Oak Harbor council keeps south parking, approves converting east roundabout to turf at Flintstone Park

Brian Smith, Oak Harbor’s Parks and Recreation director, presented two staff options on March 18 to reconfigure Flintstone Park after a recently installed sculpture and shoreline setback requirements altered the parkway.

Council chose option 2: remove the east-side parkway roundabout and replace that asphalt with turf, while leaving the south parking lot and west drive in place. Council also directed that the existing naval flagstaff remain in its current location rather than be relocated to Veterans Memorial Park.

What the options included: Smith said option 1 would remove the full roundabout and expand the north parking lot into the abandoned roundabout area, replacing about 8,200 square feet of asphalt with topsoil and seed. He gave a high-end estimate for option 1 of about $24,617, including roughly $5,400 in in-house labor.

Smith said option 2 — the option council approved — removes the roundabout on the east side of the park and replaces that area with grass while overlaying existing asphalt sections of the west drive and south parking lot. He gave a high-end estimate for option 2 of about $34,291, including roughly $3,900 in labor. Smith told council that $26,700 in existing budget funds and an additional $15,000 that could be redirected make funding available for the work.

Commissions and public comment: The Arts Commission recommended a variant described to council as “option 1 with future shoreline-path improvements” and voted unanimously in favor of that approach. The Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission was split on the configuration options — a motion to recommend option 1 failed on a 2-2-2 vote because three commissioners were absent — but the same commission later voted unanimously to relocate the flagstaff to Veterans Memorial Park. On public comment, Smith summarized that roughly one-third of respondents favored option 1 and about two-thirds favored option 2; on the flagstaff, about one-quarter favored relocation while about three-quarters wanted it left where it is.

Council debate centered on use of the parking, shoreline permitting and preserving public access. Councilmember Wiesner, citing frequent daily use of the south parking lot and the cost and permitting difficulty to re-create shoreline parking, argued against removing the lot. Multiple council members said taking that south parking out would be effectively irreversible because shoreline permits could cost substantially more and take long periods to reauthorize.

Motion and outcome: Councilmember Stuckey moved to proceed with configuration option 2 — converting the east-side roundabout to turf while leaving the south parking lot in place — and the motion was seconded. Council members voted in favor and staff reported they would mobilize to complete the work in time for the nicer weather. The transcript does not include a recorded numeric roll-call tally for that vote.

Flagstaff: Council also decided to keep the existing flagpole in its present location and to pursue a rededication rather than incurring the expense and disruption of moving the pole.

Ending: Staff said they will schedule the site work and proceed using existing budget allocations; staff will follow up with implementation details and timing.