The Valley is one step closer to gaining three new baseball diamonds and two soccer fields with the transfer of 204 acres of Tollgate Farm from King County to the city of North Bend last month.

Now the city can work in earnest to create active recreation space on the 13.7 acres where such facilities are allowed. The rest of the land is mandated to remain undeveloped open space.

A park plan created in 2004 calls for two full-size and one Little League baseball field with backstops; two regulation-size soccer fields; a restroom and equipment storage building; two picnic areas; a children’s play structure; and multi-use trails.

The speed of development depends, in part, on whether Si View Metropolitan Park District partners on the project. Following a joint meeting between the North Bend City Council and the park district’s board, the two entities expect to team up, said North Bend Administrator Duncan Wilson.

Possible bond

Si View is considering putting Tollgate improvements on a possible $5 million to $7 million bond measure that would appear in early 2010, said Travis Stombaugh, director of the park district.

In addition to work at Tollgate, the bond would “reconfigure” Si View Park, adding new trails, leveling out the ground, renovating restrooms and making the parking lot safer, Stombaugh said.

He said that the facilities in the Tollgate master plan match what Valley residents who participated in a 2008 parks survey said they wanted.

“It would be great for the community. It’s going to allow recreational opportunities for everyone in the Valley,” Stombaugh said.

So how long before Tollgate’s makeover?

“We might be talking a couple of years” before fields go up if Si View steps in, Wilson said. “If the city does it, it might be longer.”

That’s because building a new, sorely needed fire station is the top fund-raising priority for the city, Wilson said.

North Bend and Si View still need to work out logistics about park maintenance, field usage and the length of a possible inter-local agreement.

The finalization of the transfer was a big moment for city officials, who have been waiting to control the park since the passage of a 2002 King County ordinance requiring the county to “seek the transfer of local urban areas to cities.”

“We now have the ability to move forward without multiple jurisdictions controlling the process,” Wilson said. “I hope this will speed up recreational fields, because there never seems to be enough.”

Historical Tollgate

The 356.5-acre Tollgate Farm Park is located in both unincorporated King County and the city of North Bend. Between 1997 and 2002, King County paid about $2.9 million and North Bend paid $1.5 million to buy the property. With the new transfer, all of the park property within North Bend is now controlled by the city.

Within the city’s portion is a farmhouse whose construction date is unknown, but which first appeared on county records in 1904.

Tollgate is named for the tolls that were collected there for travel back and forth over the Snoqualmie Valley Wagon Road, the first road to cross the Cascade Mountains. The plan calls for a rehabilitation of the Queen Anne-style farmhouse, which can be seen from State Highway 202. North Bend Senior Planner Mike McCarty said the farmhouse is structurally sound, but needs to be weather-proofed.

“We’re going to apply in March for a grant to shore up the foundation, and we’re proceeding with restoring the exterior and interior,” McCarty said.

The city council hasn’t yet identified uses for the building, but McCarty envisioned a space that could be rented for classes and activities like art shows.

McCarty said the city was also looking at re-constructing the Tollgate Barn, which was demolished in 1999 after being damaged in a windstorm.