Port funding supports Cashmere boat ramp repairs

CASHMERE — When Cashmere Director of Operations Steve Croci addressed the City Council on the evening of Monday, March 9, the clock was already ticking on repairs to the city’s boat ramp at Riverside Park.

“Tomorrow I'm going to go talk to the Port District about getting some additional funding to get the boat ramp in working order for hopefully this rafting season,” Croci told council members, explaining that the city was racing against rising river levels and a narrow construction window.

By the next morning, that conversation had moved from City Hall to the Chelan-Douglas Regional Port Authority boardroom.

Croci told port commissioners that heavy sediment had accumulated at the ramp, leaving the city with limited time to restore access before spring runoff raises the Wenatchee River and makes the work far more difficult.

The city has already begun working through the permitting process with Chelan County and other agencies while putting the construction work out to bid. But the project still faces tight timelines and multiple layers of approval.

“It’s touch and go right now whether or not things all come together,” Croci told the council the night before. “We need to do it in the next probably three weeks before the water gets too high.”

That urgency framed his request to the regional port authority, which has in the past partnered with local governments on riverfront recreation infrastructure across Chelan and Douglas counties.

After hearing the request, the port board agreed to provide funding support for the project, helping move the repairs closer to reality ahead of the rafting season.

If completed in time, the work would restore one of Cashmere’s key access points to the Wenatchee River, used by residents and commercial rafting operations alike during the busy summer recreation season.

For city officials, the rapid sequence of meetings — raising the issue Monday night and securing funding support the next morning — underscored the narrow window communities face each spring when river conditions dictate how quickly repairs must move.

With funding now lined up, the remaining hurdles are permits and construction timing. If those pieces fall into place in the coming weeks, the city hopes the ramp will be ready before the Wenatchee River rises into its high-water season.

Andrew Simpson: 509-433-7626 or andrew@ward.media