City of Bellingham Parks and Recreation Committee

The Bellingham Parks and Recreation Committee conducted a brief but decisive meeting on November 17, 2025, unanimously approving a $500,000 grant agreement with the Washington State Department of Ecology for environmental cleanup work at Boulevard Park. The meeting lasted just over four minutes and addressed a single agenda item related to the ongoing remediation of contamination from a former manufactured gas plant that operated at the site from the 1890s to the 1950s. The grant represents the latest phase of a multi-year environmental cleanup project that has been underway since 2010 under a legal agreement between the City, Puget Sound Energy, and state regulators. The funding will support final design work for what is expected to be an $11.57 million construction project scheduled for 2027 or 2028. The contaminated site, located at the north end of Boulevard Park, contains hazardous substances including lead, selenium, benzene, and carcinogenic compounds that require remediation under the state's Model Toxics Control Act. The committee's approval allows the project to advance from its current 60% design phase to full construction documentation, maintaining momentum on a complex environmental restoration that will ultimately preserve the park for public use while eliminating health and environmental risks from decades-old industrial contamination.