Petersen Barn Update

THANK YOU, KITSAP!

It’s been an extremely busy 72 hours, but we wanted to give you an update on the Petersen Barn and our call to you for help.

Yesterday, at the gates of the Petersen Farm in Silverdale, something pretty incredible happened.

The demolition trucks never showed.

And that didn't happen by accident. It happened because this community came together.

To our agricultural community and supporters - everyone who signed the petition, emailed GPC, shared and engaged with our Facebook posts, contacted elected and county officials, asked questions, offered support, and those who showed up at the Petersen Farm gates yesterday:

THANK YOU. Your voices were heard.

And the impact of those collective efforts reach even further. Today, the Petersen Barn story was featured in the Kitsap Sun!

What began as a community effort to protect a historic agricultural landmark has now become a much larger public conversation about the future of the Petersen Farm.

That matters.

While this does not mean the barn's future has been decided, it's a big first step and an important opportunity to have a larger conversation about what comes next.

We're grateful to GPC for hearing the community's concerns and for opening the gates to the Petersen Farm this weekend in the spirit of transparency.

As communicated by GPC's Executive Director Nate Daniel, GPC will be hosting tours of the barn this Saturday, August 15, at 10 a.m. and noon. This will give Kitsap residents an opportunity to ask questions, learn more about GPC's plans for the farm, and visit the barn.

Those who wish to participate will need to reserve a spot online.

The Engineering Report

In response to our call to share the engineering report that ultimately led to the decision to demolish the barn, GPC has now published the report here. It is also available through the most recent blog post on GPC's homepage.

The report makes clear that the barn faces significant structural challenges. But it also gives us something important to consider:

"A full in-place retrofit remains an option if the owner believes that preserving the existing structure is worth the additional cost."

That sentence matters.

It means demolition is not the only option.

And now comes the harder part:

What could preservation look like? What would it take? What would it cost? And could our community come together to make it possible?

These are questions worth exploring.

Mr. Petersen made his wishes clear: Keep my farm whole and working, and restore my barn and silos to the greatest extent possible for future generations.

Today, we have an opportunity to make sure those wishes remain part of the conversation.

If you haven't already had a chance to sign our petition, you still can. With more than 300 signatures in just under 72 hours, the community has spoken loud and clear.

The more input we can gather from you - our agricultural community and supporters - the stronger our case and the louder our collective voice will be. You can sign the petition here.

Yesterday, the demolition trucks didn't show.

Instead, something else happened.

A community showed up. And a new conversation began.

Thank you, Kitsap, for standing up, speaking out, and showing what can happen when a community comes together for something it believes is worth preserving.

This is not the end of the conversation.

It’s the beginning of a new one.

With gratitude,

The Kitsap Community & Agricultural Alliance