The public pier at the end of 24th Ave NW is getting replaced as part of the city’s project to improve water quality in the Ship Canal.
Seattle Public Utilities is heading up the Ship Canal Water Quality Project, which will build a 2.7-mile tunnel along the Ship Canal that will hold up to 29 million gallons of stormwater and sewage during heavy rains. The project includes replacement of the public pier, which will remove creosote-treated wood pilings from Salmon Bay to improve water quality and create a better habitat for fish. Pedestrian access to the waterfront will be greatly improved as a result, and the city has commissioned local artist Christian French to design artwork to be inlayed in the pier’s concrete surface.
Based on feedback from community members, French plans to inlay the below poem and images with a nautical theme on the pier.
The pile installation for the new pier is nearly complete, with the existing pier demolition and debris cleanup schedule over the next few weeks.
Meanwhile, work continues on and around SPU’s Ballard Operations Building at 53rd and 24th Ave NW to prepare for the tunnel construction. SPU says the contractor is installing a new watermain extension on 24th Ave NW — the main is being pressure-tested and sterilized before being connected to the existing system.
To stay updated on the progress and for background info on the project, visit SPU’s Ship Canal Project website.
![](https://www.myballard.com/wp-content/uploads/2024-My-Ballard-Tile-Ad-Troop-100.png")
Great, how long will it take for the homeless to start littering it with used needles and trash?
Not as long as it takes a jerk like you to post something as boring and predicable.
Not true, Yawnie
Great poem! Hardworking fishermen are great backdrops for affluent romances doomed to 2yr childless cat cohabitation. Every women is a PRINCESS!
Q: What’s hot, wet, tight, and smells like fish?
A: A diving suit, you perverts
lol – the concern over water quality as the ballard RV squad dumps raw sewage wherever is pretty funny.
What’s this pier used for? Always wondered about it. Never see a boat tied up there.
Matt – there are often boats tied up there, frequently aging boats owned by traveling water folk. And it is used by the frequent late night consumers of alcohol and some dog walkers like me.
It is a public dock for use by the public.
FWIW there used to be a nice bench at the end of the dock that was a very nice place to look at the marine traffic and wild life. It was also a great place to drink and people used to hammer empty cans in between the boards for some unknown reason. Eventually the bench was defiled and then removed. What can I say, some people just plain suck!
And sometimes you could watch some dumbass drive too far down this street!! =|
This post is so packed with great stuff, that I had to make a note to come back later. I’m going to tackle a bunch of these. Some I already have, but perhaps not in the smartest way after reading this article. Thanks.