Projects

Ilwaco Integrated Stormwater Planning & Outreach Online Open House

The City of Ilwaco was awarded funding from Washington State Department of Commerce’s Salmon Recovery Through Local Planning grant program. With support from this grant, Ilwaco is developing comprehensive land management regulations and enforcement strategies to protect and restore salmon habitat and water quality. This Online Open House will provide you with easy-to-digest information and ways to get involved.

Grant Objective: Advance salmon recovery, climate impacts resilience, and encourage regenerative stormwater management in the City of Ilwaco through plan updates, green stormwater infrastructure and low-impact development incentives, community outreach and education, and site-specific project identification/development.

OVERVIEW

Storms currently cause nuisance flooding across Ilwaco, which are compounded by king tide events. Projections for future precipitation and sea levels highlight the need to address stormwater in a distributed manner to relieve the compounding effect of sea level rise on local flooding and water quality.

This initial project concept was developed through a public workshop series (2023-24) focused on developing community-driven approaches to sea level rise resilience for human infrastructure and habitats across Baker Bay. Led by the Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership, Washington Sea Grant, and Pacific Conservation District and funded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s National Coastal Resilience Fund, these workshops and associated outreach convened community members, local and state agencies, environmental non-governmental organization (NGOs), and elected officials to identify community and ecological assets, risks, and nature-based project opportunities.

Phase 1 included development of a public participation plan, work plan and a technical memorandum consisting of existing conditions analysis, case studies, existing local projects, and recommendations for Green Stormwater Infrastructure opportunities. Phase 1 of the project concluded in June 2025.

Phase 2 has just begun! The process of advancing salmon recovery, climate impacts resilience, and encouraging regenerative stormwater management continues. Phase 2 will consist of plan updates, green stormwater infrastructure, low-impact development incentives, community outreach and education, and site-specific project identification/development.

This effort will be conducted concurrently with the update of the Comprehensive Plan and development regulations. To learn more about the Comprehensive Plan update, please visit:

https://ilwaco-wa.gov/2027-comprehensive-plan-periodic-update/

TIMELINE

Phase 1

Phase 2 (tentative)

To stay up to date on upcoming Planning Commission and City Council meetings, please visit our webpage here: https://ilwaco-wa.gov/meetings/

Public engagement opportunities, surveys and other events will be posted here!

GET INVOLVED

To sign up for project updates, please contact: [email protected].

To learn more about results of Phase 1 and the priorities for Phase 2, please join us at the upcoming joint Planning Commission and City Council meeting on October 7th, 2025, at 5:30 pm, either in person at the Ilwaco Community Building Meeting Room 158 First Ave North in Ilwaco, WA or via Zoom at Meeting ID 385 864 1217.

PHASE 1 TECHNICAL MEMORANDUM

Technical Memorandum_Case Study