PORT ANGELES — The highest priorities after the proposed clear-cutting of most of the trees at Lincoln Park are making sure there is money to rebuild the park and getting the first stage of the park redesign done immediately, the Port of Port Angeles Board of Commissioners said at its regular meeting Monday.
The commissioners said they were encouraged by a change in the public’s attitude toward the park’s redesign.
“People are asking how to influence the park plan rather than ask why change the park,” Commissioner Jim Hallett said.
Juliet Vong, landscape architect and plan author, updated the board on the public reception of the first draft of the Lincoln Park Master Plan and how it would be implemented if accepted by the Port Angeles City Council.
Master plan
The master plan was revealed at a public forum April 4, when planners received more information about what people want.
Under the plan, a transformed Lincoln Park would include ribbons of bicycling and walking trails, reshaped and airport-friendly ponds that would attract fewer birds, water-filtrating wetlands and an orchard.
Planners don’t yet know the number of trees that are proposed to be removed from the 147-acre park because of root-rot disease or because they hamper pilots’ runway approaches to the adjacent William R. Fairchild International Airport.
The port wants most of the trees in the park, which is owned by the city of Port Angeles, to be removed by 2013 or 2014 in order to maintain a safe landing approach at the airport, which is owned by the port.
The FAA has told the port that some trees that have grown into the flight path must come down to maintain the current landing approach for Runway 26.
Since the trees are in a city park on city property, the City Council has the final say on whether or how many trees will be removed and the implementation of the park plan.
The $150,000 master plan, financed by a Federal Aviation Administration grant and administered by the port, will be more fully developed at the next public forum in May, Vong said.
If the plan is implemented, she said, and the trees are removed, the first phase will be a grading of the entire property and planting of lower-canopy trees, she said.
A specific order must be followed after that in order to avoid tearing out completed portions to add a new phase, she said.
“It’s built in layers, each layer based on the next layer,” she said
Second phase
Once the park is graded and planted, including the reconfiguration of wetlands and development of new parking areas, a second phase, including a central park area, can be added.
Dirt removed from wetlands and ponds would create sledding hills, she said.
Commissioner Paul McHugh asked who would be responsible for the maintenance of specialized park areas.
Special interest areas, such as the existing dog park and BMX trail, will continue to be maintained by user groups, with some maintenance by the city, Vong said.
The redesign does not include the entire park area.
Existing ballfields and the fairgrounds will not be affected, with the exception of flood mitigation on ballfields, she said.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5070, or at arwyn.rice@peninsuladailynews.com.
