PORT TOWNSEND — M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust has awarded a $300,000 grant to the Northwest Maritime Center for construction of new facilities downtown.
The trust, based in Vancouver, Wash., provides grants to Pacific Northwest organizations that “seek to strengthen the region’s educational and cultural base in creative and sustainable ways,” it said in a written statement.
Waterfront facility
The Northwest Maritime Center is building a 27,000-square-foot waterfront facility at the east end of Water Street adjacent to Point Hudson Marina.
“We’re about 55 percent complete now,” said Stan Cummings, executive director.
“Siding is going on. Drywall is up in the Heritage Building, and the second-floor decks are almost in.”
The grant is in the form of a challenge. The Maritime Center will receive $150,000 now, and the remaining amount will have to be matched — $2 for every $1 of grant money.
“This grant could not have come at a better time,” Cummings said. “Murdock is a well-known foundation, and an award from them lends legitimacy to any project. We expect to be able to leverage their gift to help us finish the campaign.
“With this grant, we will have raised about 90 percent of our $12.5 million goal and have every confidence we will achieve our goal very soon.”
Steve Oliver, Maritime Center board president, said that the grant is especially appreciated in difficult economic times.
“It is gratifying that foundations continue to take the long view in funding worthwhile endeavors,” Oliver said.
“The value of this project to Jefferson County is education and economic development. Murdock is providing great support to our community at a very important time.”
The formal ground-breaking for the two-building project took place in July 2008.
The Chandler Maritime Education Building will open in September, in time for the 33rd annual Wooden Boat Festival organized by the Wooden Boat Foundation, which is set Sept. 11 to 13, Cummings said.
The Maritime Heritage and Resource Building is expected to open Jan. 1, 2010.
Public access
In a cooperative agreement with the city of Port Townsend, more than 60 percent of the waterfront location will be available for public use 24 hours, seven days a week.
This includes the center’s courtyard and second-story decks, from which all commercial vessel traffic crossing Admiralty Inlet will be visible.
“Completion of the Maritime Center, in conjunction with other proposed waterfront improvements, will help revitalize the eastern end of the historic downtown and provide many benefits to the citizens of our community,” said Dave Robison, project manager.
Built with a careful eye to environmental construction practices and materials, the new building will be the first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design — or LEED — Gold certified building on the North Olympic Peninsula.
Port Townsend City Hall’s annex is a LEED Silver certified building.
LEED is a voluntary, national rating system for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings.
Developed by U.S. Green Building Council, LEED emphasizes state-of-the-art strategies for sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials and resources selection, indoor environmental quality and innovation and design.
“The new facility will be heated using the temperature differential between nearby ocean water and ambient air instead of heating air with fossil fuels,” Robison said.
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Port Townsend-Jefferson County Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at jeff.chew@peninsuladailynews.com.
