Chatcolet Marina saved as part of Heyburn State Park improvements
Director of the Idaho Department of Parks Susan Buxton addresses Heyburn State Park Manager Nathan Blackburn and Verdis Owner and President Sandy Young. Chatcolet Marina underwent major upgrades in order to keep the recreation spot viable at Heyburn State Park.
CAROLYN BOSTICK/Press
by CAROLYN BOSTICK
Staff Writer | May 22, 2026 1:08 AM
PLUMMER — A $23 million project to make a swath of improvements at Heyburn State Park has turned the old Chatcolet Marina into an upgraded facility intended to weather years of future recreation.
The new marina offerings now include 148 covered slips with electrical hookups, 14 additional houseboat slips, an 80-foot fuel dock, a new parking lot with 139 parking stalls and 20 truck/trailer stalls, kayak and paddleboard storage lockers, a promenade, bike stands, a patio, a store and a 1,000-foot breakwater for fishing, lounging and lake access.
Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation Director Susan Buxton said she was grateful to state lawmakers and the governor’s office for making it possible to get the project over the finish line before the recreation spot fell into complete disrepair.
"When I got this position, I was talking to all of the park managers about the deferred maintenance that we’re seeing in our parks across the state of Idaho,” Buxton said. “It had done its job for probably more years than it should have, so we’re really glad to be able to replace it.”
Heyburn State Park sees around 180,000 day users and 24,000 campers yearly. Chatcolet Marina is the most popular access point for the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes and is the busiest place utilized during the day.
“We weren’t going to be able to charge enough camping fees to be able to get us out of that after 100 years of state parks, so thank goodness for our Legislature and governor for giving us the money to address deferred maintenance,” Buxton said.
Because the project was a design-build undertaking through Verdis, the state parks department was able to use funds from the Legislature and the governor’s office to complete it more quickly.
“There's been lots of different activities here time immemorial, so we wanted to make sure that we honored that and actually try to do the things to work on it and make it continue to be a great place for people to recreate and enjoy the lake and all of the beauty we have in North Idaho,” Buxton said.
The project also stemmed from a partnership with the Coeur d’Alene Tribe because its location provides access to the Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes. The improved facilities are expected to help bring in revenue for the Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes.
“I think you’ll see this continue to have great facilities for generations to come,” Buxton said.
Heyburn State Park Manager Nate Blackburn pointed out that Heyburn is the oldest state park in the Pacific Northwest.
“It was created in 1908 by an act of the United States Congress and as such, it has a lot of unique features. As part of that, we are very much a city,” Blackburn said.
Blackburn shared that without intervention from top state leadership, the new state-of-the-art marina facilities wouldn’t be possible.
“They were last rebuilt in the 1950s and 1960s and they were completely sinking, so you couldn’t have more than two people on the dock section without it going underwater,” Blackburn said. “It was either replace it, or we’re going to lose that whole recreation resource.”
Chatcolet Marina underwent serious upgrades as part of a $23 million project at Heyburn State Park. The marina now has a boardwalk, additional slips, a dedicated swim area and improvements such as paved parking, a marina store, a boat fueling station and a boat wastewater pump-out.
Chatcolet Marina is the most popular access point for The Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes and the busiest day-use area in the park at Heyburn State Park. Improvements, such as 148 boat slips, were recently completed after several years of planning.
A sign for Heyburn State Park.
