Chapman Lake land swap finalized

A land swap involving a chunk of public land around a lake in Spokane County has received final approval.

The Washington Board of Natural Resources on Wednesday approved the transfer of 530 acres around the southern end of Chapman Lake from the Department of Natural Resources to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The move puts the parcel fully under the control of WDFW, which has long been trying to restore public boating access to the lake and its popular kokanee salmon fishery. Access was lost in 2011 after the closure of a private resort at the lake.

Public access still exists, but is walk-in only and can be challenging to find. WDFW hopes to use the property to build a new boat ramp, which would require county approval and possibly other improvements.

Officials have said the swap between the two state agencies is the first step toward making it happen.

“WDFW staff have worked tirelessly for more than a decade to secure public boating access to Chapman Lake, and this transfer is an essential first step toward providing significant benefits to outdoor recreation in the region,” WDFW director Kelly Susewind said in a news release.

The transfer was also the first carried out under the state’s revitalized Trust Lands Transfer program, according to the release. The program is aimed at taking underperforming lands out of the trust program and transferring them to another state agency. Money allocated for each transfer can be used to purchase other lands to enroll in the trust program.

About $1.45 million in legislative funding will be used to buy new trust land to replace the property, according to the release.

“I’m thrilled to see that the work that stakeholders and DNR staff put in to formalizing the Trust Land Transfer process has created an outcome that everyone can be proud of,” said Hilary Franz, the commissioner of public lands.

The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission OK’d the transfer last month.