PORT ANGELES — U.S. Rep. Emily Randall visited Port Angeles to visit Tse-whit-zen, an ancestral Lower Elwha Klallam village, and to meet with Port of Port Angeles officials.
Randall, D-Port Orchard, secured $850,000 in federal funding for the Tse-whit-zen protection and restoration project, pending final approval by the U.S. Senate. The work is intended to stabilize the property to make it eligible for state and federal historic property designations.
Port commissioners Connie Beauvais and Steve Burke, along with port staff, met with Randall and tribal members on Tuesday at the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe’s cultural department office near the site on the west end of Port Angeles Harbor.
Last year, the port and the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe approved a long-negotiated agreement to allow a property exchange tied to Tse-whit-zen.
Carmen Watson-Charles, cultural manager for the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, walked Randall through the history of the Tse-whit-zen site and described excavation, artifact and burial discoveries that followed construction work in the early 2000s.
Watson-Charles said the work had been complicated by fragmented land ownership, regulatory restrictions and differing approaches to archaeological practice. She said remains were sometimes damaged by earlier activity, construction and pollution.
Despite past conflicts, Watson-Charles said collaboration among stakeholders has improved and would be critical as the site moves toward long-term protection.
“I’m really grateful for all the agencies and the partnerships that we have built,” she said.
Randall said cooperation between tribal and local governments have helped advance the project and emphasized the importance of funding projects that reflect the needs of a large, diverse rural district.
Before they met with Randall, commissioners and staff gathered for a port meeting that included discussion of capacity constraints and development strategy.
With most port-owned space effectively spoken for, Caleb McMahon, the port’s director of economic development, told commissioners it was operating at near-capacity and would need to decide how — and when — to expand its rental inventory.
“We currently have a 95 percent occupancy rate,” McMahon said, with only about 5,000 square feet of the port’s roughly 450,000-square-foot inventory expected to be available soon.
He said the port could reach 98 percent occupancy this year.
“We’re going to have to really lean into building facilities,” McMahon said.
Commissioners Beauvais, Burke and Colleen McAleer discussed whether the port should focus on new construction, property acquisition or partnerships to expand capacity.
Port CEO Paul Jarkiewicz said the agency’s five-year capital improvement plan did not include new buildings, even as demand remains strong for warehouse-style space and facilities at William R. Fairchild International Airport.
“The hangars are already spoken for — and the building’s not even built yet,” he said.
Commissioners emphasized the need for a clear plan and timeline before they pursue any expansion.
Commissioners also approved three community sponsorship items, including a request from the Port Angeles Salmon Club tied to the Halibut Derby over Memorial Day weekend.
Club member Robert Beausoleil thanked commissioners for agreeing to waive launch fees for the derby weekend, saying the club is rebuilding after years of inactivity.
“We’ve had to overcome several obstacles, and we’re getting back on track,” Beausoleil said.
The port could not agree to the club’s request to provide parking in the log yard adjacent to the launch ramp because of a construction project scheduled to begin May 4.
“It’s going to be an active construction zone,” grants and government affairs manager Katharine Frazier said, citing safety and liability concerns.
Staff estimated that waiving launch fees for about 500 participants would amount to roughly $9,000 in foregone revenue. Jarkiewicz described the request as a one-year jump-start.
“I’m very much in support of kick-starting this and getting it going,” Burke said, adding he wanted a plan beyond this year that would work for both the club and the port.
Commissioners agreed to continue working with the club on alternative parking options.
Commissioners also approved $1,000 sponsorships for the Sequim Logging Show, scheduled for May 8-9, and the American Forest Resource Council’s annual meeting, set for April 7-9 in Stevenson.
In addition to the Tse-whit-zen protection restoration project ($850,000), Randall secured appropriations funding for an Olympic Medical Center telehealth expansion project ($1 million) and the Makah Housing resilience project ($1.2 million). In Jefferscon County, funding went to the Hoh Tribe Resiliency Center in Forks ($3.15 million) and the Jefferson Healthcare Patient Imaging Project ($1 million).
________
Reporter Paula Hunt can be reached by email at paula.hunt@peninsuladailynews.com.
