Pier 58 will not reopen but a replacement is coming

SEATTLE — Between the Seattle Aquarium and the Great Wheel, Pier 58, known as Waterfront Park, is fenced off.

On Tuesday, city officials said it will not reopen and will need to be removed at an “accelerated rate.”

City officials suddenly closed the pier last week for safety because of what they call "significant shifting."

"We are concerned about the shifting and it is shifting in several different places," said Seattle Parks Superintendent Jesús Aguirre.

>>RELATED: Seattle’s Waterfront Park closed after engineers discover gap in Pier 58

A gap is visible between the pier and the seawall.

City officials say the seawall, which was replaced just a few years ago, is fine.

The problem is with the pier, built in 1974.

"This is a pier that has been closely monitored for decades as far back as 1989," said Aguirre.

The city put off maintenance on the pier because it plans to replace it.

The Seattle waterfront is being remade after demolition of the Alaskan Way Viaduct.

Two years of construction will start in 2022 on a new Pier 58 that will include art, a playground, and views of Elliott Bay.

The project is being designed now and the needed $65 million is already secured.

"We're feeling fortunate that we do have a full plan in place," said Marshall Foster, the city's waterfront director.

But that plan did not involve demolishing the current pier quite so soon.

City officials are waiting on a new engineering report about the extent of the damage.

Exactly when the existing pier will be removed is not yet clear.

Cox Media Group