Its 2-year struggle for kayak dock won, team now needs to raise half a million bucks

Step 1: Get get the city to approve a floating kayak dock. Check.

Step 2: Raise $500,000 to help build it.

That’s next on the checklist for the Gig Harbor Canoe and Kayak Race Team after the Gig Harbor City Council passed an ordinance last week authorizing a floating kayak dock at Ancich Park.

As part of the bargain, the kayak team has to raise half a million dollars toward its cost.

The Jan. 27 council vote was a big win for the community, said coach Aaron Huston.

“The dock will be a good home for us, and it really cements the legacy of the team, but it will also be a huge asset for our community,” Huston said.

“There were a lot of people in the community, independent from the team, who stood up during the meeting and they ... wanted a place to launch their boats.”

This project will cost $1.2 million, of which $700,000 will come from the city and $500,000 will come from the club.

Two-pier solution

The council adopted the so-called “two-pier solution,” which envisions a floating dock for human-powered craft on the southerly Jerkovich pier, and a float for commercial fishing vessels — to be built later — on the Ancich pier to the north.

Earlier proposals had called for both floats to be attached to the Ancich pier, an idea that proved unpopular with both the kayakers and the fishermen.

Floating docks ride up and down with the tide, as opposed to piers, which are built atop pilings, making access from small craft difficult at low tide.

Late summer goal

Aaron Laird, a member of the team’s board, said the club is in the process of formalizing a contract with the city which will clarify the details of the timeline. Their goal is to raise the funds in time to install the dock in the 2020 late summer fish window.

“We will be reaching out to community-based businesses, philanthropists, private citizen, civic groups, local paddling groups, and foundations who are in support of public access for human-powered watercraft,” Laird said in an email to The Gateway.

The capital campaign is building on a firm foundation. Laird said the club has received $75,000 through a combination of donations and micro-loans. This money has served to fund the permitting process.

Win for both sides

The council did more than fill a long-time need for the kayak club, Huston said.

What is more important, the ordinance steers the direction of the project back on track for a two-dock system, the original vision shared by both the kayakers and commercial fishermen.

“There’s been a lot of back-and-forth that has muddied the waters, but the reality is most people want a human-powered watercraft dock on the right side and a commercial fisherman’s dock on the left,” Huston said.

He said this ordinance was a win for the club, community, and commercial fishermen.

“The fishermen had a big win on Monday too, by having the human-powered watercraft on the correct side, and that leaves the door open for them to pursue the commercial fishing dock, which we will support,” Huston said. “We want to see the park as it was originally envisioned.”

Huston said the club, which is 17 years old, is very optimistic looking ahead.

“It’s been a long, hard fight, but we tell the kids all the time that if you want to reach your goals, you need to be persistent,” Huston said. “You need to dream big and struggle to achieve, and this dock was a daily reminder of that.”

This fight was shown at the meeting, as Huston described some team members who arrived at the meeting directly after a cold, rainy practice.

“They came in their wet, workout gear but they were excited,” Huston said. “It was good to see their happy, cold faces.”

Currently the Canoe and Kayak team are practicing at Skansie Park.

This story was originally published February 4, 2020 at 12:00 AM.