Washington DNR To Convert Old School Into Wildfire Center

Earlier this week, the Washington State Department of Natural Resources announced plans to purchase the former Dallesport Elementary School to create a new regional wildfire response center in the Columbia River Gorge. The Klickitat County school closed in 2016 due to decreasing enrollment across the Lyle School District. DNR will purchase the building and the 3.6-acre property for $1.6 million. School district officials said this sale will allow them to reduce duplicate expenses and overhead costs.

“The community of Dallesport and its former elementary school are in a geographically advantageous location, uniquely positioned to help DNR achieve our goal of strategically placing firefighters across Washington state,” said Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz, the elected official who oversees DNR. “This transaction will have a lasting, positive impact for the residents of Dallesport and the state for generations to come.”

"From the start of this process, the district has looked for potential buyers who would benefit the local community," said Lyle School District Superintendent Ann Varkados. "The Lyle School District Board of Directors and I are pleased with DNR’s plans for the property and proud that it will benefit not only the mid-Columbia Gorge, but the entire region."

This purchase is funded with money appropriated by the Legislature to fund House Bill 1168, the landmark wildfire and forest resiliency legislation passed unanimously earlier this year. Approximately 65 DNR employees will be stationed out of the response center in Dallesport, including 27 new hires anticipated to be hired in spring 2022. The 19,000-square-foot main building, constructed in 1997, and 5,500-square-foot annex will be retrofit to include crew quarters, a training facility, office space, shop, and equipment storage, with an additional $2.5 million of HB 1168 funds.

The Board meeting was held remotely as part of DNR’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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