The Clinton Community Council wants a better place for dropoffs and pickups on Ferry Dock Road.

During a monthly meeting Monday, the council’s president, Jack Lynch, said the Washington State Department of Transportation agreed to make some improvements to the narrow road and 20-minute parking area between Highway 525 and Berg Road. He said gravel would be laid between the street and bluff; the area becomes wet and muddy with little room for people to get in and out of a car’s passenger side. Hillside brush would also be cleared, and hash marks would be painted to demarcate where the 20-minute area ended.

“A little bit of lipstick on the pig just for now is not always bad,” said Island County Commissioner Helen Price Johnson, a member of the volunteer-led community council.

A lingering issue, council members said, is people parking there much longer than the 20-minute limit. Island County law enforcement has been asked to check the area, Price Johnson said, but more help from the state would be appreciated because it is the state’s right of way.