Why is part of the Sumner Link Trail closed, and when will it reopen?

What is closed, and until when

The Sumner Link Trail is the paved path that follows the White River along the edge of town. The city pitches it as a way to see the valley from the river’s edge, with water and wildlife on one side and farms and industry on the other, and that’s about right: a gravel bar and cottonwoods on one hand, a warehouse roofline on the other, and the mountain ahead when the clouds allow.

In spring 2025 the City of Sumner closed the section around the 24th Street bridge so it can be replaced as part of the White River Restoration Project. The rest of the trail has stayed usable, but the through route is broken, and the edge of a work zone moves when the crews do. Check the city’s current project map before you head out.

The rebuilt section won’t go back where it was. The city plans to set the new trail on a higher, forested berm nearer the railroad tracks, farther from the river, where erosion and floodwater are less of a threat. The project page lists 2027 for the trail replacement. River work depends on funding and on the limited windows when crews are allowed in the water, so read 2027 as the plan and check back for changes.

Trailheads that still make sense

The city lists four places to park for the Link Trail. With a middle section fenced off, the one you pick decides how much trail you actually get.

If all you want is a walk by the water, State Street is the simple answer: park, walk until you reach the fence, turn around. If you’re meeting someone, agree on the trailhead ahead of time. Two people starting from opposite ends of a trail with a gap in the middle is a good way to spend an hour texting.

What the White River Restoration Project is building

The White River starts on the glaciers of Mount Rainier and carries a heavy load of sand and gravel down the valley. As that sediment settles in the channel through Sumner, the riverbed rises, and a shallower river has less room for high water before it presses against the levees. The older approach held the river in a narrow channel. This project gives it room to spread out.

The city describes the work as connected pieces, each at a different stage.

The first is a new Stewart Road bridge. The replacement is higher and wider so the river can shift beneath it, and it should ease traffic on Stewart Road as well. Construction on it has started.

The second is the habitat project, and it’s the reason for the trail closure. About 200 acres of a former golf course owned by the city is being reshaped into side channels, wetlands, and low ground built to hold floodwater. Phase 1 wrapped up in October 2024. Phase 2 started on May 1, 2025, and is scheduled to run into 2027.

The third is a levee and point bar, which adds floodwalls and restores habitat along the bank. On the city’s latest update, that piece was still listed as needing funding. Keep that in mind when someone describes the whole project as finished flood protection. It isn’t there yet.

The funding list shows how many interests meet at this bend of the river. Alongside the city, it includes the State of Washington, the Pierce County Flood Control Zone District, the Port of Tacoma, and several state and regional salmon and floodplain programs. Salmon habitat and flood protection are both goals, and the design asks the same ground to do both jobs.

How side channels and wetlands handle floodwater

A levee built tight against the bank protects what’s behind it until the water rises past what the channel can hold. Low ground left open between the river and the developed land gives that water somewhere to go. When the White runs high in a winter storm, water can spread into that strip, slow down, and drop some of its gravel before it moves on.

The side channels and wetlands on the old golf course are that low ground, at a large scale. In a flood, they’re storage. In late summer, when the river drops, they’re habitat.

All of that is meant to reduce flood risk for the neighborhoods and businesses behind it. It can’t remove the risk. Rivers that drain Mount Rainier move gravel and change course, and the valley floor will always carry flood questions, along with the lahar hazard that comes with living downstream of a volcano. For households near the river, flood maps, insurance quotes, and Pierce County’s emergency alerts remain ordinary business.

Where to walk and ride in the meantime

The Link Trail was built as a connector, and its neighbors are open. At the north end it links to the Interurban Trail, which runs up the valley toward Auburn and Kent and makes the easiest substitute for a long, flat bike ride. The Lakeland Hills Trail also connects on the north side.

At the south end, the Link Trail meets the Riverwalk Trail and the Foothills Trail. The Foothills Trail carries on toward Orting, and on a clear morning that ride puts Mount Rainier out in front of you.

The city posts detour maps and updates on the White River Restoration Project page at Sumner Connects. That page is more current than a trail app, which may still show the old alignment as open.

Buying or selling near the White River while the work goes on

Work on this scale runs for years and brings trucks and equipment noise with it. Looking at a house near the river on the Sumner side? Drive the nearby streets on a weekday during work hours and again on a weekend, then pull up the project map to see where the work heads next. A Sunday visit will always sound quieter than a Tuesday morning.

The bigger question for a buyer is flood status. A restoration project doesn’t change a property’s FEMA flood zone by itself. The official map changes when FEMA revises it, and until then your lender and your insurance agent work from the current one. Look the address up on FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center, ask the seller for any surveyor’s flood certificate on file, and get a flood insurance quote during your inspection period. The Living in Sumner page covers the two rivers and why levees are part of ordinary life here, and the buying page walks through the flood and lahar homework in order.

For sellers near the river, buyers will ask about the construction, so answer before they do. Washington’s seller disclosure form asks about flooding and deserves careful, complete answers. If a question on it leaves you unsure, that one belongs with a real estate attorney. Having the city’s timeline and project map ready for showings tends to turn a worried question into a short conversation.

When the work is done, this edge of town should have a rebuilt trail and a much wider river corridor to walk beside. For Sounder commuters weighing the blocks between the river and downtown, the station is changing too, and I wrote about parking at Sumner Station and the new garage.