Bellingham’s I-5 graffiti rock broken up, will no longer be relocated

WSDOT is planning to share a limited number of pieces with interested members of the public.

I-5 graffiti rock pieces Bellingham WSDOT

ContributedSome of the remaining pieces of the I-5 graffiti rock. Photo courtesy of WSDOT.

BELLINGHAM, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Bellingham’s famed graffiti rock has been broken up, and the future of its remaining pieces is back in limbo.

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) announced on Wednesday, May 6, that the I-5 rock has been broken into pieces for removal. Crews drilled holes in the rock and poured expansive grout into them, creating cracks that allowed it to break apart over a process lasting more than 12 hours.

Although WSDOT had previously found a private property owner to take the rock, it now says the rock will no longer be relocated. WSDOT spokesperson David Rasbach told KGMI that the pieces were deemed too small for the property owner to display.

The agency is now developing a plan to share a limited number of pieces with “interested members of the public.” It says more details will be shared once plans are finalized.

People have celebrated graduations and birthdays, sent get-well messages, even memorialized loved ones on the rock since it was first tagged in 1969.

But the rock stood in the direct path of a temporary bypass road that will keep traffic moving during upcoming fish passage construction through Chuckanut Creek.