Parking closes for two years at Sound Transit station to build $50 million garage
If you park at the Sumner Station, you may want to have another spot in mind, just in case.
Sound Transit’s contractor closed about 190 parking stalls Saturday, Feb. 17, at 810 Maple St. to make room for the construction of a new parking garage. The stalls will be inaccessible for about two years, according to a news release from Sound Transit.
About 110 stalls at the station will remain open in addition to 68 stalls in a parking lot north of Maple Street, according to the news release.
The new parking garage is expected to open at the station in 2026. The garage will have 600 stalls. The project has a $50 million price tag.
Phase 1 of construction involves site preparation and utility work, Sound Transit spokesperson David Jackson told The News Tribune. Phase 2 involves “intensive” construction work, he said.
The city of Sumner recently launched a shuttle program that transports passengers between the Bill Heath Sports Complex at 5500-5626 Graham Ave. and the Sumner Station.
The shuttle costs $3 per ride, and it runs four times in the morning and afternoon. Route and schedule information can be found at sumnerwa.gov/transit/sumner-commuter-connector-residential-loop. Commuters can purchase tickets at sumner.busup.com.
The Sumner garage won’t be Sound Transit’s first in East Pierce County. The Puyallup Station at 131 W. Main has a parking garage with about 500 stalls as well as 500 surface parking stalls. It opened in March 2023.
Jackson said the Puyallup garage is for transit riders only. The surface parking spots are available to the public after 11:30 a.m. The garage was about 50 percent full in December, which is “good,” he said.
“People are still figuring out how their new world works in terms of work and everything,” Jackson said.
The Bonney Lake Park & Ride at 184th Avenue East and state Route 410 has 356 parking spaces.
When asked if Sound Transit expects the Sumner garage to be full when it opens, Jackson said he does not know if it will be 100 percent full on the first day, but that he suspects more people will use it over time.
This story was originally published February 18, 2024 at 5:00 AM.
