Tenino Opens Bidding for Veteran Memorial Wall Construction

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The City of Tenino has opened the bidding process for construction of a Veteran’s Memorial Wall in Tenino City Park. Bids are due by May 18 and construction is scheduled to begin by June 1. 

During the May 8 Thurston County Board of Commissioners meeting, the county approved an interlocal agreement between the county and Tenino, allowing the city to do construction on the Yelm-Tenino Trail corridor. 

While only about 10 feet of the corridor is paved, the trail is about 200 feet long, according to Kerry Hibdon, Thurston County Parks Operations and Maintenance manager. A portion of the park is actually on county property.

The agreement also came with $150,000 from the county to be used for removing the current wooden retaining wall and putting up the memorial wall. 

“I’m just excited that we are getting to this point to help the community out in one of our parks and their region as well,” said. Commissioner John Hutchings.

Tenino mayor Wayne Fournier said the wall has been three years in the making and he is excited to be able to spruce up the park.



“That area of the park has been a bit of an eyesore,” Fournier said. 

The wall will be constructed of Columbia-grade granite and will feature some of Tenino’s famous sandstone. It will be approximately 150 feet long and four feet high. 

Incorporated into the wall should be several sandstone arches and a cascading staircase to a raised platform of sandstone blocks. Panels will be mounted on the blocks and will integrate space for carved paving bricks. The panels and paving bricks will be supplied by the Tenino Veterans of Foreign Wars organization. 

“Being able to do [the wall] in natural stone, the Tenino way, is exciting,” Fournier said.

The wall is planned to be finished in time for Veterans Day, and an opening celebration is planned. City leaders plan to try to involve JBLM as well as past and present Tenino service members.