Tacoma Sixth Avenue site proposed for rapidly growing car-wash chain
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Quick Quack proposes first Tacoma site at 6602 Sixth Ave.
- Permits show 24 vacuum stalls included at facility as project moves through process.
- Quick Quack has expanded in Western Washington after acquiring Glint sites last year.
The first Quick Quack Car Wash in Tacoma is proposed for 6602 Sixth Ave. — most recently the site of a tire-service center.
An Auburn-based LLC representing a group of local investors, according to state corporate filings, sold the site in September to Seattle-based Ducktaco LLC.
Project developers submitted a pre-application to the city in April 2024, and a site-development application in March 2025. The city issued a demolition permit in late October, and the developers submitted further permitting this month, with construction tentatively starting early next year, though early date estimates often change.
Permit information says plans call for a car wash with a parking lot of 24 vacuum stalls and three parking stalls, with development cost at an estimated $3 million.
Travis Kimball is co-founder of Quick Quack Car Wash. In response to questions from The News Tribune, he said the Tacoma site is “currently in the permitting process, and we hope to break ground in March of next year.”
Kimball added that the company’s “construction phase will typically last about six months, so we anticipate opening for business toward the later part of 2026.”
The project, which includes the removal of three underground storage tanks, received a determination of environmental nonsignificance from the city in May.
Quick Quack, which started in Sacramento in the early 2000s, has grown to more than 300 new locations across eight states, primarily in the West.
The other locations in Pierce County are in the Puyallup and South Hill areas.
Another site is under development at 8618 Steilacoom Blvd. SW in Lakewood, part of which has been home to an eight-unit rental complex.
In December 2024, the Lakewood hearing examiner issued an approval with conditions from city staff regarding demolition of the complex for the automated car wash. The decision noted that the site had faced “substantial public opposition” to the application over the loss of housing along with noise, traffic and other concerns, which the decision and approval terms sought to address.
Last December Quick Quack began expanding into Western Washington, purchasing six Glint Car Wash sites in the state, including one of the Puyallup-area sites, one in Chehalis and locations in Kent, Everett, Marysville and Oak Harbor.
Kimball told The News Tribune via email, “Quick Quack Car Wash just opened seven locations in the Puget Sound area in 2025 and will continue to expand over the next several years to continue to spread our service, culture, and brand across this region. “
