Grant funds will help finish first phase of Thea Foss park

City Council members approved a resolution Nov. 1 that will allow the City to accept grants for $300,000 from the Interagency Committee for Outdoor Recreation and for $779,800 from the Washington State Department of Transportation to fund the creation of the 21st Street Park Esplanade Project on the Thea Foss Waterway. The City will provide $250,000 of matching funds budgeted from the Capital Project Fund for the park. This project will connect the previous esplanade and will complete the first phase of the Thea Foss Waterway Public Esplanade from 15th to 21st streets. The project will also provide an additional 2.5 acres of park space along a 1.5-mile stretch of the waterway.