Washougal Business Association head proposes new wayfinding kiosk

In 2019, Paul Greenlee traveled to Windsor, California, with his wife for a wine-tasting vacation. One of the first things he noticed upon arriving in the Russian River Valley town was its wayfinding sign, composed of 18 smaller, brightly-colored signs featuring the names of local businesses (salons, restaurants, toys, real estate, etc.) and arrows pointing to the left or right.

Windsor’s sign, in Greenlee’s opinion, is vastly superior to Washougal’s signs, which sit on the sides of Washougal River Road and 32nd Street, between “A” Street and Main Street. In fact, he believes that every one of the wayfinding signs he’s ever seen are better than his city’s.

“I’ve traveled all over the country, (and) I’m always looking at different cities for, ‘How do they do it? Are they better at it than we are?’” Greenlee said during the Washougal City Council’s workshop session on July 22. “And between you and me and the fence post, (ours) is the worst wayfinding sign I’ve ever seen anywhere.”

To make up for the sign’s perceived shortcomings, Greenlee, the president of the Washougal Business Association (WBA) and a former Washougal City Council member, proposed the construction of a “welcome kiosk” at the Main Street Pocket Park on the southeast corner of Main Street and Washougal River Road, south of the AMPM convenience store.

“I went out with a tape (measure),” he said. “It’s a little over 100 feet long and 40 feet wide from the sidewalk to the hedge lines, but I think the property goes way beyond that.”

The kiosk, which would feature a roof and plexiglass to protect its contents from inclement weather, could include paper maps that show the locations of restaurants, public art pieces, the Steigerwald National Wildlife Refuge, Captain William Clark Park, the Port of Camas-Washougal, City parks, and more, according to Greenlee.

“You’d have a kiosk with (information about) … all of the things that tourists would want,” Greenlee said during the Council workshop. “It would be a great place (to display local) artwork as well.”

Greenlee said the City could pay for the kiosk by taking advantage of the Washington State Department of Commerce’s Washington Electric Vehicle Charging Program, which helps fund infrastructure that supports clean transportation in communities across Washington.

“I could easily put two EV charging stations 10-feet-by-25-feet, which is bigger than they need to be — 8-by-23 is a standard parking space. Then I would (pave a section of the park and) put in temporary parking. You pull in off River Road, you’ve got charging, you’ve got temporary parking, and you’ve got a kiosk.”

Washougal’s signs were installed in 2014, each containing slots for 11 businesses. To apply for the Washougal Information Sign Program (WISP), businesses must be in compliance with all applicable local, state and federal business license laws; be open to the general public; and operate full time, all year, within the Washougal City limits, according to the City’s website.

Applications are processed on a first-come, first-served basis, and are placed on a waiting list if the requested sign is full.

“Businesses inquired about adding their company to the wayfinding sign and filled out an application,” Washougal public works director Trevor Evers said. “Once approved, they are responsible for purchasing the sign and having it created. Each business pays an installation fee of $81, and there is also a yearly maintenance fee of $41. We do not have any businesses on the waitlist currently.”

Greenlee said that Washougal’s wayfinding signs include inaccurate information.

“Columbia River Realty has moved, as has Dayley Dance Academy,” he said during the workshop session. “The arrows point in the wrong direction.”

Greenlee also stated that the businesses on the sign should be grouped together by location and be feature symbols, such as a knife-and-fork for a restaurant or a dollar sign for a bank.

He also stated that the signs along the heavily-trafficked roads should feature tourist-oriented businesses, and that other local businesses on the current signs, such as Victory Lane Auto Body, Daily Dance Studio, and Edward Jones, could be promoted in some fashion near the kiosk “because you don’t have to read it as you’re driving by.”

“Does a tourist need to know where the auto body store is, or State Farm Insurance, physical therapy, the dentist, Edward Jones?” he told the Post-Record. “Other than Trap Door (Brewing), there’s not a restaurant up there. This sign should be restaurants, Pendleton Woolen Mill, purely tourist-oriented stuff.”

Ideally, Greenlee would like to see both a kiosk and an improved wayfinding sign on Washougal River Road.

“I’ve gotten a lot of comments on this, mostly positive, and so I’m thinking I may go further with this and put together a real keynote kind of presentation,” Greenlee told the Post-Record. “I want to make (my effort) a bit more real. This has been bugging me for years, certainly ever since I saw (Windsor’s sign). I’m sure I brought it up when I was on the (City’s) public works committee.”

Evers said that he’s not sure if a kiosk, such as the one that Greenlee proposed, “would be feasible.” He added that City staff has not discussed improving the existing wayfinding signs, but thinks that upgrading the WISP “could be a good project to add to the biennial budget for 2025/2026.”

“We currently do not have any budget allocated to this specific project in the adopted 2024 budget,” he said. “Depending on the location of the kiosk or an upgrade to the existing WISP program, we would need to review the proposed improvements for public right-of-way requirements, as well as site plan review. There is limited existing property in this specific area currently.”