PORT ANGELES — The Port of Port Angeles has already seen interest from a number of parties after its recent designation as a Foreign Trade Zone.
However, it doesn’t anticipate changing its plans for activating the FTZ in light of the Trump administration’s policy to impose 25 percent tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico. Those taxes have been delayed by at least 30 days, while China has hit back at its 10 percent tariff with a number of retaliatory measures.
The FTZ located on the waterfront, at William R. Fairchild International Airport and the airport industrial area will allow companies to defer or eliminate taxes paid on goods imported into the United States. The port is meeting with U.S. Customs and Border Protection this week to discuss next steps.
“We’ve seen some reversals, so at the end of the day, we’ll have to wait and see,” Paul Jarkiewicz, the port’s executive director, told Tuesday’s meeting of the Port Angeles Business Association.
In addition to the FTZ, Jarkiewicz and staff presented updates on the port’s projects and activities, particularly efforts to reduce its carbon footprint by transforming infrastructure and operations.
The port will improve its shore power and cut down carbon emissions with funding from the EPA’s Clean Port’s Program by replacing old infrastructure to enable more vessels to use shore power rather than run on fuel when they’re docked. The zero-emission cargo handler they will purchase can be used for a number of different tasks, enabling the port to move more and different kinds of cargo without negatively effecting air quality.
The port contributed just 5 percent — $525,000 — toward the $10 million in state and federal funding it received for the project.
That is an example of the port using levy dollars wisely to invest in projects that have significant economic benefits but little financial impact on taxpayers, Jarkiewicz said.
“We have over $40 million worth of investments we’re making in the community between ’24 and ’25 and into ’26 and ’27,” he said. “This is by using your tax dollars as leverage for those grants for a match.”
The port has very little debt, he said, allowing it to use reserves as leverage for federal grants as well.
“We leverage as much as we can, because one of the primary missions we have, besides operating the marine terminal and everything else that we do, is making sure that we’re developing industry and opportunities within Clallam County,” he said.
Sixty percent of the $11 million Marine Trade Center project was funded by grants, which allowed the port to turn the former K Ply site into productive use, said Katharine Frazier, the port’s grants and contracts manager.
The infrastructure upgrades at the Marine Trade Center, including sewer, stormwater, stormwater treatment and electric infrastructure, that began last June are mostly complete, with the finishing touches coming later this year, she said.
“It’s very different from it used to be, and we’re really excited to be bringing this back to the community as a place for business,” Frazier said.
The port will use the $6 million in funds it received from North Olympic Peninsula Recompete Coalition for improving regional maritime transportation by purchasing spud, inland and ocean barges. The purpose is to reduce barriers to starting new businesses and reduce high transportation costs, Frazier said.
The spud barge, for example, operates something like a mobile port that can be used at facilities that don’t have the capacity to move cargo, alleviating reliance on road freight to transport goods.
“We’re one of the last vestiges on the Olympic Coast where you have an industrial true working waterfront, whether you’re in fishing or the commercial sphere or recreational sphere, that’s one thing Clallam County has expected us to deliver on year after year after year,” Jarkiewicz said. “We’ll continue to do that, but it’s also important for everybody to see where the money’s going.”
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Reporter Paula Hunt can be reached by email at paula.hunt@peninsuladailynews.com.
