Site of Polar Bear Plunge changes hands

Although new homes may soon be springing up near Olalla Bay, scantily-clad jumpers will still be springing off the bridge and into the frigid water Saturday, according to organizers of the annual Polar Bear Plunge on New Year’s Day.

Wendi Robbecke, who runs Al’s Grocery and Old-fashioned Butcher Shop with her husband, John, said as far as she knows the new owner, builder Roy Hjalseth, will allow revelers to use the Olalla Valley Bridge and the beach underneath for the cold dunk and warm bonfire.

“The cannon will be going off at noon,” Robbecke said, explaining that since Hjalseth purchased the property from Marianne Nelson Stewart, the cement barricades blocking access to the boat launch have been removed, making it easier for people to use it.

Former owner Stewart said she was disappointed the property had not been purchased by Kitsap County for use as a park, and she was “staying out” of the future plans for the site.

“I have purposely not stayed in touch,” Stewart said. “What went on here is a much bigger issue than the Polar Bear Plunge. It’s a big loss, and frankly I don’t understand why (the county wasn’t enthusiastic). Instead of respecting the property, they did just the opposite.”

A county representative was not available to speak on the matter Monday, but previously, former county park planner Rick Fackler said negotiations with Stewart stalled because the parties could not reach agreement on how to pay for an appraisal of the property, among other issues.

“The county had good intentions with the tidelands and the boat launch,” Fackler said after negotiations faltered. “This would be a wonderful thing if it were to happen. But it takes two to tango.”

“It would have been very, very nice if they had turned it into a county park,” said Robbecke, who stays indoors now during the jumps, though her husband was one of the first to take the plunge more than 20 years ago.

“There was a group of us guys just hanging out one year, and we just thought it would be a good idea,” John Robbecke said, explaining that although he has since stopped jumping, sometimes as many as 1,000 people have showed up to jump in wedding gowns, three-piece suits, and even their birthday suits.

Hjalseth, who runs Hjalseth View Homes and Design out of Gig Harbor, could not be reached for comment on his plans for the property, or if he will allow the plunge to go on as scheduled.

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