PORT ANGELES — Demolition of the mill buildings on Marine Drive, which most recently housed Peninsula Plywood, is expected to begin in about one year.
“This is our highest priority,” Jeff Robb, port executive director, said Wednesday.
The buildings, constructed in the 1940s, have exceeded their useful lives and should come down as soon as possible, Robb said in a report to port commissioners Monday.
According to the port’s work plan, the permitting and planning process should take about a year, after which the port can begin to tear down the buildings.
As long as the permitting process runs smoothly, the port should be ready to redevelop the site in 2014, Robb said.
The site has direct access to marine terminals 1 and 3, and property could be better utilized in ways other than as the mill it has been for the past 70 years, according to the work plan.
The most recent tenant, Peninsula Plywood LLC, closed in November after staying open for 20 months.
PenPly left unpaid more than $2.4 million to the port, city of Port Angeles and state Department of Labor and Industries.
The port filed suit the first week of April in Clallam County Superior Court against PenPly for more than $1.6 million in unpaid rental payments, equipment rental fees and funds owed under a log transport licensing agreement.
The port has met with two banks involved in the liquidation of PenPly property, and an equipment auction is expected to be complete by August, Robb said.
Deconstruction of the 19-acre site is not in the port’s 2012 budget.
Funding for the project is expected to be addressed in the 2013 budget.
The port’s Port Central Waterfront Master Plan suggests the redevelopment of the site in support of “marine trades.”
Marine trades is just about anything that is dependent on having access to the waterfront, Robb said.
Those uses could include typical waterfront businesses such as boat manufacturing, boat repair or cutting-edge marine technology such as the development, manufacture, deployment and/or maintenance of wave-energy devices.
The permitting process for the removal of the site is extensive because of the location and age of the buildings.
An environmental assessment consulting firm began the initial inspection of the PenPly buildings in March, and the port should have the completed report in the next week or two, Robb said.
Once the port receives the environmental assessment report from the company, the port must evaluate mitigation issues, apply for hazardous-material abatements and contract for the work, develop plans and specifications for building demolition and prepare cost estimates, and advertise the project for bids.
Robb said that once the port puts out requests for bids, he hopes local companies are part of the process.
“Local businesses should have an advantage,” he said.
However, he noted, the port as a governmental entity is legally bound to take the “lowest responsible bid.”
At this time, there are no special complications that would require a specialist to be brought in from outside the area, he said.
The cost of redevelopment is expected to be significant because of environmental issues, including its waterfront location and the likelihood of hazardous materials on the site, but there are no estimates at this time.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5070, or at arwyn.rice@peninsuladailynews.com.
