PORT TOWNSEND — The Port of Port Townsend has closed on its $1.4 million purchase of Short’s Family Farm on Center Road.
“We officially own 253 acres of prime Chimacum Valley farmland,” Executive Director Eron Berg said.
But don’t expect the port to add greenhouse supplies and cattle squeeze chutes to its inventory any time soon.
“It’s a little bit of a slow process while we’re engaged in plans to proceed,” Berg said.
The letter of intent the port signed with Roger and Sandy Short in February allows them to remain in their home for one year at no cost to wrap up their cattle operation. During this transition period, the port will organize a steering committee to provide guidance and offer advice on the project.
Berg said more details, including the selection and number of members on the steering committee, would be discussed at the port commission meeting on Sept. 13.
The deal closed on Friday.
“It will be farmer-heavy, but include collaborators who have been integral to the process and spent a lot of time on it, such as the Salmon Coalition and the county,” Berg said.
Jefferson Land Trust, which owns a conservation easement on the Short’s Farm property, would probably not be on the steering committee, Berg said, but it would have a separate, independent role.
“We need to talk to them about how they’d like to engage,” Berg said of the land trust. “We want them to be there.”
The land trust has a conservation easement that preserves the 253 acres for agriculture and protects wildlife habitat. The easement prohibits certain kinds of uses, such as commercial aquaculture, covering more than 2 percent of the property in impervious surfaces, such as paved roads and buildings and recreational vehicle use.
The port held a number of public meetings and solicited community input on its interest in the farm before the board unanimously approved its purchase with $1 million in state support and from port capital reserves.
The port has said its interest in acquiring the farm was to support Jefferson County agricultural production, job creation and the ability to contribute to the building of a reliable and resilient food system.
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Reporter Paula Hunt can be reached at paula.hunt@soundpublishing.com.
