Northeast Tacoma's Off-Leash Park Is Being Drawn Now, Between Wetlands and Big Trees
November 5, 2026
November 5, 2026
An empty house stands at 4015 Norpoint Way NE, next to the trails and the community center at Norpoint Park. Parks Tacoma plans to demolish it. The cleared lot is set to become a 0.75-acre off-leash dog park serving Northeast Tacoma, with separate areas for small and large dogs, new trail connections into the rest of Norpoint Park, and a new parking area.
The gates aren't expected to open until early 2028. The parts of the plan that matter most, though, are being decided this winter: how the fence lines run, where the shade goes, and whether the small-dog side gets real space. The lot is tight, and Parks Tacoma has said so plainly.
The county's public engagement page for the project, Engage Pierce County's Norpoint Park page, lists the off-leash area as the "primary potential feature." Secondary features could include a small shelter or shade structure, walking paths, parking, a day-use area with seating, and a pedestrian connection to the Center at Norpoint. The same page says the site "includes wetlands and large existing trees, which limit available space for park development," and it names preserving trees and protecting natural areas as a key priority.
That limit shapes everything else. The off-leash area at Rogers Playfield, at 3151 East L St on Tacoma's Eastside, is a fully fenced area of about 1.5 acres. At 0.75 acres, the Norpoint plan is about half that size, and it still has to be divided into small-dog and large-dog sides. Every picnic table, path and parking stall on the wider lot competes for the same ground the trees and wetlands already occupy.
On the Parks Tacoma project page, the list of likely uses for the site also includes a secondary park entrance and a "temporary regional maintenance facility." Any of these that gets built will need room too.
Parks Tacoma ran a community survey from May 4 to 17, 2026. Its questions show where the tradeoffs are. The first one told respondents to assume space was limited and asked them to rank what mattered most.
| What the survey asked about | Options it put on the table |
|---|---|
| Priorities if space is limited | Day-use area, walking paths outside the dog park, and other site elements |
| Dog park layout | One shared area, or separate areas for small or shy dogs and for large dogs |
| Comfort features | Shade and dog enrichment features |
| Day-use amenities | Picnic tables, a shelter, quieter seating paths, nature play, open lawn |
Some of those choices are now set. The current project page commits to separate small-dog and large-dog areas. Parks Tacoma has posted a schematic design dated September 2026. Final design is scheduled for spring 2027.
Here is the project timeline as Parks Tacoma has posted it:
The gap between the September schematic and spring 2027 final design is the stretch when questions from the public can still reach the drawings. Once permitting starts, the plan mostly stops changing.
Parks Tacoma has set a time to hear those questions in person. The Holiday Blast at the Center at Norpoint runs Saturday, December 5, 2026, from 2 to 5 p.m. It is free and includes holiday crafts, games and treats. The Holiday Blast event page also invites attendees to "meet the project manager, learn more about the project and ask questions about what's being planned" for the proposed off-leash dog park.
The Center at Norpoint is at 4818 Nassau Ave NE, which is also the park's address. That puts the conversation a short walk from the lot under discussion. The project page lists Henry Smith as project manager, with contact at (253) 401-7982 and [email protected], for anyone who can't attend that afternoon.
These are the questions the site constraints raise:
Parks Tacoma's rule, posted on its Rogers Playfield page, is that dogs must be leashed in Tacoma parks except in designated off-leash areas. The Norpoint plan is the off-leash area Parks Tacoma has proposed for Northeast Tacoma. Here is what the official pages for the nearby parks say.
| Park | Who runs it | What its page says |
|---|---|---|
| Norpoint Park, 4818 Nassau Ave NE | Parks Tacoma | Hard and soft trails; the off-leash area is still a proposal |
| Browns Point Lighthouse Park, 4.03 waterfront acres | Parks Tacoma | No park-specific dog rule listed; Tacoma's leash rule applies outside designated off-leash areas |
| Dash Point Park, 1500 Beach Dr NE | Parks Tacoma | No park-specific dog rule listed; Tacoma's leash rule applies outside designated off-leash areas |
| Dash Point State Park | Washington State Parks | Dogs allowed on leash |
Parks Tacoma's Dash Point Park page still shows the pier closed for reconstruction or replacement. The beach areas around it remain open.
For fenced off-leash time today, Rogers Playfield has its roughly 1.5-acre fenced area. Dogs there must be leashed on the way in and out. Federal Way's French Lake Park is the only park in that city approved for off-leash use. Its posted rules require a leash outside the fenced area and require owners to carry one leash per dog inside it. Posted park rules can change, so check the signs at the gate before letting a dog loose.
The December 5 Q&A takes place at a building that hosts much of Northeast Tacoma's holiday calendar. If you go for the dog park, you'll already be at the center of the season.
The Norpoint Turkey Trot starts at 9 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning, Thursday, November 26. The 3K and 5K routes start and finish at the Center at Norpoint. The NE Tacoma Healthy Kids Coalition food drive is collecting donations at the Center from November 2 through December 18. The 50+ Winter Ball fills the same building on Friday, December 18, at 1 p.m., with live music by Randy Litch.
Down the point, the Browns Point Improvement Club runs its own calendar at its clubhouse, 201 Ton A Wan Da Ave NE:
Free tours of the lighthouse at Browns Point Lighthouse Park run Saturdays from 1 to 4 p.m. On December 5, you could do a leashed loop at the lighthouse in the early afternoon, then drive up to Norpoint before the Holiday Blast ends at 5 p.m.
While the Norpoint plan works its way toward 2028, a fenced side yard or dog run at home is the most direct fix, and it's the kind of small project our in-house construction team handles every season. If you're weighing what that would take on your Browns Point lot, The Misener Group can walk the yard with you and scope it. Let's elevate your experience. Schedule a consult.
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