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Dockton Seawall repair

A badly damaged section of the Dockton Seawall needing repair.

Latest update

February 24, 2021

King County continues to monitor the Dockton Seawall. We will update this website if the County performs additional work at this location.

September 29, 2020

King County has completed all seawall reinforcement work on Dockton Road SW near Tramp Harbor Road SW. This wraps up nearly two years of seawall repairs to protect the road that connects Vashon and Maury Islands.

September 15, 2020

King County is extending the road closure through 4 p.m. Tuesday, September 22. The extension is needed to allow enough time to complete the final paving work on the project.

August 17, 2020

King County Road Services Division will complete the second phase of the Dockton seawall repairs from August 31 through September 17. 2020.

The work requires a full closure of Dockton Road SW at Tramp Harbor Road SW and extending southward for about 1,000 feet. A posted detour 189KB JPG will direct drivers coming from either direction to Monument Road SW. Work is expected to begin at 7 a.m. Monday, August 31 and continue through 4 p.m. Thursday, September 17.

Crews will work from the early morning until the evening Monday through Friday, although tides will affect specific start and stop times.

The county will repair sinkholes and damaged areas of the seawall located along Dockton Road SW. This works follows the first phase of repairs that crews completed in late 2019.

As a reminder to residents, the pier owned by the Vashon Park District that’s located near to the work area is closed.

December 18, 2019

Road Services initially repaired three sections of the seawall along Dockton Road SW in November – and wrapped up the work a few days ahead of schedule, in time for the Thanksgiving holiday. Just last week, crews were onsite again for an urgent repair at the Dockton pier parking lot.

Every year, Road Services inspects the 103-year-old seawall and identifies areas that need repair. The first project from the most recent inspection focused on a part of the seawall that runs from Tramp Harbor Road SW to about 1,000 feet south, just north of the Tramp Harbor public dock. This work required a full 24/7 closure of Dockton Road SW. The road was scheduled to reopen on Wednesday, November 27, but crews completed the work and reopened the road on Friday, November 22.

The urgent repair during the second week of December at the Dockton pier parking lot included repairing a failed timber wall, adding concrete blocks behind the wall to provide extra support, and backfilling two voids that had formed and were undermining the parking lot.

The County plans to make more repairs in a second phase as early as spring or summer 2020.

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Brent Champaco, Community Relations Planner
Desk 206-477-9094
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Background

During a 2019 annual seawall inspection, King County inspectors identified several damaged areas along the 103-year-old Dockton Seawall located on Dockton Road SW on Vashon Island. The county launched a two-phase repair plan to address the damaged areas found near Tramp Harbor Road SW, just north of the Tramp Harbor public dock. Phase one was completed in December 2019. Phase two will be completed in summer 2020.

During phase one, King County repaired 90 feet of failed timber wall and backfilled 23 small sinkholes adjacent to the seawall and two 13-foot-diameter sinkholes near the parking lot. Phase two, scheduled for two weeks in late summer 2020, will repair an additional 100 feet of seawall and another nine sinkholes. The County split the repairs into two phases to address the most urgent repairs as soon as possible and to work around weather and budget constraints.

Map

Dockton map.
Map of the closure area and detour route. Also see this location mapped on My Commute.

Frequently-asked questions

Sections of the seawall – which is more than a century old - are badly in need of repair. The road sees more than 4,100 trips every day, and it serves as the main link between Vashon and Maury Islands. Addressing the Dockton Seawall and making Dockton Road SW safe and passable remain transportation priorities for King County.
Construction for this work will take place in two phases due to weather, urgency and budget constraints. Work on the first phase to address the most critical locations took place in November 2019. The County is conducting the remaining second phase of repairs in August and September 2020.
A decade ago, King County worked with the community to study several options to fix the seawall and road, including removing and replacing the seawall entirely. Ultimately, because of a lack of funding, the County was not able to move forward with any major capital investment. Now with minimal funding, the County can address specific spots along the wall that are in most need of repair.
Yes. Construction will require a full closure of the road as crews stabilize the area. The repair will involve excavating one lane of roadway to construct a structurally engineered, backfill retaining system beneath the northbound lane. Construction staging and equipment will take up the southbound lane near the excavation areas. Closing the road for the travelling public is necessary to perform the repair work safely and efficiently.
Yes. Vehicles will have to travel on SW Quartermaster Drive, Monument Road SW and SW Ellisport Road (see map above).

Road Services Division

201 S Jackson Street
M/S: KSC-LS-0313
Seattle, WA 98104

Contact us

Email: Maint.roads@kingcounty.gov

24/7 Road Helpline: 206-477-8100 or 1-800-527-6237

TTY Relay: 711

Twitter: @KCRoads