Action Taken at February 6, 2024 Meeting
Shall the commission:
14. Approve a five-year lease with Zaremba Paxton P.S.? The first three months for suite 102 in the Bayview Center Building are rent- free to allow the certified public accounts to prepare the premises for occupancy. The lease expires on 2/28/2029 and the rent for five years is $152,583. The lease can be renewed for three consecutive five-year periods. (13466/Consent Agenda D) Approved 3-0
15. Send a letter to Senator Sharon Shewmake, and Reprententatives Alex Ramel and Joe Timmons? The letter urges their support of $4 million in state appropriations to complete the design and construction of an electric hydrofoil ferry prototype. The zero-emission technology requires U.S. Coast Guard approval to operate in Washington water. (13469/Consent Agenda C) Approved 3-0
16. Authorize the executive director to sign a cooperative agreement with 1000 C LLC of Bellingham (David Ebenal)? At the 9/18/2007 meeting, vote #109, the commission authorized the executive director to sign an agreement with Meridian-Pacific of Bellingham to implement a cleanup plan for the Whatcom Waterway site. At the same meeting, vote #110, the commission approved a consent agreement with the state of Washington to implement a Whatcom Waterway cleanup plan; $72 million was the estimated cleanup cost. At the 4/6/2010 meeting, vote #64, the commission voted on spending $2.5 million to purchase three parcels of land and building at Roeder Avenue and C Street owned by Meridian-Pacific and adjacent to Whatcom Waterway. The vote failed, with Mike McAuley and Scott Walker opposed. At the 6/7/2011 meeting, vote #92, amendment #1 to the consent decree cleanup plan was approved. Amendment #2 to the consent decree is currently pending. The current property owner is 1000 C LLC and will cooperate with remediation efforts at the Whatcom Waterway site. On the cooperative agreement, 1000 C LLC with replace Meridian-Pacific. (13476/Action Item #1) Approved 3-0
17. Authorize the executive director to sign a letter to Harcourt Bellingham denying their request for an extension to the development schedule? At the 3/31/2015 special meeting, vote #53, the commission authorized the executive director to sign a master development agreement with Harcourt Developments Limited of Dublin, Ireland, for 18.8 acres within the Waterfront District. At the 8/9/2021 meeting, vote #101, the master development agreement property was reduced from 18.8 acres to 7.7 acres owing to the fact that three resident buildings had not been completed on schedule. On 10/20/2023, the port issued Harcourt a notice of default for the failure of compliance with the development schedule. On 12/5/2023, Harcourt requested an extension of the development schedule. (13480/Consent Agenda B) Approved 3-0
18. Authorize the executive director to sign a personal services agreement with CFM Advocates of Washington, D.C., to provide federal lobbying consultant services? The port is involved with the federal government in a number of areas, including the Bellingham airport, marine trades, shipping terminal/log pond, and the Waterfront District. The monthly fee is $7,750, and a yearly total of $93,000. The contract expires on 12/31/2024. (13481/Action Item #2) Approved 3-0
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Action Taken at February 20, 2024 Meeting
Shall the commission:
19. Transfer a lease ownership from John Wiley & Sons to Academic Partnership? At the 2/15/2022 meeting, vote #27, the ownership for the lease on suite 107 in the Bellwether Building was transferred from XYZ Media to John Wiley & Sons of Hoboken, New Jersey. In 2023, Academic Partnership acquired Wiley’s online educational business for $150 million. The lease for suite 107 in the Bellwether Building is being transferred to Academic Partnership of Dallas, Texas. (13515/Consent Agenda B) Approved 3-0
20. Approve an agreement renewing a lease with Whatcom County and the City of Bellingham for the Emergency Operation Center located at 3888 Sound Way? At the 12/3/2013 meeting, vote 178, the commission approved the original agreement for the port-owned facility located at the Bellingham airport, which was used by the federal government during the 2010 Winter Olympics and had been vacant since then. At the time, the county did not have a location in the county to assemble and respond to an emergency. This renewal makes a market adjustment for the rent (a 5 percent increase over 2023) and adds a provision to update the generator for the facility. The city, county and port divide the costs with an inflator each year for the Consumer Price Index. The annual cost to the port is $168,709 plus inflator and the renewed agreement expires on 12/31/2033. (13516/Consent Agenda C) Approved 3-0
21. Authorize the executive director to spend up to $900,000 to acquire property? The memorandum did not list the reason for the purchase or the location. When the commissioners voted on the purchase, they didn’t ask any questions. (13592/Consent Agenda D) Approved 3-0
