Asphalt plant defeated, land preserved: Cedar River site secured for future generations

August 29, 2026

After nearly a decade of protests, political fights, and community opposition to a proposed asphalt plant along the Cedar River, the property at the center of the fight has officially been purchased by King County and will be preserved for public use, King County Councilmember Reagan Dunn announced to a Fairwood crowd on Saturday.

Dunn marked the completion of the purchase at the Fairwood 60^th Anniversary celebration, at a ceremonial signing and transfer of the deed in front of community members, environmental advocates, and local leaders who had worked for years to protect the property from industrial development.

“This is a fight we as a community have been waging for nearly a decade to protect our river, our natural habitats, and our community,” Dunn said. “Today, that fight has finally come to an end, and we can shift our focus from stopping what shouldn’t be to building what should — parks, open spaces, and a place the public can enjoy for generations.”

**See the site from the air in this drone footage filmed last week.**

Joining Dunn for the announcement were Mo McBroom, Interim Director of the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks, Leon Richardson, Director of the King County Department of Local Services, Renton Mayor Armondo Pavone, Maple Valley Mayor Sean Kelly, Save the Cedar River President Bob Baker, and numerous other environmental and community leaders.

“I commend Councilmember Dunn for his leadership in securing this critical site for public use,” said King County Councilmember Rod Dembowski. “As Budget Chair, I was pleased to partner with Reagan as we worked together to identify and secure the funding needed to get the deal done. Congratulations to all on this tremendous result — it represents the best of community and King County working together for a good result.” 

The acquisition marks the closing chapter in a years-long battle over the property, which began after Lakeside Industries proposed building an asphalt plant along SR-169 near the Cedar River in 2017, despite fierce opposition from Dunn and community members. Concerns focused around the threat of pollution to the river, a watershed that supplies drinking water to more than 1.6 million people in the greater Seattle area and has done so for 125 years.

Dunn worked alongside residents and environmental advocates to stop the proposal since its earliest days. He sponsored an emergency moratorium that temporarily halted the project, sought additional time for the public to comment on the proposal, joined residents protesting the plant along SR-169, repeatedly pressed County permitting officials over the project, and formally requested that the permit be denied.

Simultaneously, Dunn began looking for another path: putting the land into public ownership. In 2021, Dunn sponsored legislation to prioritize the acquisition of six properties along the SR-169 corridor for conservation. At the time, Dunn specifically argued that King County should position itself to purchase the proposed asphalt plant property as open space if an opportunity to do so emerged.

Four years later, that opportunity began to take shape.

In 2025, Dunn successfully brought Lakeside Industries and Save the Cedar River to the table to negotiate an agreement under which Lakeside agreed to sell the property and abandon its plans to construct the asphalt plant. Dunn then worked with his colleagues on the King County Council, the King County Flood Control District, and county agencies to assemble the funding necessary so that the land could be preserved without imposing additional tax burdens on King County residents.

At Saturday’s announcement, Dunn invited residents to begin that conversation through interactive boards where community members could share their ideas for the future of the property. Among the possibilities discussed were restoring and improving fish and wildlife habitat, expanding recreational opportunities, and connecting the property with existing and future trail networks and nearby protected open space. In the short term, the property could be connected to nearby McGarvey Park, but the county is also looking at other nearby properties for future preservation.

“Lakeside Industries deserves enormous credit for coming to the table and negotiating in good faith,” Dunn said. “Now, the future of this property belongs to the community, and I look forward to seeing what residents design for this public space.”

The acquisition ensures that a property once slated for heavy industrial development along one of King County’s most important river corridors will instead be preserved in public ownership, opening a new chapter for the Cedar River and the surrounding communities.