The Veterans Monument at Library Park reopened this fall with six new basalt pillars, and those pillars are blank. The City of Mill Creek says they are there to hold additional veterans' names. But the city's page for adding a name still says this: "There is currently no additional space for names at this time." The stone is ready. As of mid-October 2026, the sign-up process hasn't caught up with it.
That gap explains the rest of this season at 15429 Bothell Everett Hwy. A ribbon cutting is a week out, a playground is still on order, and Veterans Day is coming. The project's main purpose was to restart a list that stopped growing around 2019. Construction has done its part. Reopening the list is what's left.
A list that filled up
The monument was dedicated in May 2010. The city describes it as a paver courtyard around a flagpole, with six basalt columns engraved with the names, ranks, and branches of people who served. It started with one resident. HeraldNet reported in 2010 that Chuck Wright, a Vietnam-era U.S. Army veteran, got the idea during a 2008 drive from Portland, Maine, to Boston. Along the way he saw how New England towns honored their veterans. Tom Gathmann, then the city's Public Works Director, credited Wright and Fred Fillbrook, an Army paratrooper, with prodding the City Council to recognize veterans. The city's volunteer-run Arts and Beautification Board took on the project, with Gathmann handling the technical side.
Mill Creek garden designer Jessi Bloom of Northwest Bloom Ecological Landscape volunteered the design. Her first concept centered on six military emblems. Over time the basalt columns took center stage, and the emblems moved onto a rock. Local businesses donated materials and labor, and the city's page still credits Short, Cressman & Burgess, Clearview Nursery & Stone, NW Bloom, and Ness Cranes.
The roll grew quickly. HeraldNet's May 2010 preview counted 140 names by mid-May, including a Civil War soldier, with room for about 200 more at the time. One of them is Greeley Wells, the grandfather of Bloom's husband, who raised the American flag on Iwo Jima. Wright gave the credit to the whole community. He told the paper, "This wasn't just a Chuck Wright thing, it was a community collective."
By about 2019 the columns were full. The city's project history says no names have been added since, and that one goal of the rehabilitation was to meet public requests for more space.
What it cost to open the list again
The 2026 project cost far more than the original monument. Part of the reason is the park itself. The city says Library Park has limited room to build, the ground is affected by an on-site wetland, and the sub-drains under the lawns near the monument and playground had stopped working. Before redesigning the monument, the city brought in a wetland consultant to map which parts of the site could be developed at all.
| 2010 original | 2026 rehabilitation | |
|---|---|---|
| Columns for names | Six basalt columns | Six new pillars added |
| Public funding | $40,000 from the city's Public Art Fund | $250,000 Snohomish County grant, $250,260 Department of Commerce grant, $360,000 in reallocated city funds |
| Community role | $20,000 to $30,000 in donated labor and materials | City thanks Chuck Wright, the City Council, and the Art & Beautification and Park & Recreation Boards for their support |
| Scope | Monument and plantings | Monument, drainage, irrigation, lighting, ADA paths, benches, playground fencing and equipment |
The 2010 figures come from HeraldNet. The 2026 figures are from the city's ribbon cutting announcement. The $360,000 is Rehabilitation, Preservation, and Beautification money, formerly ARPA funds, which the City Council moved to this project. The city credits Senator John Lovick and Snohomish County Councilmember Jared Mead with helping secure the grants. Altogether, the 2026 funding comes to about $860,000 for the whole park. The original monument cost $40,000 in cash. The new money pays for drainage, accessibility, and play space along with the stone, and the six added pillars are the part that lets the list grow again.
Construction started in June 2026. As of October 5, the city listed the basalt columns, plaza improvements, path and ADA ramp repairs, benches, lawn, irrigation, and park lighting as complete.
The page that hasn't caught up
The city's monument page currently says this:
There is currently no additional space for names at this time. We will reopen the application process once the monument is able to be expanded.
The monument has now been expanded. Still, the city's October announcement doesn't say whether applications have reopened, and it gives no form, eligibility rules, deadline, or engraving fee. In 2010, the Herald reported an $83 engraving fee and an application posted on the city website. Those terms are 16 years old. The city hasn't said whether they will carry over.
For anyone who has been waiting since 2019 to add a parent, grandparent, or their own name, the city's Veterans Monument page is the place to watch. The application is hosted there, and the reopening notice will most likely appear there too.
Five dates at Library Park and Town Center
The monument's first season back runs through the city's November calendar. Library Park shares its address with the Sno-Isle Mill Creek Library, so the dates below affect anyone heading to either one.
- Monday, October 19, 10 a.m. The Veterans Monument ribbon cutting at Library Park is open to the public.
- Friday, October 30. Registration for walking, ride-along, and wheeled parade entries closes. Registration for the school Walk with Me program closed earlier, on October 12. Applications opened September 1, and the city says applying is required to be considered but doesn't guarantee a place.
- Early November. The new playground equipment is expected, along with the remaining fencing and gates. The city plans a second ribbon cutting for the finished Library Park soon after. Until then, Sno-Isle notes that parking at the library may be limited through November 2026 because of the construction.
- Wednesday, November 11, 9 to 10 a.m. The Veterans Day ceremony takes place at the monument. It will be the first one held around the expanded pillars.
- Wednesday, November 11, 11 a.m. to noon. The Veterans Day Parade runs along southbound Main Street in Town Center, listed at 15310 Main St.
The parade carries a bigger theme this year
The city is linking this year's parade to America's 250th anniversary, and it's inviting groups to sign up. Past entries have included classic car groups with veteran riders, dance teams, marching bands, military vehicles, local businesses, schools, and volunteer organizations. The city is also looking for day-of volunteers through its volunteer page.
The two halves of November 11 draw on different groups. The parade is built from applications by community groups, which the city is collecting right now. The ceremony centers on a monument whose own application is still closed. The city's project page calls the monument "a central feature of many City events, holidays, and community gatherings." So this Veterans Day, the ceremony will gather around stone that is visibly unfinished, with six pillars ready for names.
Other dates on the city calendar this fall include the Kiwanis Club of Mill Creek's free shredding day at City Hall North on Saturday, October 24, and Trunk-or-Treat on Main at Town Center Plaza on Saturday, October 31. Holidays on Main fills Town Center on Saturday, December 5, from noon to 6 p.m. Santa's Snowflake Village is at The Forum from noon to 4 p.m., the Santa Parade starts at 4 p.m., and the tree lights at 5 p.m.
Library Park is the kind of nearby investment that shows up in how a neighborhood feels from one year to the next. If you live near Bothell Everett Highway and wonder how this fall's park work and the rest of Mill Creek's civic projects affect your home, Aimee Zhang can talk it through. Get a free home valuation or schedule a consultation, in English or Mandarin.
