Allyn considers sale of North Bay Kayak Park

Kirk Boxleitner | Feb 09, 20230

Courtesy photo count

North Bay Kayak Park in Allyn.

The Port of Allyn is considering surplussing a park it owns along North Bay, port Executive Director Lary Coppola told representatives of the state Recreation and Conservation Office at a Jan. 23 special meeting.

RCO Compliance Specialist Myra Barker asked why the port wants to dispose of Kayak Park, a property a quarter of a mile south of the Port of Allyn offices that covers less than an acre. Barker said the goal of the state office is to keep such property open and available for outdoor recreation.

Although it is the port's land, Barker noted its sale would require RCO approval, and that the port would need to provide a replacement property.

Barker said the port would need to appraise the property for current market value so it can obtain "similar land" with the same value that could provide "similar recreational usefulness."

Barker emphasized the replacement property must meet the basic eligibility requirements of never having been acquired with a grant, or for public outdoor information purposes.

"We can certainly work with you, if you do want to sell that property," Barker said. "But our first step would be, is there someone else that is eligible, another organization that might be willing to take on those grant obligations, just like you took on the Sweetwater site from the school district?"

Port Commission Chair Judy Scott said the port has "not yet" sought another organization to fill that role, and when Barker noted the port is allowed to charge fees for the site, Scott dismissed the suggestion as "not really conducive" to the space due to its small size and relative lack of amenities.

Scott summed it up as "a few parking spaces," as well as a bathroom facility and kiosks used by fishermen, plus "some picnic tables" that have been damaged by tides and vandals.

Coppola said the area's riprap shoreline has been damaged by king tides, and concurred with Scott that vandalism has remained a significant and ongoing problem.

"Nobody seems to use the park, except for the vandals," said Coppola, who pointed out the park is meant to launch kayaks.

Coppola expanded on Scott's account of how the port had considered adding a gazebo as a venue for weddings and similar events, but Mason County rejected it because the park is not 150 feet from the shoreline.

"We're just kind of stuck with this thing that we don't use, we can't use, and it has an ongoing cost (due to vandalism), with the taxpayers basically paying to maintain something that doesn't get used," Coppola said. "So we'd like to surplus it, but we're just trying to figure out how to go about that."

Barker reiterated her suggestion of seeking another eligible agency or organization willing to operate and maintain the property on the port's behalf, in which case the port would remain contracted as the grant sponsor.

When Scott asked whether the other party needs to be a 501(c)(3) or a governmental agency, Barker told her the port could contract with a concessionaire or lessee to operate the park, but "we would just want to look at that agreement that you would draft up."

When Coppola inquired about the property conversion process, Barker said the port would have to formally notify the RCO of its intent to convert, because that requires prior RCO approval.

In looking for a potential replacement property, Barker again specified it must provide the same market value and "similar recreational usefulness, in addition to being eligible.

The conversion approval requires the port to identify more than one alternative for replacement, and once a sponsor identifies a preferred replacement, "that's the time to get appraisals," in Barker's words.

Barker said the process includes a required 30-day minimum public comment period, and a cultural resources consultation on the proposed replacement properties that would be conducted by the RCO.

When Coppola suggested the port's Waterfront Park, since it hasn't received RCO funding, Barker countered that it has to be new parkland that cannot already be owned, nor operated or maintained, for public outdoor recreation.

"It's already a public park," Barker said. "An existing public park is not eligible as a replacement for conversion."

Coppola concluded by asking Barker about the community water system owned by the port.

"If we were to acquire the parcel next to it, which has a view of the water, which we may use a small piece of, could we use that for conversion?" Coppola said.

Barker said she would refer them to RCO Outdoor Grants Manager Andrea Hood "to understand the nuances of that property and its ownership, (and) how it can provide outdoor recreation, but that could be a possibility, yes."