POULSBO — The City of Poulsbo has acquired 4.73 acres of additional parkland on the east side of the Liberty Bay Estuary to be added to Poulsbo’s Fish Park.

This purchase was made possible from a $460,000 grant from the state Recreation and Conservation Funding Board, through the Aquatic Lands Enhancement Account.

In addition to the purchase of shoreline property, the funding will be used to help protect and provide public access to the shoreline. The land will connect Dogfish Creek, which runs through the property, to the estuary, and will allow the city to extend an interpretive trail through this natural park in the middle of Poulsbo. The city will now restore the shoreline habitat, enhancing waterfront buffers, adding parking, trails, viewing platforms, benches and signage.

Poulsbo beat out 21 other applications for Aquatic Lands Enhancement Account funding. Funding for the enhancement account comes from leases on state-owned waterfront sites and sale of harvest rights for geoduck clams.

The City of Poulsbo will leverage local contributions totaling $487,462 with grant monies to implement the project. Total estimated project cost is $947,462.