Samish Park, one of the few public access points on Lake Samish in south Whatcom County, will be closed for 15 months starting in May so contractors can use the park as a staging area for a $9.67 million bridge replacement project.
The aging 250-foot-long North Lake Samish Bridge, which spans a narrow strait connecting two basins on the northern end of Lake Samish, was constructed in 1953 and modified in 1963, according to county records. Nearly a decade ago, the wood of the bridge superstructure was found to be rotting. The bridge’s weight limit was drastically reduced, and since 2016 it has functioned as only a single lane bridge, which allows heavy vehicles like school buses and fire engines to safely cross.
The 2019 cost estimate to replace the bridge came in around $7.6 million; when the county first advertised the project, it only received one bid, which was $800,000 over budget. With additional federal funding obtained through the Washington State Department of Transportation, Whatcom County again advertised the project last fall and received seven bids. The lowest bidder, Cascade Bridge LLC, was awarded the project for $9.67 million.
Beginning next month, the contractor will use the adjacent Samish Park lot to stage materials and equipment. Samish Park, a 26.4-acre county recreation area with boat rentals, a swimming hole, day lodge, trail network, and fishing dock, saw nearly 100,000 visitors in 2023, with July being the busiest month with 18,000 users.
Samish Park was slated to close last summer, but with the initial unsuccessful request for bids, it remained open. Now the park is scheduled to close from May 13 of this year through August 2025. Public access to the lake will be limited to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife boat ramp on East Lake Samish Drive; parking at the state-owned ramp requires a Discover Pass.
County project engineer Keven Thompson said around 750 residents live on the lake, and the bridge sees approximately 1,300 vehicles per day. Those residents and visitors will need to travel around the western shore of the lake to avoid the bridge, which will be closed for the entirety of construction (boat traffic under the bridge will be closed intermittently). Lutherwood Camp and Retreat, a private event center on the westernmost point of the lake, is already alerting guests to the detour, which the camp hosts say will take an extra 10 to 12 minutes of driving.
Thompson encouraged people who will be impacted by the bridge closure to sign up for News Flashes using the county’s Notify Me system in order to stay up to date as the project progresses.
Regular news contributor Julia Tellman recently moved to Bellingham to spend as much time as possible on two wheels or two planks in a recreational wonderland. Reach her at juliatellman@cascadiadaily.com.
