Piles were removed with the help of a clamshell on a barge. Over the last couple of months, the Office of the Waterfront & Civic Projects has been working to remove Pier 63, for good. To accomplish this, nearly 50,000 square feet of decking and 894 creosote-treated timber piles were removed!
Spot the differences and color in Pier 63 on your own using this printable coloring page!
Pier 63 was closed in 2017 due to safety concerns, and the City has no plans to replace it. Now that it is no longer casting a shadow over the marine habitat below, more plant life will grow, improving nearshore habitat for salmon and other marine life.
In addition to allowing for more light to penetrate through the water at Pier 63, the City also laid down varying sizes of rock sediments to create shallow water habitat next to the seawall in multiple locations to make the area more hospitable for marine life.
“We often speak about all the waterfront improvements focused on all the people who walk and roll but we are equally excited to be building a more welcoming waterfront for our local fish communities to thrive. The removal of Pier 63 layers upon other program work to enhance the salmon migration corridor.” – Angela Brady, Waterfront Seattle Program Director.
This work may be reminiscent of the seawall project, which wrapped up in 2017, and also supported nearshore marine habitat, with a special focus on encouraging juvenile salmon migration.
The seawall project created textured wall surfaces with grooves and nooks to promote algae growth, shallow water substrate enhancements for marine plants to grow and for fish to hide and forage in, and a light-penetrating surface in the sidewalk above to provide light for young salmon during their migration.
Another Waterfront Seattle project focused on marine habitat is the Habitat Beach, just south of Colman Dock, which was completed in late 2019 and will open to the public in 2023. The plantings on the new beach help restore the function of a natural shoreline and improve ecosystem productivity. This project was a partnership with the Washington State Department of Transportation, who allowed these improvements to take place on state-owned property.
Pier 62, the adjacent pier to Pier 63, was rebuilt and opened to the public in 2020. Friends of Waterfront Seattle has been hosting programming and events on Pier 62 ever since, already welcoming more than 600,000 people so far!
While work to remove Pier 63 is complete, Waterfront Seattle is still busy building new improvements in the area. To stay up to date on progress, sign up for weekly construction emails or follow them @waterfrontsea.