PORT TOWNSEND — Jefferson County officials have stopped all work on an environmental impact statement for the Fred Hill Materials pit-to-pier project, saying the company owes it nearly $100,000.
Dan Baskins, Fred Hill Materials project manager, said a payment for $55,333.98 had been delayed but would be paid by Friday, while another payment — for $44,348 — would be paid by its due date of July 31.
He called the county’s action politically motivated, and said officials were “acting in bad faith.”
County leaders said Tuesday that they are open to renegotiating a contract with Fred Hill Materials to continue the process that would lead to the pit-to-pier project.
The Poulsbo-based company, which operates the Shine gravel pit, wants to build a 4-mile-long conveyor for gravel from the Shine pit hub to a 1,000-foot long pier to be built on the Hood Canal shoreline.
The company submitted applications to the county in 2003 for zoning, substantial development and shoreline permits.
The pit-to-pier environmental impact statement will address such issues as visual, archaeological, Navy concerns, and the general environmental impact on Hood Canal and its marine life, said Al Scalf, director of the county Department of Community Development.
