The Department of Enterprise Services will host a public open house on Wednesday, March 9, to present and gain feedback on a draft work plan to develop strategies for long-term management of Capitol Lake. This first open house will be held from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the 1500 Jefferson Street building in Olympia.

In January 2016, Enterprise Services convened a work group of representatives from local and tribal governments to complete the first of three phases in an overall plan to manage the lake. Information and updates are available on the Long-Term Planning for Capitol Lake/Deschutes Estuary web pages.

Comment in person or online

The Executive Work Group developed a Phase 1 draft work plan and the group is seeking comments on the plan. Comments given in person at the March 9 open house and online are valued equally.

The work group also is seeking input on how people would like to receive information and give future feedback, such as through open houses, facilitated discussions, presentations or other means. Again, comments given in person at the open house and online are valued equally.

All comments submitted in writing are public records.

At the March 9 meeting, Enterprise Services is not seeking comment about whether to retain the lake, restore the area to an estuary or tocreate a hybrid option.

More upcoming public input opportunities

Opportunities for public input will be scheduled throughout the coming months on the following topics:

• Hybrid options for a lake/estuary in which freshwater from the Deschutes River would mix with the saltwater of Puget Sound
• Best available science
• Shared funding to manage Capitol Lake
• Shared governance of Capitol Lake
• Other related activities including sediment management and flood/sea level rise mitigation

More information

Learn more about the work group, the three phases of work and Capitol Lake management issues.

Read the Frequently Asked Questions regarding Capitol Lake.

Meeting information

What: Capitol Lake public open house

View the agenda.

When: Wednesday, March 9, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

Where: 1500 Jefferson Street building, room 2208

The 1500 Jefferson Street building is located between 14th Avenue and Maple Park Avenue in Olympia, just south of the roundabout. Get directions.

Meeting materials:

• View the First Draft-Work Plan Concept for Phase 1
• View the Revised Draft Work Plan Concept for Phase 1 (with suggested changes from the Executive Work Group meeting on Feb. 26, 2016).

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