by Kyrstin Onaga

Soler Farm Buildings. Photo by Aqua Terra CRC.

In 2021, the Pierce Conservation District (PCD) acquired Soler Farm with funding from the Pierce County Flood Control Zone District. The property is 73- acres of agricultural and riparian land and neighbors South Prairie Creek Preserve. The intention of PCD and our project partners is to implement a future project that will restore vital salmon habitat, reduce flood risk, and protect agricultural viability on the property. 

Through collaboration with landowners, partners, and funders, PCD can contribute to and continue the rich history of the land. PCD is currently leasing the Soler Farm property to Haugen Family Farm, Pierce County’s only organic dairy farm. PCD plans to ensure future habitat restoration aligns with the preservation of agricultural practices on the majority of the property. The remaining thirteen acres of the property will be restored to enhance side channel habitat and floodplain function. The next step in the restoration of the property will be the demolition of the farmhouse and several other buildings that are in poor condition and no longer needed for agricultural production.

Cows from the Haugen Family Farm.

Pierce Conservation District acknowledges that the land we now refer to as “Soler Farm” is a place deeply rooted in local history. While our future restoration work will contribute to the site's history, we also want to honor and create space for those who have stewarded the land since time immemorial. The following Story Map created for PCD by Aqua Terra Cultural Resource Consultants and funded by the Washington Department of Ecology’s Floodplains by Design grant program, acknowledges the history of the land around Soler Farm, and those who have called the area home.