Updates on Two Major Oregon Coast Projects: Whale Watching Center Closure and Hug Point

Published 07/28/26 at 7:45 a.m.
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection Staff

(Depoe Bay, Oregon) – Two of Oregon's shining tourism gems are the Whale Watching Center in Depoe Bay and Hug Point near Cannon Beach. However, Hug Point has been shut down for awhile because of storm damage and the center is about to go under the knife, having to close soon.

The agency overseeing both provided some updates on those projects this week.

Oregon's Whale Watching Center in Depoe Bay will shut down for roof repairs soon, closing both the building and the viewing area immediately around it.

Yet State parks officials say whale watchers will still find plenty of vantage points along the coast from Astoria to Brookings.

Park Manager Burke Martin said funding for the long-needed project only recently came through. “We appreciate the community's patience and support as we work to protect and preserve this unique coastal facility,” he said.

The center occupies a 1956 postwar building listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It briefly operated as an Oregon Coast Aquarium retail space around 2000.

Construction could begin as early as Aug. 1, depending on contractor scheduling. Summer weather is expected to give crews a better chance at completing the roof work without delays.

Crews will replace the original roofing membrane, fix leaks from the promenade deck and install new drains.

The center will stay open until construction officially starts, and Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD) expects the project to wrap up by late October - ahead of the winter gray whale migration.

Officials acknowledged the closure may inconvenience visitors and Depoe Bay residents but said the repairs are essential.

A turnout about a block north of the center will remain open, and nearby parks - including Boiler Bay, Rocky Creek and Cape Foulweather - continue to offer reliable whale-watching viewpoints.

OPRD also provided a brief update on Hug Point, which remains closed for reconstruction since late last year after rainstorms caused enormous damage to the landscape. In essence, there is just a little to update and there is no clear timeline yet when it will reopen.

OPRD spokesperson Lauren Wirtis said there was lots of work done and some major progress just this week.

“Hug Point parking lot is being paved today,” she told Oregon Coast Beach Conneciton. “This is part of the long-term repair needed to address high volumes of water draining from the parking lot down the beach access trail to the stairs.”

Adding more drainage was to be necessary – the agency knew that early on. Wirtis said they have already added more drainage structures, and the overlay was also used to change the slopes slightly going down to the beach. That, she said, should shift the route water takes going down and move it away from the access stairway so impact on it will be less during major rain events.

Those stairs have not yet been rebuilt. Hug Point Geolgic Oddities - Take the Walking Tour

“The beach access stairs themselves are in the permitting process,”Wirits said. “Some steady progress. No clear timeline for completion yet.”

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