Port Angeles: Resort developer sees “magic”” in his plan for old Rayonier mill site

PENINSULA DAILY NEWS

He’s a gentle giant of a man who literally views his $120-million-plus proposal for the Rayonier pulp mill site in Port Angeles through rose-colored sunglasses.

“This is probably the most spectacular piece of property in the Puget Sound,” California developer Jerry Ward told business leaders Thursday when he unveiled his plan.

Ward, who a week ago was unknown to most of the community outside of some Port Angeles City Hall officials and the Rayonier Inc. offices, wants to build a seven-story, 322-unit timeshare condominium complex on the defunct mill’s 75-acre waterfront site at the north end of Ennis Street east of downtown.

The 64-year-old California-based resort developer/entrepreneur also proposes elaborate amenities to complement the condos, including an exotic fish aquarium and marine research center, a family-fun water park and a waterfront retail center.

The property would include a five-story, 750-vehicle parking garage with a monorail link 5,000 feet west to the MV Coho ferry terminal.

He would use a magnetic-levitation system called LEVX, developed by Karl “Jerry” Lamb, president and CEO of Magna Force Inc. of Port Angeles.

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The rest of the story appears in the Sunday Peninsula Daily News.

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