01 Mar Governor’s Office to Present Smart Communities Award to Clover Island Partners
Governor’s Office to Present Smart Communities Award to Clover Island Partners
KENNEWICK, Wash. – On Tuesday, March 12 at 11:30 a.m., the community is invited to attend the Governor’s Smart Communities Award presentation at the Clover Island Lighthouse Plaza at 101 Clover Island Drive in Kennewick.
The Port of Kennewick and its project partners were selected as winners of the Smart Partnerships category for their multiyear, multiphase, collaborative effort to restore and revitalize Clover Island.
The ceremony will begin with a blessing by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Nation. Then a representative from the Governor’s office will present awards to Clover Island landowner, Port of Kennewick, and project partners: the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Walla Walla District, State of Washington Recreation & Conservation Office, Benton County and City of Kennewick.
Who: Community and media invited
What: Governor’s Smart Communities Award Presentation
When: Tuesday, March 12 at 11:30 a.m.
Where: 101 Clover Island Drive, Kennewick
Why: Recognize the collaboration to restore and revitalize Clover Island
The partnership has leveraged the strengths of each agency to transform an economically distressed area into a destination waterfront.
In 2008, the port began seeking funding partners to help transform the island’s eroding, concrete-covered shoreline into a stable, sustainable habitat and foster vibrant upland development with artwork and inviting recreational amenities.
The project stabilized nearly a mile of the Columbia River shoreline to allow future development, built a fully-functioning, U.S. Coast Guard-approved lighthouse PATON (private aid to navigation) and added numerous public amenities. Those amenities include the Clover Island Riverwalk, 10 public art installations, a renovated boat launch, a restroom, paved parking, benches, a picnic area, five educational panels, and 11 scenic viewpoints.
The restoration work also created four commercial waterfront parcels the port is now working to lease for private-sector development.
“The partners are honored to receive the Governor’s Smart Communities Smart Partnerships Award and proud to have been chosen from an impressive body of work submitted by local governments around the state,” said Port of Kennewick Chief Executive Officer Tim Arntzen.”
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Port of Kennewick is developing assets to create sustainable family wage jobs, user-friendly transportation systems and quality-of-life enhancements for visitors and residents of the port district.