July 1, 2025 Breaking News, Latest News, and Videos

What say you?: Bainbridge Island Parks, Trails, and Farms

Working landscapes. Across Puget Sound from Seattle, the City of Bainbridge Island owns five public farms providing sixty acres of land. Farming is part of the heritage of Bainbridge Island and the initiative for the farm properties came from the old time farmers who wanted to pass on a legacy to the next generation. Luckily, this initiative coincided with the growth of the buy local and the organic food movements and so the timing was just right for success.

“We believe having farms close by adds immeasurably to our quality of life: delicious healthy food, beautiful farmscapes, a more vibrant local economy, and a greater degree of sustainability.” –Bainbridge Island Friends of the Farms. friendsofthefarms.org

The public farms are working landscapes which dovetail with the mission of the Bainbridge Island Metro Parks and Recreation District (BIMPRD) “to build a healthy community through effective, sustainable stewardship of the district’s parks and open space, and through the development and delivery of innovative cultural and recreation opportunities.”– biparks.org

The earliest park on the island is Fort Ward, given to the State of Washington by the military at the close of World War I. Huge, grass lawns (no watering needed in the northwest) used as picnic and play areas, are bordered by a waterfront trail that parallels the shoreline. A forest of cedars and firs, ferns and blackberries, comprises most of the 137 acres of Fort Ward.

Under development now is Blakely Harbor, a 40-acre park, on the historically important site of Port Blakely Mill, one of the world’s largest sawmills in the late 1800s. Healing Hooves Natural Vegetation Management was brought in to use goats to clear invasive weeds at the park site.– healinghooves.com

An advisory committee made up of citizens, staff, and Bainbridge Island Land Trust members is working on the design proposal for the park. They plan to have three zones within the park. “Zone one is proposed for picnic and beach facilities, boardwalks, a parking area, and a launch for human-powered boats. Zone two for decks, footbridges, wildlife habitat restoration structures, interpretive displays and picnic areas. Zone three is planned to be a protected area with primitive facilities, and may include trails, pathways and interpretive signs.”

Yeomalt Cabin was built in 1935 by the Works Progress Administration and was recently restored. Located in the woods, the cabin is home to arts and cultural programs and performances, the most recent being a fort building camp for young children. Sue Hylen, the Arts and Cultural Manager, said she is inspired by the anonymous quote, “Art isn’t about the art, it’s about finding the creative spirit inside yourself.”

Bainbridge Island, accessed via Washington State Ferry, had a population of 23,025 people at the 2010 census. On the island there are more than 1600 acres of public park land, including forest land, beaches, playgrounds, large grassy expanses for playing soccer and other organized sports and areas for picnicking. The parks are often named for their locations on the island, such as Eagledale, Hidden Cove, and Grand Forest; there are 23 miles of forest trails; an aquatic center with separate areas for tots, water exercises, lessons, water sports, lane swimming and diving; and facilities buildings with cultural, sports, and community activities; all run by the parks district.

Privately run facilities, open to the public, include IslandWood (islandwood.org), a 225+ acre environmental education center with programs and activities for children, teens, and adults. And the Bloedel Reserve (bloedelreserve.org), the legacy of an early island logging family with 150 acres, 84 of which are second growth forest, and then there are sheep meadows, barns, and formal gardens. Concerts in the sheep meadow are not to be missed.

Every six years the park district, through meetings and surveys, asks the residents of Bainbridge Island, “What do you expect from parks and trails and all open space? What is the experience you want to take away from your experience of living/working in the community and how does it relate to your experience of parks and open space?”

According to Perry Barrett, senior planner for the parks district, there is deep support for the parks among Islanders and so, while issues can be contentious, there are certain principles that are consistent.

“The community answer is always: protect our shoreline, our natural forests and our trails, maintain our connection to nature, our connection to the sea, our connection to farming and the land,” said Barrett.

The beauty of the park in Bainbridge is in the quality of the natural environment, the stewardship of the people, the history and the values of the community.

Frederick Law Olmsted, the great American landscape architect wrote in Public Parks and the Enlargement of Towns, Feb. 25, 1870, “The park should, as far as possible, compliment the town. Openness is the one thing you cannot get in buildings. Picturesqueness you can get. Let your buildings be as picturesque as your artists can make them. This is the beauty of a town. Consequently, the beauty of the park should be the other. It should be the beauty of the fields, the meadow, the prairie, of the green pastures, and the still waters. What we want to gain is tranquility and rest to the mind.”

What do we want from the parks of Santa Monica?

What Say You?

in Opinion
<>Related Posts

SM.a.r.t Column: Cities That Never Shut Up – The Roaring Cost of Urban Noise

June 26, 2025

June 26, 2025

In today’s cities, silence isn’t golden—it’s extinct. From sunrise to insomnia, we’re trapped in a nonstop symphony of shrieking car...

SM.a.r.t Column: Santa Monica Needs to See the Light

June 19, 2025

June 19, 2025

How Santa Monica’s Growing Light Pollution Is Eroding Human Health, Safety, and Sanity There was a time when our coastal...

SM.a.r.t Column: California’s Transit Death Spiral: How Housing Mandates Are Backfiring

June 15, 2025

June 15, 2025

California’s ambitious housing mandates were supposed to solve the affordability crisis. Instead, they’re creating a vicious cycle that’s killing public...

SM.a.r.t. Column: A City Dying by a Thousand Cuts

June 5, 2025

June 5, 2025

Santa Monica, once celebrated for its blend of coastal charm and progressive ideals, is slowly bleeding out — not from...

SM.a.r.t Column: Oops!! What Happened? And What Are You Going to Do About It?

May 29, 2025

May 29, 2025

Our Santa Monica Architects for a Responsible Tomorrow (SMa.r.t) articles have, over the past 12 years, collectively presented a critical...

SM.a.r.t Column: Why Santa Monica Might Need a Desalination Plant, and Maybe Even Nuclear Power

May 22, 2025

May 22, 2025

Santa Monica is known for its ocean views, sunny skies, and strong environmental values. But there’s a challenge on the...

SM.a.r.t Column: SMO (So Many Options) Part 3: “Pie in the Sky”

May 17, 2025

May 17, 2025

SMO: Fantasy, Fact, and the Fog of Wishful ThinkingBy someone who read the fine print Every few months, a headline...

SM.a.r.t. Column: Owner Occupancy Protects Against Corporate Over-Development

May 2, 2025

May 2, 2025

This week SMa.r.t. will have as guest columnist Mark Borenstein. Mark is a long-time Santa Monica resident, a retired attorney,...

Opinion: Declaration of Economic State of Emergency in Malibu & Pacific Palisades: A Direct Result of the Devastating Impact of the Palisades Fire

April 27, 2025

April 27, 2025

Malibu and Pacific Palisades Request Emergency Financial Measures By Ramis Sadrieh, Chairperson, Malibu Pacific Palisades Chamber of Commerce    On behalf...

SM.a.r.t Column: The World’s Happiest Cities

April 27, 2025

April 27, 2025

Almost every year, we see new cities, regions, and countries that make the list(s) of our planet’s happiest and healthiest...

SM.a.r.t Column: A City for Everyone

April 20, 2025

April 20, 2025

Santa Monica dazzles with its ocean views, sunshine, and laid-back charm. But beyond the postcard image lies a more complicated...

SM.a.r.t Column: Part II: Rebuilding Resilient Communities: Policy and Planning After the Fires

April 13, 2025

April 13, 2025

The January 2025 wildfires that devastated Pacific Palisades and Altadena left an indelible mark on Los Angeles County. Beyond the...

SM.a.r.t Column: Innovative Materials for Fire-Resistant Rebuilding After the LA Fires

April 6, 2025

April 6, 2025

In the aftermath of the devastating 2025 Los Angeles wildfires, homeowners face the daunting task of rebuilding their lives and...

Opinion: Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath Community Column Regarding a More Accountable Homeless Services System

April 3, 2025

April 3, 2025

By Lindsay Horvath, Los Angeles Board of Supervisors This week marks a significant milestone in our fight to end homelessness...

SM.a.r.t Column: Bring Back The Music 2.0

March 23, 2025

March 23, 2025

This is an update of the article appearing in the SM Mirror on Feb 1, 2025 On January 28th, 2025,...