Sumner Granted $14M For White River Restoration Project

SUMNER, WA — The White River Restoration is one step closer to reality, after the City of Sumner accepted $14,641,123 in state funding for the project earlier this week.

For those out of the loop, the White River Restoration is a four-step project which aims to restore wetland habitat while also protecting Sumner from river flooding. It will include:

• The construction of a new, higher bridge over the White River.
• The creation of a 20-acre setback levee, which would hold floodwaters and function as a salmon habitat.
• Buying 10 properties to restore 25 acres of floodplain.
• Restoring 170 acres of land currently owned by the City, making new side channels to store floodwaters and even more salmon habitat.

In total, the restoration is estimated to cost just under $180 million— but in return would protect roughly $1.14 billion in local property.

This latest round of funding comes from the Puget Sound Acquisition and Restoration Large Capital program, and was approved by State Legislature in 2021. In 2019, the City of Sumner announced it had gathered nearly $77 million from the City of Sumner Water Utility, City of Sumner Sewer Utility, and Pierce County Flood Control Zone District, among others.

Construction would begin in summer 2023 at the earliest, according to Project Manager Doug Beagle.