Des Moines, the only Highline community with a downtown that borders Puget Sound, also harbors the only full-service marina between Shilshole in northwest Seattle and Point Defiance in Tacoma.

And Des Moines officials are hoping that a combination of additions, upgrades and renovations planned for the marina over the next 15 years will make it the crown jewel of the Waterland community.

Major work is expected to get underway in September with a $750,000 dredging project - the first step in implementing a revised Marina Master Plan.

Adopted earlier this year by the Des Moines City Council, the updated comprehensive plan focuses on facilities and services in high demand with recreational boaters plus enhancements for pedestrians.

Harbormaster Joe Dusenbury says an estimated 8,700 cubic yards of sediment will be removed from the marina harbor - a maintenance project that must be done every 10 to 15 years. Bids from contractors are due Aug. 14, and he anticipates the job will be completed by late fall.

The marina offers both guest and permanent moorage for boaters, dry storage for boats 20 feet long and under, fuel, pump-out stations, and a full-service boat yard.

Non-boaters also visit its restaurants, public fishing pier, and adjacent Des Moines Beach Park, where they also enjoy views of Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains.

Recommendations in the revised master plan call for upgrades that will "help the marina maintain a competitive advantage in attracting moorage tenants and guests," with a marketing objective of making Des Moines a destination point for boaters with the marina as the gateway to the city.

These are based on "the marina's primary purpose and function as a boating facility while simultaneously promoting the marina as a premier destination for those arriving by automobile, bicycle, or on foot."

Planned land-based improvements will support in-water activities as well as enhance facilities used by the non-boating public and make the marina "more attractive and pedestrian friendly."

Proposals stemming from the University of Washington's recent Storefront Project, which involved senior architectural students designing potential upgrades for the Marina District, included links between downtown Des Moines and the waterfront that compliment the master plan.

Short-term capital improvements, expected to be completed over the next five years, include: replacement of approximately 800 feet of the bulkhead, with the addition of raised concrete sidewalks, pedestrian amenities, and new landscaped areas; reconstruction of restrooms; and power- and water-system upgrades marina-wide and improved electrical services on the docks.

Other short-term upgrades and additions include reconfiguration of vehicle traffic patterns; relocation of marina maintenance operations to a new facility; remodeling the Harbormaster Building; and developing a commercial building site north of the Harbormaster Building.

Long-term capital improvements, planned for the following 10 years, include: replacement of the rest of the original seawall; construction of raised concrete sidewalks and pedestrian amenities along the seawall; reconfiguration of moorage slips and covered moorage; and improvement of pedestrian access between Beach Park, Des Moines Creek Trail, and the marina.

"As the community of Des Moines developed around the marina," which opened in 1970 to serve the boating public, "it has become a significant public asset for the downtown area and a place where the entire community can enjoy the unique qualities and character" of the city, the master plan notes.

Developing a strategic investment plan for the marina, determining how its major assets should be used and managed or replaced, and upgrading and expanding facilities to attract more non-boating visitors were key components in the planning process.

Approximately $23 million will be required to fund projects proposed for completion through 2016, according to the master plan prepared by MAKERS architecture and urban design.

The financing plan assumes that revenues from marina operations will grow at 3.5 percent a year after 2009. Funding sources include approximately $14.7 million in debt financing with General Obligation Bonds, capital contributions from the marina of $4.4 million, city contributions of $1.6 million, and interest on unspent bond proceeds of $2.9 million.

Marina capital projects already completed include upgrades to the marina electrical distribution systems, the remodel of M dock, installation of a fire standpipe system at K, L, M and N docks, and installation of a security camera system, as well as renovation of the Redondo boat launch.