"We often hear, 'I've visited the Memorial many times, but until I took a guided tour, I didn't fully understand what happened here,'" Ellen Sato Faust, executive director of the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial Association, told the Bainbridge Island Review at last fall's groundbreaking. She said the association hopes the new Visitor Center will close that gap, "so that every visitor, whether on their first visit or their twentieth, comes away with a richer appreciation for what took place on Bainbridge Island."
Plenty of islanders have made that first visit many times over. The memorial on Eagle Harbor Drive is an easy walk to show guests, a stop on the way to Pritchard Park, and a place many people feel they already know. The building that opens on Sunday, October 11, is built for those repeat visitors.
A Memorial Built to Be Walked
Until now the site has been almost entirely outdoors. The Review describes it as a long, undulating wall that follows the path Japanese Americans on Bainbridge walked to board the ferry when Executive Order 9066 forced them from their homes. The wall honors the 276 Bainbridge Island residents of Japanese heritage affected by the exclusion. An interpretive pavilion and a Departure Deck recall the old Eagledale Ferry Dock.
On March 30, 1942, 227 Japanese and Japanese Americans were removed from that dock and taken aboard the Kehloken to Seattle, the first step on their way to confinement at Manzanar in California. They were the first group on the West Coast exiled under the order.
Getting the fuller story on site has always depended on timing or planning. A seasonal National Park Service ranger is generally there Thursday through Sunday from March through November, though hours vary. The NPS app has a self-guided audio tour with 16 stops that takes about an hour and a half. Guided tours are led by volunteer docents from the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Community. Groups have to request them at least two weeks ahead, and each one depends on a docent being free.
So the guided tour that Faust says makes things click is something you book in advance. The ranger is a seasonal presence. On a wet Tuesday in January, a visitor has the wall, the rain and their phone.
The Room Rangers and Docents Never Had
The center fills that gap with a building. Here is how the site changes, based on the association's capital campaign materials and the Review's reporting:
| The memorial until now | With the Visitor Center | |
|---|---|---|
| Shelter | Outdoor wall, pavilion, Departure Deck | 1,545-square-foot indoor gathering space |
| Restrooms | None permanent on site | Restrooms next to the center |
| Group space | Outdoor gathering only | Flexible indoor seating for up to 75, a paved plaza and an amphitheater |
| Collections | Artifacts held by the association, not on public display | Interpretive exhibits and historic artifacts on view |
| Programming | Ranger talks, booked docent tours, the audio tour | Classes, guest lectures, film screenings, workshops |
| Staff space | No dedicated offices | Offices for National Park Service and association staff |
The exhibits are meant to tell a different part of the story than the wall does. According to the Review, the wall records the departure, while the indoor exhibits aim to show what was distinctive about Bainbridge Island's community and how strong community ties helped many islanders return home after incarceration. Many artifacts the association has gathered over the years will finally go on public display. Faust also said the indoor space gives visitors somewhere to shelter in bad weather while they continue to learn and reflect. That matters on this island for more than half the year.
The building was designed by Seattle architect Johnpaul Jones of Jones and Jones Architects. Carley Construction Inc. built it. Owner Dave Carley told the Review the building was meant to fit within and complement its surroundings, and that "the significance and responsibility is not lost on our team."
The association's own figures show why the room is needed. In its 2023 campaign launch, it counted more than 10,000 walk-in visitors and more than 50 private educational tours a year. Its current campaign page lists more than 30,000 walk-in visitors, more than 100 private tours and more than 2,500 tour participants a year. The number of people coming has grown much faster than the number of guided tours. The building lets many of those walk-in visitors get the fuller story without booking a group tour.
Why the Building Arrived in 2026
The memorial was finished in phases over more than 20 years, and the association calls the Visitor Center its final phase. The center itself took longer than planned. In June 2023, the Kitsap Sun reported that completion was expected between the end of 2024 and the start of 2025. The association instead waited two years for a building permit before construction began.
The permit also came with a utility requirement. New city rules for water service meant a new water main had to run along Eagle Harbor Drive. In April 2025 the Review reported that the city arranged the water-line work, with the association paying most of the cost and the city covering the rest with help from state funding.
The budget grew along with the delays:
- October 2023: The association launched a $4 million campaign for the center.
- October 2025: Once costs became clear after permitting, the budget rose from $4.5 million to $6.5 million, leaving a $2 million gap.
- February 2026: The Legacy Families, Bainbridge Island survivors and their descendants, committed $300,000 and offered to match new 2026 donations dollar for dollar up to that amount.
- July 2026: Faust told the Review the association was less than $500,000 from its construction goal.
Federal money came in two pieces. The National Park Service's list of Japanese American Confinement Sites grants shows $153,952 in fiscal 2022 to plan the Visitor Center and $613,150 in fiscal 2023 for the project itself. Responsibility for the site is shared. The Bainbridge Island Metro Park & Recreation District owns the land. The association raises money and builds improvements. The Park Service provides seasonal interpretation, and the memorial is an administrative unit of Minidoka National Historic Site.
The ground was broken on October 11, 2025, with about 45 people attending, including six survivors and their families. The dedication falls exactly one year later. The Legacy Challenge page notes that the association has stressed opening the center for survivors.
October 11 Runs on Different Rules
Dedication day will not work like a normal visit, and some of the changes affect islanders who usually just drive over:
- Parking: Parking at Pritchard Park is reserved for survivors and guests who need ADA accessibility. Guests who need accessible parking can be dropped off and park in the Pritchard Park or memorial lots by emailing [email protected] to reserve a space.
- Shuttle: A free shuttle runs from 10:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. between American Legion Hall at 7898 NE Bucklin Hill Road and the memorial. The ride takes about six minutes.
- Schedule: An invitation-only preview reception starts at 11 a.m., the public dedication ceremony at 12:30 p.m., and the public open house runs from 2 to 4 p.m.
- Dogs: No pets are allowed that day, because of the expected crowd and the fragile new plantings in the plaza. On a normal day, leashed dogs under close supervision are welcome.
- Transit and guests: Bainbridge generally has no public transportation on Sundays. Organizers suggest the 9:35 a.m. or 10:40 a.m. sailing from Seattle for anyone coming across.
If you want to be there for the speeches, park at American Legion Hall and leave yourself time to be on site by 12:30. If you mainly want to see inside the building, the 2-to-4 open house is the public window.
What Is Known About Visiting After Opening Day
The memorial grounds are open every day from dawn to dusk, and admission is free. That describes the outdoor site, though. The association has not yet published regular hours, days or staffing for the Visitor Center building. The only firm open-house hours on the calendar so far are the two on October 11. The memorial's visit page was last updated in March. It still describes construction-era conditions, including the closed main lot and a porta-potty, so check it again before planning a winter trip.
The ranger schedule makes the next few weeks more useful. A ranger is generally on site Thursday through Sunday through November. That leaves about seven weeks after the dedication to see the new exhibits with a Park Service ranger nearby, before the seasonal schedule ends. Families can also pick up the official Junior Ranger booklet and get the site's ink stamp from the ranger.
The association has also described more programming ahead: workshops and educational content at the new center, its Day of Remembrance community cleanup on February 19, and the public commemoration on March 30, the anniversary of the departure from Eagledale. The new building and plaza also give those gatherings shelter and indoor seating that the site never had before.
The team at Mark Middleton Real Estate has spent generations on this island and follows the places that hold its history as closely as its shoreline. If you'd like to talk about the island and what is changing on it, we'd welcome the conversation. Request a private consultation.
