Juanita Beach Park

Juanita Beach Park has been a popular summer destination since the early 1900s. The property was originally settled by Dorr and Eliza Forbes in 1876. Their original house burned in 1905, but their second home still stands on the park property next to the ballfield.

In 1916, the construction of the Lake Washington Ship Canal caused Lake Washington to drop 8.8 feet revealing a sandy shore at Juanita Beach. The park became a popular resort with a two-story bathhouse in the 1920s under the guidance of Dora and Eliza's son Leslie and his wife Alicia. In 1956, they sold the park to King County. It remained a county park until 2002, when ownership was transferred to the City of Kirkland and a voter-approved maintenance levy dedicated new funds for improved park stewardship.

Read more about the history of Juanita Beach Park.(PDF, 73KB)

Upgrades Coming to Juanita Beach Park Fields

Maintenance improvements are underway on the north side of Juanita Beach Park to keep facilities safe, functional, and enjoyable.

• Ballfields: Closed for renovation from August 2025 through February 2026. Work includes replacement of fencing and improved dugouts, adding irrigation, and turf restoration. The extended closure allows time for the new turf to grow in.

We appreciate your patience as we complete this important maintenance to improve your experience at Juanita Beach Park.

Juanita Beach Park has volleyball and tennis courts available for drop-in use only. The volleyball courts are on the beach side of Juanita Drive and the tennis courts are across the street on the north side of the park.

Juanita Beach Park has two youth baseball/softball fields on the north side of the park. A permit may be required for use, please see our Rent an Athletic Field webpage for more information.

View rates and policies, or learn how to reserve a field

Free Play

Free Play is field time set aside for the community to enjoy passive, drop-in, and informal play outdoors. The program is offered from March through October for natural grass, and year-round for synthetic turf.

Check the Free Play schedule for this park

Donating funds to a park is a wonderful way to show appreciation for Kirkland, to honor someone special, or to commemorate a milestone. Park benches and tables are the most popular items to donate, however other donations are possible as well, like those for trees or landscape, for general park maintenance, towards public art or other site amenities (i.e. water fountains), and even towards the tools and equipment needed to keep Kirkland’s parks beautiful.

Learn more about park donations

Upgrades Coming to Juanita Beach Park (North)

Maintenance improvements are underway on the north side of Juanita Beach Park to keep facilities safe, functional, and enjoyable. Work on the dog park is scheduled for October 2025. We appreciate your patience as we complete this important maintenance to improve your experience at Juanita Beach Park.

There is a fenced off-leash dog area on the north side of Juanita Beach Park with both a larger play area and a smaller play area.

• Keep an eye on your dog at all times. You are responsible for your dog’s actions.
• Dogs must be on a leash at all times unless you are in an Off-Leash Area.
• Pick up after your dog and dispose of the waste in containers provided throughout the park. 

Learn more about Off-Leash Dog Parks in Kirkland

Juanita Beach Park has two new picnic shelters available for rent. When the picnic shelter(s) is not being rented, it is available for use on a first-come, first-serve basis.

There are additional picnic tables throughout the park that are not part of the picnic shelter. They are available for first-come, first-serve use.

Learn more about renting the picnic areas

Juanita Beach features three public art pieces.

1. 
   Glassinator by Andrew Carson. Donated by Karen Lightfeldt in 2021.
   materials: steel and glass description: Glassinator is an interactive wind sculpture made of a stainless-steel pole topped by many pieces of glass that catch the light as it moves in opposite directions with the wind.
2.  
   Now and Then by UrbanRock Design
   materials: timber, steel, aluminum
   description: Now and Then is a two-part project consisting of seating elements that represent the area's timber-rich landscape and metal discs depicting historic photos of the site's past. The timber benches are located next to the playground and the image discs are installed on the railing of the dock, providing two views back to the park and two views over the water. The historical images, procured from the Kirkland Heritage Society, include the bathhouse in 1935, the swimming dock, Juanita Beach Cabins, and kayak rentals.
   
   
3. 
   Symbiosis by Joshua Wiener, 2010
   materials: Silverdale Limestone
   artist statement: Symbiosis is a visual expression of the restorative work that was done at Juanita Beach Park. The artwork is inspired by phytoremediation, cleaning water with plants. This single stone is surrounded by living plants, with an opening that appears to be created by water flowing through it. The larger faces of the stone are left natural to suggest that it was pulled from the earth undisturbed. 

Juanita Beach provides an area completely enclosed by a "U" shaped dock with a sandy beach and shallow swimming area. You can launch your personal watercraft (kayak, paddleboard, etc.) from the park.

The swimming beach has lifeguards on duty during the summer, typically from July through Labor Day in September. If there is inclement weather, or the air temperature is under 65 degrees, lifeguards will not report to the beaches.

Beaches are tested weekly by King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks, if a beach tests high for bacteria, the beach will be closed for swimming. For testing information please visit kingcounty.gov/swimbeach.

Loaner lifejackets are available at the lifeguard office. If a lifejacket is needed, please speak with any of the lifeguards on duty in the lifeguard office to check out a lifejacket.

Learn more about lifeguarded beaches in Kirkland