King County Parks to ease the parking squeeze at Duthie Hill

King County Parks is building a new 74-vehicle parking lot at Duthie Hill Park that will serve as the park’s main trailhead and greatly expand parking for the increasingly popular mountain bike park. The work began in July and should be completed by October.

September 8, 2014 6:17 pm

King County Parks is building a new 74-vehicle parking lot at Duthie Hill Park that will serve as the park’s main trailhead and greatly expand parking for the increasingly popular mountain bike park. The work began in July and should be completed by October.

Located at the corner of Southeast Duthie Hill Road and Southeast Issaquah-Fall City Road, the parking lot will also include two spaces for truck and trailer combinations, a drop-off zone that will be handy during large events, plus portable restrooms. Construction won’t require any closures at the park or disruptions to trail users.

A connector trail linking the new lot to park’s southern entrance on Southeast Issaquah-Fall City Road will provide safe access to the park so that cyclists will no longer need to ride along adjacent roads to enter the park.

The $850,000 project includes limited tree removal and brief lane closures and flagged reroutes along Southeast Issaquah-Fall City Road.

In addition to funding from the 2014-2019 King County Parks, Trails and Open Space Replacement Levy, this project was made possible in part by a $317,000 grant from the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program.

The park currently has just one small parking lot that will remain open. Additional interim parking has been voluntarily provided by the adjacent Cascade Elementary School. Once built, the new parking lot and trailhead will serve as the main access point for Duthie Hill Park.

King County’s Duthie Hill Park is located at 27101 S.E. Duthie Hill Rd., on the Sammamish Plateau.

Recognized as one of the best mountain bike parks in the state, Duthie offers six miles of cross country bike trails, two miles of free-ride trails with jumps and built features, a central clearing with a shelter, kids’ biking area, opportunities for skill building, and more.

Trail users range from children and first-time riders to expert mountain bikers.

The park was built in partnership with the non-profit Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance as part of King County Parks’ Community Partnerships and Grants Program.