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History of Gladmar


Notes:

The Gladmar property was purchased from private owners in 1965 by the State of Washington Department of Transportation (DOT).
During construction of Interstate-90, the DOT developed a gravel-mining operation on approximately half of the property.
In 1972, following completion of the freeway, the ownership of the property was transferred to Kittitas County.
Kittitas County continued to use the site for gravel-mining, developing a new pit.
Gladmar is in the floodplain of the Yakima River and the gravel pits filled with water when mining operations ceased.
The property was largely abandoned for several years, during which time it became an ad hoc recreational site for county residents.
In 1978, to meet growing demands for outdoor recreation, Kittitas County developed the property into a park. The park included a large parking lot, picnic facilities, restrooms, and trail system.
Gladmar Park was used from the early 1980s until a flood in February of 1996 breached the levee separating the DOT gravel pit (Gladmar Pond) from the Yakima River. Floodwaters scoured the area and destroyed much of the park infrastructure, including access roads, picnic area, and trails.
The Gladmar property, now inaccessible and unusable to the general public as a park, has reverted to an ad hoc recreational site, with the attendant problems that arise through such use.
The area is now in the early stages of ecological recovery, creating an environment that is rich in biodiversity of aquatic, terrestrial, and avian life.
The next few slides are aerial photos of the Gladmar property which show how the Yakima River has moved through its floodplain and changed the land, water and vegetation features of the now Gladmar island.