OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK — Relocating Kalaloch Lodge and U.S. Highway 101 out of areas prone to erosion are two proposals in Olympic National Park’s draft management plan, which has been five years in the making.
The proposals are part of the plan’s preferred Alternative D, which seeks to both protect resources and improve visitor experiences.
The document’s 90-day comment period will begin June 16 after a “notice of availability” is published in the Federal Register.
Peninsula Daily News on Thursday obtained an advance copy of the draft plan, which is 1 inches thick and includes numerous maps and charts.
Areas examined
The areas examined are the national park headquarters and visitor center in Port Angeles, Heart O’ The Hills and Hurricane Ridge, Elwha, Lake Crescent, Sol Duc, Ozette, Mora and LaPush, Hoh, Kalaloch, Queets, Quinault, Staircase, Dosewallips and Deer Park.
The plan proposes relocating Kalaloch Lodge, cabins, restaurant, store and gasoline pump in phases to areas outside the active coastal erosion and channel migration zones and outside the floodplain of Kalaloch Creek.
The campgrounds at Kalaloch and South Beach would remain, but could be moved outside the erosion zone.
Vehicle parking and trail access to the Big Cedar tree also would remain, the plan proposes.
A proposed U.S. Highway 101 bypass outside the park would eliminate threats from coastal erosion and provide a safer and more sustainable route, although no route has been identified yet, according to the plan.
The current U.S. 101, including slight realignments, would be repaired as necessary to maintain access to coastal areas, and a seasonal shuttle would be considered.
The visitor information station at Kalaloch would be replaced with one that would involve a cooperative effort and feature the area’s coastal marine and cultural resources.
Open houses around park
Olympic National Park spokeswoman Barb Maynes said eight open houses on the draft plan will be scheduled in August in Port Angeles, Sequim, Forks, Amanda Park, Sekiu, Shelton, Silverdale and Seattle.
“As the name suggests,” Maynes said, “this is a general plan. It states an overarching vision for what the park will be like and how it will be managed for the next 15-20 years.
“It incorporates extensive amounts of information and analysis that’s been done and a lot of public input, including two rounds of public meetings in 2001-2002.”
The plan includes suggestions heard at those meetings, such as more regional partnerships and retaining and maintaining all the park’s roads, she said.
A “reader’s guide” for the plan will be developed later, Maynes said.
