Popular Pierce County park will be closed until December for shoreline project
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Tacoma DeMolay Sandspit Park will close Sept. 22–Nov. 30 for restoration work.
- Crews will remove a deteriorating bulkhead to improve sandspit health and public access.
- A second project phase in 2026 will add ADA-compliant paths, restrooms and picnic areas.
Tacoma DeMolay Sandspit Park on Fox Island will be closed from Sept. 22 to Nov. 30 for a habitat restoration project.
The popular nature preserve at 53 Bella Bella Dr. spans a little over 5 acres on the northwest tip of the island and features sweeping views of Puget Sound. The park also offers trails, picnic tables, portable restrooms and access to the water for fishing and use of non-motorized watercraft like kayaks and paddle boards, per the PenMet Parks website.
Currently, the park has several hundred feet of bulkhead — a seawall or retaining wall installed to prevent shoreline erosion — installed along the beach. Removing the deteriorating bulkhead will better support the sandspit’s health by allowing natural erosion to add sediment to the shore, an engineer said at an April 2021 community meeting about the project.
PenMet Parks will work with Pierce Conservation District to remove the failing bulkhead, according to a project webpage.
The project’s other environmental benefits include supporting healthy vegetation at the sandspit and enhancing habitat for “critical species” including forage fish, Puget Sound Chinook salmon and eelgrass beds. The beach will also become more accessible to the public, a PenMet Parks news release says. The park will reopen by Dec. 1.
“The work is scheduled to accommodate critical forage fish habitat windows and preferred tides,” the park district website says. “This may be followed by partial closures as needed to allow revegetated areas to establish.”
A second phase of the project, anticipated to begin in summer 2026, will add ADA-accessible facilities to better serve visitors with mobility issues. The list includes “a new mid-site entrance with ADA parking, replacing the existing steep asphalt roadway with ADA compliant access to the beach, accessible picnic areas, and ADA compliant restroom facilities,” the park district website says.
PenMet Park’s budget for the project is about $3.58 million, but the shoreline restoration project is funded through the Pierce Conservation District and is not included in that total, according to the park district website.
This story was originally published September 15, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
