The Port of Vancouver USA has been awarded a $5.7 million
grant for the development of almost 60 acres of the port’s Centennial
Industrial Park.
The grant agreement between the port and Washington State
Department of Commerce was finalized in September and announced Oct. 16. The
funding was provided through the Washington State Legislature’s “2012 Jobs Now
Act,” a $1.1 billion capital budget package aimed at stimulating the state’s
economy.
The project was of a set of port infrastructure projects put
forth by the Washington Public Ports Association. It’s expected to attract an
estimated $100 million in private-sector investment and create as many as 500
new jobs for the local community.
Centennial Industrial Park, which is situated in Southwest
Washington, encompasses 108 acres zoned for light industrial use. It has
proximity to a deep-draft shipping channel, key freeway freight corridors, and
dual-carrier rail service by BNSF Railway and Union Pacific Railroad.
“There’s good reason for the Columbia River Economic
Development Council’s designation of this property as a development of
county-wide significance. It’s one of the most development-ready light industrial
sites in Clark County,” Curtis Shuck, the port’s director of economic
development and facilities for the port, said. “And thanks to the grant funding
we can fast-track our site improvements to meet growing market demands, which
is especially important now that the port’s industrial occupancy rate is 99
percent.”
The port says grant funding will be used to make
infrastructure improvements to the first 58 acres of the park, which will
support future development of about 550,000 square feet of manufacturing,
production, warehouse and ancillary office space. Specific improvements include
final site preparation, installation of underground utilities, construction of
roadways and sidewalks and the creation of a new storm water management system.
The current site plan divides the property into seven
buildable lots ranging from five to 11 acres, with the ability to be assembled
into larger parcels to accommodate marketplace needs. According to the
Washington Public Port Association, infrastructure construction is expected to
begin later this month and be complete in July 2013.