18 trees to be cut down in Gig Harbor park that has 100-year-old Douglas firs
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- A local tree removal company will remove 18 trees from Soundview Forest.
- The urban forest stand contains about 172 trees, mostly Douglas firs around 100 years old.
- The park and adjacent parking will close April 23–24.
Contractors will remove 18 trees from Soundview Forest this month, clearing the park of dead and decaying trees identified by an arborist before the city of Gig Harbor acquired the property in 2018.
The wooded area spans about 2.3 acres near the intersection of Soundview Drive and Judson Street and includes 172 trees, mostly Douglas firs around 100 years old, according to the consulting arborist’s April 2018 report. The mix also includes a few red alders, big leaf maples, Pacific madrones and cedars, the report said.
“Overall this urban forest stand is in good health and vigor,” the arborist wrote. “ It should remain long-term viable with little effort by the city as long as it remains in its current use and condition.”
The report identified a total of 16 trees with issues, including a few that were dead or nearly dead. Two trees, a Douglas fir and a big leaf maple, should be removed within 6-12 months to mitigate possible risks to people and property, the report said.
The city later identified two dead Pacific madrones, bringing the total to 18, according to city Parks Manager Jennifer Haro.
Asked why the city waited eight years to remove the trees, including those the arborist recommended removing within 6-12 months of the report, Haro responded that multiple factors caused the delay.
“While we’re always reluctant to cut trees, we must balance an ever-shifting list of priorities and considerations when it comes to maintaining city parks and other critical infrastructure from a range of groups including city consultants and staff experts, councilmembers, and resident input,” Haro wrote in an email. “Unforeseen factors like the Covid pandemic and staff turnover in the parks department also had influence over how quickly we were able to address the Soundview Forest maintenance.”
The city does not have its own estimate for the ages of the trees in the forest, including the ones to be removed, according to Haro.
As of April 14, several trees were marked with colored tape and numbers. Haro confirmed that the markings corresponded to the trees scheduled for removal. A local tree removal company will handle the job on April 23 and 24, during which the park and adjacent parking will be closed, according to a city newsletter on April 10.
Crews will replace the removed trees with new trees that are more disease-tolerant, the newsletter said. The Pierce Conservation District is donating the trees. Workers will leave a few tall stumps standing for a potential art display, as part of the 2026 Harbor Arbor Art Project sponsored by the Gig Harbor Arts Commission.
Before the city purchased the land from the Haub family for $2.5 million, the property was the subject of a contentious debate between those who wanted to see the forest preserved and those in favor of a proposed development called One Harbor Point. The Ben B. Cheney Foundation had proposed building 10 townhouse-style homes for a total of 35 dwelling units on the upland triangular portion of the property, along with three single-family homes on the waterfront, The News Tribune reported. The foundation later pulled out of the development agreement and the city renamed the property Soundview Forest in 2019.
The city will spend $125,000 to remove the trees, using funds from the city’s real estate excise tax, according to the Gig Harbor Capital Improvement Projects website.
