the Sea Scouts. While the large beach, gentle slope, and easy access to the water make Waterway 18 ideal for hand-launched boats, public use is limited due to potentially damaging beach debris, awareness that it exists, and concerns about illicit activities that sometimes occur at the site.

The restored waterway will improve public access to, and use of, the beach. Greater awareness and use will lessen the illicit activities that occur. Waterway 18 has the potential to become a wonderful place to launch or land boats as well as a potential feeding area for migrating salmon. Waterway 18 will be a model for restoration of other waterways and street ends along Lake Union, and be a catalyst for the development of the Lake Union Loop Trail.

For more information, contact Michael Kelly at 206.332.9900 x13.