Action Taken at February 4, 2025 Meeting
Shall the commission:
9. Appoint Burt Webber (Cliffside Community) to the Airport Advisory Committee? Six local interest positions were advertised and one application was received. The Airport Advisory Committee reviewed Bert Webber’s application and recommended approval. (14448/Consent Agenda C) Approved 3-0
10. Approve a five-year land lease with Granite Construction Company of Watsonville, California? Granite has been operating in Whatcom County since 1911. The lease is for five acres of land at the cargo support area (log pond) adjacent to the Bellingham Shipping Terminal. The company will have 13 full-time employees at the shipping terminal, plus transport personnel and shift jobs for an estimated 192 longshoremen. Aggregate materials will be imported, exported, stockpiled, transported, sold, and distributed. The initial monthly base rent for land and a warehouse is $16,186. The lease expires on 2/28/2030 with two additional five-year renewal periods. (14449/Action Item #1) Approved 3-0
11. Modify the 2025 Bellingham airport tariff and fee schedule? (Public hearing held.) The schedule is for ground service fees; license to operate fees; space and land rental fees; transit, weekly and monthly tie-down, aviation fees; and security access cards. This modification to the schedule will increase specific tariff rates released to aeronautical activity. The tariff rate increase will generate additional revenue to help the airport becoming self-sustaining, necessary for the port to receive federal grants. The tie-down fees and hanger lease rates at the airport are lower than comparable airports in the region. The increased fees will support future operational and capital development and are estimated to increase annual revenue by $35,000. (14451/Action Item #3) Approved 3-0
12. Remove employee cash tills at the Squalicum Harbor office? Petty cash funds are no longer needed; the Squalicum Harbor office has transitioned into a cashless facility. 14453/ Consent Agenda C (Resolution 1362-F) Approved 3-0
13. Update Bellingham airport rules and regulations? Federal inspectors with the Transportation Security Administration identified a security vulnerability at the airport. All tenants within the operations area must be approved for an airport access media badge within 45 days of lease execution. (14455/Action Item #2) Approved 3-0
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Action Taken at February 18, 2025 Meeting
Shall the commission:
14. Authorize the executive sign a one-year $434,628 contract extension the with SP Plus Corporation of Chicago, Illinois, for janitorial maintenance services at the Bellingham airport? This contract is a 9 percent increase over the 2024 contact. The contract was first approved at the 6/21/2016 meeting, vote #113. The previous contract that expired on 1/31/2025 added parking services and they are included in this contract. (14474/Consent Agenda C) Approved 3-0
15. Authorize the executive director to sign a letter of approval for phase 2 of the Millworks project? At the 11/15/2022 meeting, vote #134, the Millworks LLC signed an option for 3.3 acre site in the Waterfront District. The project is in the Lignin parcel. Phase 1 includes 83 units of permanently affordable workforce and family rental housing, along with a six-classroom early childhood education center run by the Whatcom Family YMCA to support approximately 100 children. At the 8/9/2022 meeting, vote #100, the port received a $2,915,000 state grant for affordable housing in the Waterfront District. Phase 2 includes a seven-story building with a local food campus on the first floor, the second floor will be nonprofit offices and meeting space for tenants, and the remaining five stories will be 109 units of affordable and workforce rental housing. Also included, parking below and adjacent to the building. (14476/Action Item #1) Approved 3-0
16. Modify a lease with Halibut Henry’s at the Bellingham Airport? Since 1999, Halibut Henry’s has leased space at the airport. At the 3/19/2013 meeting, vote #55, a new lease agreement was approved for 1,282 total square feet of space at the airport. It broke down to: 461 square feet in the terminal building, 129 square feet of space in the security portion of the terminal, and 692 square feet in the food preparation area. The business currently leases 1,498 square feet of retail, storage and office space. In August 2024, an airline stopped servicing the airport resulting in a reduction in 40 percent of the flights. The reduction in business has caused a hardship to Halibut Henry and a request for a reduction in the percent of gross receipts they pay the port. The percentage will be reduced from 2 percent to 6 percent based on enplanements. (14478/Action Item #2) Approved 3-0
17. Allocate an additional $129,000 for restroom renovations at 3928 Williamson Way? Increased construction costs will escalate the budget from $230,500 to $359,500. Phase 1 will construct a women’s and men’s locker room, a bathroom and a shower. (14479/ Consent Agenda C) Approved 3-0
