Pierce County will start construction Feb. 2 to more than double the number of parking spaces at the popular North Meadow area of Chambers Creek Regional Park in University Place to help meet high demand.

A new parking area with approximately 50 spaces will be added to the North Meadow area, which currently has 39 spaces. The area is home to Playground by the Sound, one of the largest playgrounds in the community, and serves as the main access point for the Grandview and Soundview walking trails. Chambers Creek Regional Park, located adjacent to Grandview Drive West, is part of the 930-acre Chambers Creek Properties.

In addition to adding the new parking area, crews will widen the park’s entrance and exit driveways on Grandview Drive West, build an access road from the existing parking lot to the new parking area, and widen the existing paved pedestrian path adjacent to the new parking lot.

The existing North Meadow parking lot will be closed Feb. 2 through mid-September. Visitors can continue to use adjacent street parking along Grandview Drive West when accessing the playground, trail or restroom.

“The North Meadow of Chambers Creek Regional Park has quickly become one of the most beloved recreation areas in the South Sound,” said County Executive Pat McCarthy. “We can’t avoid the inconvenience of the parking lot closure, but the end result is better access to one of the best parks around.”

The adjacent Grandview Trail, North Meadow restroom and Playground by the Sound will remain open during the work, although intermittent closures of the playground will be needed during construction.

During the work to widen the existing driveways, the bike lane will be closed and motorists on Grandview Drive West may experience occasional short term traffic delays.

Funding for the approximately $1.2 million project comes from Pierce County Public Works and Utilities. Jennings Northwest, LLC is the project contractor. For more information about the project, go online.

Construction work on the parking lot will be suspended from early April through July for the United States Golf Association’s set-up and execution of the 2015 U.S. Open Championship, before resuming in early August. The work is expected to be complete in mid-September.

Elsewhere on the site, park and trail closures are expected to begin in mid-March as construction of grandstands and temporary buildings for the U.S. Open gets under way. Closure dates will be announced in the near future as schedules are set.