The goal of the project is to select a preferred alternative design that will improve habitat and rearing opportunities for salmon, while also providing cold water refuge from warm in-stream temperatures during salmon migration. 

Future trail connection and passive open space use improvements through the restoration are not included in the project scope or grant funding. Other important elements outside the scope of this project will be considered through the Parks and Recreation Master Planning process listed in the Parks PROS Plan and the 2023-2029 Capital Facilities Plan (CFP). 

The Sammamish River channel has been modified from its historic conditions and the habitat suffers from a combination of fish passage issues, disconnected and degraded riparian habitat and side channels, and lack of cool-water refuge ponds. Fish habitat and water quality are impacted by the current conditions. 

US EPA and the State Department of Ecology have identified concerns with water temperature and dissolved oxygen in the Sammamish River through Bothell.

Learn more about water quality in Bothell streams and rivers.

As part of the design phase for the salmon habitat portion of the Former Wayne Golf Course, City of Bothell staff and consultants conducted field work and gathered data near Waynita Creek and along the Sammamish River. Some of the tasks they worked on included: 

• Monitoring groundwater wells for information about the mixing of groundwater and surface water in the area.
• Measuring surface water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, and nutrients levels.
• Surveying the land and stream topography within the project boundaries. 
• Assessing fish culverts upstream of the study area.

The project team also held stakeholder briefings in fall 2022 to gain technical insight and priorities from groups such as King County, Watershed Resource Inventory Area 8 (WRIA 8), the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), OneBothell, Whale Scout, Beavers Northwest, UW Bothell, City Council, and the City of Bothell Parks Board.

After completing data collection, the City's consultant team developed four design alternatives using site specific information. The alternatives were compared to one another using a scoring matrix based on criteria, and a Preferred Alternative was selected to be recommended for the next steps in the design process.  

Once the four design alternatives were developed, we shared them with the community through a virtual open house and comment period from November 1 - 30, 2022. We also invited the community to a virtual meeting on November 17 to answer their questions about each of the alternatives.

After the open house and comment period ended and we reviewed all the feedback we received, next we presented the information at the December 6, 2022 Bothell City Council meeting. Staff requested that Council determine which design alternative to move forward with into the next phase of the design process. Council directed staff to proceed with preliminary design for Alternative 4 (the Preferred Alternative), while also maintaining flexibility with design options that will prioritize salmon habitat. Watch the presentation and City Council meeting.