Lake Forest Park moves ahead with lakefront redesign as cost estimate, permits and public feedback shape next steps

The Lake Forest Park Parks and Recreation Advisory Board heard a status update June 24 on the Lakefront Improvements project’s 70% design, the permitting schedule and community feedback as the city awaits a final cost estimate that will be presented to City Council in July.

The project is in a phase-2 design process Amber (Landscape Architect, Facet) described as “70% design,” a milestone the consultant said provides a reliable construction cost estimate and leaves roughly 30% of the design open for changes if price or permit issues require scope reductions.

Why it matters: the 70% estimate will determine whether the project proceeds with the current design or goes through “cost management exercises” or value engineering before reaching a 100% design and a bid set. Amber told the board the final 70% cost estimate will be delivered on July 3 and discussed at a City Council work session on July 10.

Most important facts

- Schedule and milestones: Facet and city staff said the 70% cost estimate is due July 3 and will go to council the same day; Amber will present to council July 10. If council requests changes, those will be incorporated before the 100% design and the bid set.

- Geotechnical findings: the design team completed geotechnical borings and groundwater monitoring wells and reported “high groundwater and liquefiable soils,” which the project had anticipated. Amber said the team had put cost contingencies in place and that the findings confirm those contingencies “were wise.”

- Permits and regulatory review: Facet reported local land-use permits are under environmental review and that early input has come from the Washington State Department of Ecology, which will be an approver for the shoreline variance the project requires. Amber said state and federal permits are still in review and “typically take a year.”

- Public engagement and feedback: the team held a community workshop (workshop 4) after public comment on the project documents. Amber said 48 people signed in at the in-person workshop (and she estimated roughly 60 attendees counting staff and council), and the team had received 43 online survey responses as of the meeting; the survey closes July 1. The project also compiled about “50 pages” of public comments, including a letter from the Duwamish tribe.

- Community concerns: workshop themes the project surfaced included parking and circulation, intensity of park use (active vs. passive), and the preserve area’s future. Amber said responses ranged from requests for “no cars” and no playground to requests for more active recreation, indicating the design is at a midpoint between competing preferences.

Interpretive and placemaking elements

Facet presented three proposed interpretive exhibits that would be integrated into the park design if funding and scope permit: historical lake-level markers, a wildlife “scavenger hunt” of small pavement or inlay markings, and historical photograph viewpoints. Amber said the scope currently includes three multi-part exhibits and that, for budgeting, the design team assumed a placeholder allowance of $30,000 for interpretive elements in the 70% cost estimate.

On naming and cultural consultation

Corey (City staff) and Amber told the board the parks board will lead research on potential park names and bring options to the community, and ultimately the city council must approve any official name. Board members raised involving local historical partners and tribal consultation; Amber and Corey both encouraged outreach to the Shoreline Historical Museum and noted earlier consultation had occurred with tribes. Amber said the project’s interpretive planning includes themes such as indigenous knowledge, natural systems, and the site’s role in social gathering.

Funding and grants

City staff and the consultant said the team intends to apply again to the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO) in May 2026; an earlier RCO application in May 2024 had required design and cost information in order to be eligible. Amber emphasized that the project’s funding picture had improved since the last application but that another grant cycle would be used to reduce the remaining funding gap.

What is still undecided

No final decisions were made at the advisory board meeting. Amber said she does not expect major value-engineering decisions at the July 10 council work session but that council members may ask detailed questions. The design team is pausing substantive permit responses until after the council work session to avoid rework if council requests design changes.

Discussion vs. formal action

Board discussion centered on naming, interpretive exhibits, preserve treatment and community engagement. There was no motion or vote related to the lakefront project at the meeting; the board’s role during the presentation was advisory and focused on providing feedback ahead of the July council review.

Next steps and forward-looking items

The consultant’s immediate deliverables are the final 70% cost estimate (scheduled July 3), the Council work session appearance (July 10) and continued outreach while state and federal permits proceed through review (a process that the team said commonly takes about a year). Amber and Corey said a potential park opening date is being tracked toward April 2027 at the earliest but that it is not a firm ribbon-cutting deadline and depends on permits, construction, and internal commissioning time.

Quotes from the meeting

Amber (Landscape Architect, Facet): “That final 70% estimate will be done on July 3, and it will go to council that day.”

Amber (Landscape Architect, Facet): “We put in cost contingencies in case that was the result. It is the result, so now we're here saying those contingencies were wise.”

Corey (City staff): “This project does not undo the preserve designation and limitations that are present on the preserve property as long as it's, you know, a public park operated in the way that it was, you know, developed for it in 1998 under that hearing examiner's decision.”

Ending

As the city awaits the July 3 cost estimate and a July 10 council work session, the Lakefront Improvements project remains in active design and permitting. The advisory board will continue to review interpretive concepts and naming options and provide feedback for the community engagement phase before the council takes direction.