Old Harper Dock Memories

Old Harper Dock Memories

The Colby-Harper and Southworth area is rich with history and much of it centers about the Harper Dock, one of many landings for the old Mosquito Fleet ferries that transported people and goods around Puget Sound and other areas of the Salish Sea from Port Townsend to Olympia.
Twelve years ago we sold our Harper waterfront house where we lived and raised our kids for 40 years. It served us well and I still have wonderful memories of our children walking over to Harper Dock (they call it Harper Pier now but the locals always referred to it as The Dock) to drop a hook over the side to snag a salmon, cod or just any old wiggly thing that happened along.
Should the Harper Pier, or some version of it, be rebuilt someday, something should be done about the parking situation.
My thoughts on the matter: The Port of Bremerton should purchase the old house and store, raze the buildings (the fire department needs more practice fires for instruction of new firefighters) and use that area for parking. A two level parking structure with low cost parking fee should serve the people who use the dock and it won’t interfere with anybody’s view.
An arrangement could be made with the owners of the Evergreen Lumber property for parking overflow. Reserve a corner of the parking structure for a drive-through coffee and tackle shop and everybody’s happy.
Thanks to a group with preservation of the dock in mind, the neighbors may still be able to wander out on the dock in summer and catch a fish or bucket of squid. Or meet the love of their life. Or get married.  Anything’s possible.