Commission proposes call for artists to expand ‘snag’ wood sculpture trail at Soundview Park

Members of the Gig Harbor Arts Commission discussed expanding wood-carving installations and creating a sculpture destination at Soundview Park during the Jan. 8 meeting, and a commissioner moved to proceed with a call for artists.

Commissioner reports recounted a survey of city parks and said most sites lacked bases large enough to support sculptural pieces; commissioners identified a cluster of tall carved snags at Soundview Park (near 7 Seas and upriver) as viable candidates. Commissioners recommended assembling a list of existing carved snags and their locations and creating a single destination or trail linking the carvings. They suggested adding a QR-code link on the city website to provide an accessible, web‑based tour for visitors who cannot walk the full route.

The commission discussed scope and past funding. Commissioners recalled that artist carve days sometimes completed multiple snags in one or two days and said funding has been constrained: one speaker mentioned an annual budgetary figure in the range of “75–100” but did not confirm units or currency; commissioners asked staff to confirm available funding and to use prior-year formulas as a guide for compensation.

A motion was made to proceed with a call for artists to produce works on identified snags and to aim for installations in spring or summer; the transcript records the motion but does not include a formal recorded second or roll-call vote.

Commission staff said the next steps would be to define scope of work, confirm budget and number of snags to commission, and post a call for artists using the city’s artist proposal process. Commissioners discussed keeping a woodland-creature theme for the carvings, though they did not limit artists to a single motif.

No formal permits, contracts or external approvals were discussed in detail during the motion; staff will follow up on logistics and budget.