Good morning and welcome to the
Port of Vancouver Board of
Commissioners meeting. Today is
Tuesday, April 14th. I'm
calling the meeting to order at
9:30 a.m. There was no
executive session held this
morning. And I do have a
microphone, so maybe I should
sit next to it. Please note
this meeting is being recorded.
My name is Don orange and I'm
the president of the Board of
Vancouver Commission. Joining
me are Eric LaBrant and
Commissioner Temple Linse. We
are conducting a hybrid meeting
along with our in-person
meeting we're having here. We
also set up so that we can take
testimony from folks that are
not physically able to make it
here. Please join me in a
Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge
allegiance to the flag of the
United States of America and to
the Republic for which it
stands, one nation under God,
indivisible, with liberty and
justice for all. Moving into
the agenda, the first action is
approval of minutes. Temple.
What do you say?
>> Well, Mr. President, I have
reviewed the minutes of the
March 24th, 2026 regular
meeting and find them to be in
order, so I move approval.
>> I will second the motion.
All in favor? Aye, aye.
Unanimously. Next up is open
forum.
>> Yes. Good morning
commissioners. So today we do
have a few folks that are
interested in speaking during
open forum. We will start with
our virtual testimony. We have
Don Steinke that is joining us
virtually. So let's go ahead
and move to Don. If you could
hear me and we'll verify. We
can hear you as well.
>> Good morning. Can you hear
me?
>> Yep. Can hear you. Perfect.
>> Hello everyone. My name is
Don Steinke. I would like to
talk about rooftop solar, for
example, several thousand
people in Clark County, such as
Commissioner Orange, have
rooftop solar with a two way
meter on their house. If
Commissioner Orange's solar
panels produce more energy than
he's using, then Clark PUD buys
that surplus energy from him at
the retail rate. However, Clark
PUD had had no program for
doing that for commercial
buildings such as warehouses
until this year. Now they do.
The PUD tells me that their key
accounts managers are promoting
rooftop solar with their key
accounts, such as at the port.
I encourage you to amplify that
message to your tenant, to your
tenants. The urgency is greater
than I realized a week ago. We
maxed out our hydro system
years ago, and we are short of
electricity for population
growth and for economic
development. Clark PUD was
counting on getting solar
electricity from east of the
Cascades delivered by the BPA
system, but we can't count on
that anymore. And the reason is
I left that out of my notes.
But the reason is Interior
Secretary Doug Mahlum is
scouring the federal registry
to deny any renewable energy
projects on federal land, not
only on federal land, but with
any federal nexus, such as the
BPA. So we may not be able to
get electricity from the BPA.
If Interior Secretary Doug
Burgum nixes that. And so we
need to have local solar. And
so that's why I encourage you
to to get busy with local solar
on your own warehouses. And the
Clark PUD has an incentive
program for that. And that
their incentive program had a
has a maximum size of 1000kW.
And the compensation rate is
the avoided cost rate rather
than the retail rate. And I
encourage you to develop a plan
to cover all your roofs with
solar by 2045 as much as
possible. The ideal time is
when buildings are reroofed.
Topic two although you have
adopted a climate action plan,
I don't recall if you adopted
an emissions reduction plan
with intermediate targets. I
encourage you to do that if you
haven't. Topic number three.
Starting this month, the
Washington Zero Emissions
Incentive Program is officially
going live. It's offering $112
million in vouchers to help
Washington businesses purchase
zero emission, medium and heavy
duty commercial vehicles and
equipment. I sent the details
to your general manager. Thank
you. That's all I have. Have a
great day.
>> Thank you. Don. Next up.
>> Yes. So we have two people
that have signed up here in
person. First, I'd like to
welcome Peter Fells to the
podium up here.
>> And I didn't say so because
we haven't been getting a lot
of public testimony. But if
you'll keep it around three
minutes, be appreciated.
>> Yeah, I think I can be
shorter than Mr. Stinky.
>> He didn't even run long.
>> He has. He has a lot of.
Good time. He has a lot of good
information. Good morning,
commissioners, Miss Lowe, Miss
Mahler and whoever's listening.
And the audience. My name is
Peter Fells. I live here in
Vancouver. First of all, I want
to congratulate you and thank
you and your staff for what
seems will be an
environmentally friendly lease
on Haasl seven for future
warehouses. However, once again,
I want to address the issue of
potential Ice detention
facilities in warehouses on
port property. As you probably
know, the federal
administration is currently
housing over 70,000 people in
private detention facilities
throughout the country, and
they're looking to expand their
capacity. Homeland security is
buying land and leasing
warehouses to be used for
detention. Now, when I last
spoke on this topic virtually a
month ago, Commissioner LaBrant
commented that he finds what
Ice is doing morally
reprehensible. I believe you
probably all agree. I also
believe the vast majority of
your constituents agree and do
not want Ice detention
facilities on port property,
detention facilities don't
serve the mission of the port
to promote industrial jobs for
our community. They may in fact
interfere with port operations.
We don't know exactly who the
future tenants of warehouses.
Are leased out by Majestic
Realty might be. However, you
can prevent their use for
detention facilities by placing
restrictions on the lease
agreement with majestic or
whoever your lessee. A parcel
seven is, and those
restrictions would prohibit any
use or sublease for use of a
detention facility. I ask you
to direct your staff to consult
with legal team. Maybe Miss Loh
here to incorporate such
restrictions into the proposed
lease and any other future
leases. Thank you very much.
>> Thank you Peter. Thank you.
>> Okay. Next we have Deacon
Letnick.
>> Bring this up a little bit.
Good morning, commissioners and
staff. Thank you again for the
opportunity. Quickly. I want to
thank the port for their
willingness to send a
representative to our bi weekly
labor roundtable. It's always
nice to have a update on what's
happening here, and it's
appreciated to have the
representation at the port in
the community. On that note,
I'm here today to circle back
to an idea I addressed this
board with about a year ago.
And that's the idea of safe,
bitter language in contract
awards. It essentially says
that if a contractor has had
three serious, willful or
knowing violations or, excuse
me, serious health or safety
citations, violations or
penalties in a three year
period prior to bidding work
for, in this instance, the Port
of Vancouver, that contractor
would be prohibited from being
awarded that work for their
safety violations. Similar
language has recently been
adopted in the city of
Ridgefield. That language led
to the removal of a lowest
responsible bidder who did not
meet those qualifications, and
the project was given to the
second lowest responsible
bidder. This is language that
protects, I think, awarding
agencies. It protects families,
and it shows a commitment to
safe work and care of members
of the community in the area.
Having seen this language gone
through legal process and now
having taken action in a
different municipality, I
wanted to bring it back to the
forefront of this organization.
I think it's a great
opportunity for this port to
promote safe work sites, safe
work zones, and just kind of
respect the process of
construction and how hard and
how important it is for people
to go home to their families
every day. Happy to resend an
email with that information and
examples of that language to
any that need it. I can also
obviously produce hard copies.
Any questions about its intent
or the spelling out of it, or
just anything happy to meet
offline or in any situation.
But I think this is a great
opportunity for this port to
show a commitment to the safety
and health of local workers in
this community, and I
appreciate the opportunity.
Thank you so much.
>> Thank you. Deacon. Deacon,
we don't usually go back and
forth at this point in the deal,
but you do well to send all of
us, bring us back up to date on
that. It's.
>> Commissioner Linse hadn't
had the opportunity, by the way,
happy to see you up there.
>> And my brain's just waking
up to the issue. So if you'd
send us that stuff.
>> Happy to refresh everybody's
memory. Yes, sir. Anything else?
Great. Thanks so much.
>> Thank you. Thank you. Deacon.
>> Commissioners, that is all
that has signed up. I'll just
quickly look into the audience
to see if anyone else. I think
that is it for Open Forum today.
>> Very cool. We're through
with Open Forum. We haven't had
any in a while, so I got to
check my notes and know where
to go next. Next up are action
items on the agenda today.
Juliana. You're it.
>> Yes. So we have two action
items today and we have Josh
Pope, port project manager, who
is actually going to be
presenting both action items.
So good morning Josh.
>> Good morning Juliana. Good
morning commissioners. Good
morning. All right. First
action item. This project
supports the port's strategic
plan goal to develop a 20 year
comprehensive scheduled
maintenance plan to maximize
operational capacity,
efficiency and life expectancy
of port assets. The lease
agreement between the Port of
Vancouver and Western
Partitions, Inc. effective June
9th, 2021, references that the
port shall, at its expense,
repair and maintain the roof
structure in the First
Amendment of the lease.
Effective September 10th, 2024,
the parties agreed that the
port would design, permit and
construct building repairs to
either repair or replace the
existing roof coating, interior
downspouts, gutters, roof
venting system and any other
water damage caused from roof
leaks. If approved, the port.
This project will replace
approximately 170,000 square
foot of roofing, repair water
damage within the office spaces
and perform needed sprinkler
maintenance. Some hazardous
materials abatement will be
required as part of the scope
of work. The construction
schedule for this project is
120 working days on February
19th, 2026, the Port of
Vancouver issued an invitation
to bid 2602 building 2001
improvements. The Port of
Vancouver's award of this
contract is established on base
bid not to include the additive
alternate. The port reserves
the right to adjust the scope
of this work to match available
funds. On March 12th, 2026, the
following bids were received
and in the agenda item you have
the The Bidder list. Pacific
Tech construction out of Kelso,
Washington is the apparent low
bidder with a bid of $2,718,202.
Staff has reviewed Pacific Tech
construction. Responsive
bidding included that they are
responsive and responsible
contractor capable of
performing the work. The bid is
below the engineer's estimate
range of 5,860,800 to
$6,477,726. This project was
included in the approved 2026
capital budget. Would you like
me to read the recommendation,
please? That the Board of
Commissioners authorize the CEO
to execute a public works
contract with Pacific Tech
Construction. The lowest
responsive and responsible
bidder for bid 2602 building
2001. Improvements for
$2,718,202, plus applicable
Washington state sales tax. Are
there any questions?
>> Hearing none.
>> Well.
>> What's your pleasure?
>> I move that the Board of
Commissioners approve the
recommendation as presented by
staff.
>> I'll second the motion.
Moved and seconded. Call the
question. All those in favor?
>> Aye, aye.
>> Unanimously.
>> Thank you.
>> Thank you. Action item two.
This project supports the
port's strategic plan goal to
provide trails and public
access opportunities on port
properties and to support
multimodal transportation. The
project will facilitate an
approximately 1.1 mile
multi-use path, which extends
segment five of the Port of
Vancouver Renaissance Trail to
the county owned section of
Renaissance Trail, located
adjacent to the Flushing
Channel. This segment is the
last segment of the Renaissance
Trail located on port property
and connects the Renaissance
Trail from terminal one to
Frenchman's Bar Park. Trail.
Segment five will extend the
existing Renaissance Trail
system along lower River road
or SR 501 along the port's
parcel three property. This
project will include
progressive, progressing the
entire segment to a 30% design
level, and implement a partial
construction package for the
grading of the trail segment.
The grading construction is
planned for 2027. On October
17th, 2025, the port issued a
request for qualifications for
trail segment five B Design and
Consulting Services. A proposal,
evaluation and interviews were
conducted, with the results
determining Otak Inc. to be the
most qualified consultant to
perform the services required
by the port. This project is in
the approved 2026 capital
budget and will be funded with
the remaining bond funds from
the 2022 bond issuance. If that,
I'd like to read the
recommendation that the port
that the Board of Commissioners
authorize the CEO to execute a
contract with Otak, Inc. in the
amount of $695,543 to perform
design and consulting services
for Renaissance Trail. Segment
five B any questions?
>> Is there any finer map than
this one, or is this kind of
rough.
>> This shows the entire. This
shows the entire segment along
our port property. There is
some much more zoomed in map
that we have. I can provide you.
>> I'd sure love to see that at
another time. I'm excited about
this. I need to be back on my
bike and this is beautiful. I
had dinner with somebody last
night whose husband got knocked
off a bike 20 years ago and
just passed the first of the
month, but she spent the last
20 years pretty well devastated.
And so getting bicycles off of
roadways, or something I think
is beautiful. But yeah, enough
said. Did you ever read the
recommendation?
>> I did. Did you?
>> Yes I did.
>> Excellent. I wasn't paying
proper attention was you folks
pleasure. Got anything to say?
>> I don't have any questions
so I can make a motion.
>> I did have one question.
Just noting how how long this
this project has been underway.
Does anyone know offhand when
when we started this process.
>> I don't it was before my
time at the port. So I know we
started segment four and five
really in 2022, I believe, or
2021. And so this is an
extension of segment five and
be going on for a couple more
years, but is well, well before
then. Segment three and two and
three were probably five, ten
years ago at least now.
>> So yeah, I remember that
being one.
>> Possibly longer.
>> Possibly. Yes. I remember
approving segments like. Plus
years when I was new. So yeah,
yeah. Well, it's, it's great to
all that preamble to say like
it is great to see it getting
to this point where we're truly
connecting with, you know, with
the, the trail system that's
already out there. So I
appreciate the long ongoing
work of, of the team over these,
these various segments as we go.
So. Did you already make make
your motion? No. Oh, okay.
>> Would you like to.
>> Sure. I'll move that we
adopt the recommendation as
presented. Second, all those in
favor? Aye aye. Unanimously.
Thank you Josh.
>> Thank you commissioners.
Thank you Juliana.
>> Unfinished business.
>> Yes. So in your packets
you'll find the port contract
log. And this is a list of the
active contracts that the port
currently has. Both public
works as well as service
contracts. And the highlighted
portions of the contract log is
the most recent activity. The
contract logs are also located
on the port's website, so
anyone has the ability to
review active contracts. Any
questions on on those?
>> Hearing none. New business.
>> No new business today.
>> Accounts payable.
>> Yes, we do have accounts
payable and I'd like to welcome
Nick McIntyre, our accounting
manager, to the podium. Good
morning Nick.
>> Good morning. Thank you.
Good morning commissioners. We
did not receive any questions
prior to this meeting. So I'll
start by reading the
recommendation. Then open the
floor for questions. The
recommendation is the Port of
Vancouver, USA. Board of
Commissioners by motion
ratifies and approves the
payment of March 2026 vouchers.
127202 through 127641 and the
amount of $6,930,145.95,
including electronic payments
generated between March 1st,
2026 and March 31st, 2026 and
the amount of $1,126,277.84. In
March 2026. Payroll check
52251764 and direct deposits
100001 through 100132 and
130001 through 130133, and the
amount of $774,058.51.
>> Thank you. Any questions?
>> I move to approve the
recommendation as presented.
>> I'll second the motion. All
those in favor? Aye aye aye.
Unanimous.
>> Thank you.
>> Thank you, thank you. CEO
report.
>> Yes. So I'd like to start
the report with Matt Graves. He
is our environmental manager
who is going to provide an
update on some of our
environmental projects. Good
morning.
>> Good morning. Thank you
Juliana. Good morning
commissioners. Today I'm going
to give you a little snapshot
into the Port stormwater
management program. Next slide.
I'll touch briefly on our
stormwater permitting and
compliance here at the port.
Some of our stormwater projects
that are being grant funded
this year. And a little update
on our floating treatment
wetlands. So the port operates
mainly under two permits. We
have what's called a municipal
stormwater permit, which you
can see outlined in light blue
here. This covers all of port
property. Our second permit is
our industrial stormwater
general permit, which is the
one in the dark blue that
covers our industrial
activities. And on top of that,
we have currently five
construction stormwater permits
that cover projects under
construction throughout the
port, including our trail
project right now, in addition
to that, we have tenants that
have multiple stormwater
permits. Some of them have
industrial stormwater permits,
some have an individual permit,
some have what's called a sand
and gravel stormwater permit.
In some discharge their
stormwater to sanitary sewer
under a wastewater discharge
permit with the city of
Vancouver. So lots of
stormwater permitting and
compliance that goes around
here at the port. The most
challenging and most technical
permit for us is the industrial
stormwater general permit. This
permit requires constant
inspections and collaboration
with our facilities and marine
operation groups to keep up
with the best management
practices like street sweeping,
dust control, catch basin and
storm line cleaning, spill
response equipment and cargo
storage.
>> Can you help me out with
that one on the left? Where is
it?
>> That's the terminal four
pond.
>> Thank you.
>> Yeah.
>> And I apologize for
interrupting.
>> No.
>> That's okay. My brain.
>> And in addition to that,
also just cleaning up the
terminals after vessel activity.
So a lot going on with a lot of
different players to make sure
everything's in good shape. In
addition, the industrial permit
requires requirements can
change every five years,
usually adding more
requirements like increased
sampling, increased coverage
areas, lower benchmark values
that you have to meet, or
adding new pollutants to sample
for. Currently, the permit
requires sampling stormwater
runoff for. For these. These
items here zinc, copper, pH,
turbidity and oil sheen. And
these need to be met every
quarter to limit corrective
actions. That can be really
costly to us if we continue to
keep exceeding those. The
port's required to sample the
stormwater discharges quarterly
at the three locations shown
here, the terminal four
stormwater port pond on the
left, the terminal two bio
filtration system, which is the
photo in the center, and then
berth ten, which is on the on
the right there. And you'll be
pleased to know that the port
is currently in compliance and
has met all these benchmark
values at all sampling
locations for both the first
quarter and the second quarter
of 2026.
>> Are these are those
benchmarks, those are what
we're allowed to hit. And we we
haven't hit those. Correct?
Apparently.
>> Yeah. You want to be under
those levels.
>> I'm trying to make sure I
understand as opposed to the
levels that we're at and the
benchmarks. Are you sure? Yeah.
>> So at the terminal four pond,
we've been piloting a small
polishing system since 2001
that has proven that the
concept and the media we are
using is consistently treating
stormwater to keep us below the
benchmark values. This graph on
the right shows the reduction
of copper in the port
stormwater since 2012. The blue
line shows the port's sample
results over the years, and the
red line shows that benchmark
value from our permit of 14
parts per billion. Copper is
the most challenging pollutant
to treat, so you can see how
adapting and making changes,
both at the pond as well as all
over the terminals, is really
helped. That number drop below
the benchmark value
consistently since 2023. The
pictures on the right show some
photos of that pilot system
where stormwater is pumped out
of the pond. Ran through these
filters and treatment media
before we then discharge it to
the Columbia River. Next slide.
So one of the projects we're
working on at terminal four
pond, we've received two
Department of Ecology
stormwater grants. The port is
designed and will construct a
larger version of that pilot
system that we currently have
in place later this year, and
the system will utilize sand
filters and carbon filters to
provide final treatment of
stormwater at terminal four
before we then discharge to the
river. The project is currently
at 100% design, and the port
received $601,375 from the
Department of Ecology to design
that system, and we are also
granted $3,918,936 to help us
construct that later this year.
Another project we've been
working on since 2024, the port
has been piloting basically the
same system that we had at the
terminal four pond, but at
terminal two to Pre-treat
stormwater before it enters our
Biofiltration system shown here.
This facility has been
utilizing rental equipment just
to prove the concept, and it's
kept the port under those
stormwater benchmark values
since we've installed it. So
once that terminal four
polishing system is constructed
and under in operation, will be
moving the port owned equipment
from that facility to this
facility just to alleviate all
that rental equipment and put
in port owned equipment. And
that should happen sometime in
the first or second quarter of
next year. Another project
we've been working on this year
is replacing our floating
treatment wetlands. We started
piloting those back in the
terminal four pond back in 2014,
and floating treatment wetlands
help improve stormwater quality
by reducing algae growth and
removing pollutants like
nutrients and heavy metals and
suspended solids. And that's
primarily through plant root
uptake and their microbial
biofilm development. From being
suspended in water. The pilot
program showed really good
results using natural products
to help filter stormwater. But
unfortunately, in 2024, when we
had to dig out the pond, the
remaining pilot floating
floating wetlands that were in
there just weren't salvageable.
So we'll be purchasing new ones.
This year. We purchased 500ft²
of floating treatment well, and
that will include about 1200
native plants. It'll look
similar to the pictures on the
left on a larger scale, but
we're going to use more native
plants for our area, like the
ones pictured on the right
there in our pilot study. So
we're pretty excited to get
those installed and going. Next
slide. Oh, well, that's all I
have for our updates, but we're
really excited about these
projects this year and just the
continued success of our
stormwater management program
here at the port. And if you
have any questions, I'd be
happy to answer them.
>> I do have a question.
>> Go for it, Matt.
>> What's the life lifespan for
the floating treatment islands?
Like what's the what's the
lifespan of those? What's the
maintenance required on them?
>> The main maintenance we do
is just harvesting them,
cutting down the plants when
they get too large, just so we
can promote a regrowth of them.
The design on our pilot wasn't
the greatest because we used a
very rigid flotation device,
and when we'd have a lot of
water moving through the pond,
it works kind of like a river
current. And they were bumping
into each other, getting stuck
on shore and breaking. So the
new designs are much more
pliable to to that kind of
environment. So other than that,
they can last quite a while. I
mean, these ones lasted well
over ten years. The ones that
we had left that made it
through all the storms.
>> Cool. Thank you.
>> What are those wastes? Once
you have to harvest them like
you did and start over again,
what level of they've been
absorbing the pollution.
Correct. For ten years or
whatever.
>> Yeah.
>> And we what do we do with
them when we're done?
>> Those things are taken to
our decant facility where
they're then taken to the
Columbia Resource Center
transfer station and just
through landfill. Nothing crazy,
no hazardous waste. But we have
tested it in the past and
they're low enough to just
landfill. Similar with plants
in our Gratrix boxes that we've
done in the past.
>> Do you have anything to put
him on the spot for? No, no, I
appreciate actually I did have
one question. Come to think of
it, I assume that we're not the
only port on the Columbia
facing those kinds of threshold
or benchmarks that we're that
we're trying to meet. Correct.
But I'm also assuming that our
team is probably better
equipped than any of the other
ports to to meet those
benchmarks. Are is there
ongoing collaboration with like
Kalama, Longview?
>> Yeah, we, we collaborate a
lot with Port of Longview, but
we also have a stormwater
quality chair through WPA that
meets. We're all ports that are
interested in collaborating and
can get together on those calls.
And we all talk about the
permit and the requirements and
what we're all doing. Awesome.
Thank you. Yeah.
>> Ready? Thank you.
>> Thank you, thank.
>> You Matt.
>> Appreciate it. And and I
mean, yes, our we have a very
innovative environmental team.
And as you can see, they, they
have some very interesting and
effective projects. And I
appreciate that they continue
to look for ways to find
innovative solutions. So they
do a fantastic job. And then my
final update today is yesterday
we held the exit conference
with the state Auditor's office,
and I'm pleased to share that
we have our 17th clean audit.
And I just want to thank Nick,
Sheila Scott, our accounting
team, our contracts team, I.t
and, and really everybody at
the port who does an amazing
job to be great stewards of our
public funds. And we have very
effective policies and
procedures to support the work
that we do. And that's all I
have today. Thank you.
>> Thank you. Next up is the
commissioner's reports. And I
think we start with you, temple.
Okay. Let's just do it. All
right.
>> Well, first of all,
congratulations and thank you
on the on the clean audit.
That's no small feat to go 17
years with clean ones and to
get through the audit and just
deal with it too. That's a big
disruption. So congratulations.
Recently I went to we had an
RTC Regional Transportation
Committee meeting and that
basically deals with our
regional transportation issues.
And at that meeting, we talked
about regional emergency
transportation routes like
evacuation routes and how we
have a plan to keep those clear,
and also updates to the
transportation improvement
program. So relatively routine.
But also when you're talking
about emergency transportation
routes, a little terrifying.
But regionally, we're
developing a plan to identify,
prioritize, and, and then
develop further planning on how
to make sure those stay clear
in the case of emergency. Also,
ongoing conversations with the
interstate bridge replacement
team, as we've seen in the news
and already talked about here,
the project's issued their set
of core projects. And so our
staff is working with IBR staff
on understanding all of those
components and their potential
impacts. So that's an ongoing
conversation. Not as part of my
port representation, but as
part of my role on the the
state's Freight Mobility
Strategic Investment Board. I
was recently in Everett for our
regular meeting, and we met at
the Port of Everett. So I saw
what some of our neighbors up
there are doing. And they have
a lovely waterfront that sadly
will, you know, it pales in
comparison to ours. But but
they're doing some interesting
work up there. And, and also I
saw the I got to take a tour of
the Boeing factory where they
create all of their, a lot of
their commercial planes. And it
was a, it's gigantic.
Apparently the largest building
by volume in the country, if
not the world. And. It was
interesting to just see another,
another area, how they handle
their freight and mobility up
there. But we're doing a good
job here as well.
>> Thank you. You're up. I
don't have a whole lot to
report. Since our last meeting,
I had the opportunity to attend
the Labor Roundtable a few
weeks ago, and. It was also
attended by commissioner from
the Port of Longview. So it was
fun to to run into our
neighbors to the north. But
that is all I have to report.
You ready? Well, I'll.
>> Take a shot at it. Excuse me.
I started out by going to a
meeting of the firefighters
that was led by this year. It's
led by captain from the. From
the Vancouver Fire Department.
But it's a regional get
together of firefighters and
how to address maritime issues
and challenges. And I sat there
for a few hours and listened.
And the folks that were used to
seeing come to our house or
take care of people on medical.
They're they're expected to
address the industrial issues
that might come up in a fire in
this area. They're expected to
address issues that come up on
ships and, and, and, and one of
the interesting things deacon
was addressing issues relative
to the safety of, of working
folks that come down here to
build things for us. And these
folks, the firefighters have
learned over recent decades
that they're being exposed to
things that just weren't on our
radar. And one of the most
recent ones is the foam that is
used for chemical fires or.
Gasoline fires, or it might
well be used in a ship fire. Is
deadly. It's carcinogenic. And
it's it's now we know that and
it's stored at a bunch of
airports and a bunch of places,
and it's being cleaned up and
it's being replaced with a new
one, a new foam that is thought
to be healthy. But the new foam
has a whole different set of.
Characteristics to it, and it
won't do some of the things
that the old one would. But the
one serious advantage of the
new foam is they can practice
with it. They couldn't practice
with the foam once they found
out it was killing them. So
they use it in in an absolute
emergency. I guess. Overall,
thank you for the firefighters,
for what they're doing. Thank
you to all the working people
that get up and do all the
tasks. I'm a retired guy and a
politician, and I deeply
appreciate the things that
people are doing. There's a
bunch of things. And I went to
the Labor Roundtable and, oh, I
spoke with with some of the
environmental community, and
they're urging us kind of like
what Peter and Don were talking
about. And they're they're
urging me to go talk to the PD
about community solar, which is
a little bit different than
rooftop solar in how it's
administered and so on. See,
see if the port can get
involved in that. The port of
Kamea Washougal did one, and
they're doing something up in
Ridgefield, and I need to learn
more about it. And I will. And,
and these, these folks, Peter
was talking today and they beat
me up about keeping, keeping.
Us from leasing out to Ice. And
I told them that, that we're,
we are not the land that we're
talking about is not designated
or designed for residential
purposes. My understanding
legally is that it ain't going
there. And as a matter of fact,
on Thursday noon, I got a call
from a friend of mine that's
dentist, and he happens to be
Indian by descent and a U.S.
citizen, thank God. But a
friend of his that's been here
on temporary visas, on an on a
on an asylum, temporary visa
for ten years on renewal. And
he runs a restaurant out in
Beaverton. Went in to get his
renewal at the facility in
Portland. And they said, no,
you're refused. Loaded him up
and took him to Tacoma to a
jail that's in an industrial
facility up there. And I, I
rode up there with him. And the
concern is, is real. And these
are, shall we say, these are
interesting times. I don't
think they're very interesting
to that fellow up there that
may get deported. And where his
family. Enough said. Yes, I
went to LeBard roundtable. Yes,
I went to yesterday's audit
exit and my impression was just
as favorable as what you put
out. And the folks with the
state are impressed. And it is
really. We're privileged to sit
as commissioners in a in an
organization that's running
pretty damn well. But we ought
to be. We ought to be paying
attention, and I. I resolved to
pay more attention. We're
fortunate in that these folks.
Sometimes folks in public
agencies aren't doing all the
things dot all the I's our
people are, and they're doing
it right. And we need to make
sure that we keep we keep an
eye on that and encourage it.
And. It ain't my fault they're
doing it right. And so I want
to make sure it isn't my fault
if they quit doing it right. So
if that makes any sense. But
thank you to the folks on the
thank you to all you folks.
Thank you to the folks that
work on the the financial team.
We just listened to an awesome
report here from the
environmental team. Thank you
for all the working away at
this stuff. Yeah, it's time I
ran out of words. We're. We
have a workshop. Do we have any
need from anybody to take a
break or can we roll right into
that? Hearing? No. We can take
a 15 minute break and come back
or we can just roll.
>> I'm I'm okay to continue.
>> Okay.
>> All right.
>> We'll reconfigure the.
>> No, we'll just do we'll
we'll do just kind of roll
right into it. I do have a
couple of items before we roll
right into the workshop, but if
we're okay not taking a.
>> Break, then I'm sorry.
>> No. Yeah, I jumped, I
apologize. Go for it.
>> Okay, so just on the screen,
we have upcoming events. So our
next commission meeting is
Tuesday, April 28th, 930. We
have a variety of community
events as the weather is maybe
in the next not couple days,
but we have sunshine here and
there, but we have a lot of
activities happening. I'd like
to point out our port lecture
series. We have our port
lecture number two, which is
this. Let's see what's today.
It's tomorrow, tomorrow evening,
630 to 8 at the Kiggins Theater.
And it is a presentation on the
reliability by the river, the
Tidewater barge lines. And it's
a free event. So now it's of
the Columbia Snake River system.
And then on our number three
lecture is on Wednesday, April
29th, 630 to 8 p.m. again at
the Kiggins Theater. And this
is an opportunity to hear from
the ports of Seattle and Tacoma
who formed the Northwest
Seaport Alliance and just hear
from a. Another port in the
state of Washington. And so
that's what we have for
upcoming events. And then
communicating with the
Commission just a few ways you
can do that. Again, we had the
opportunity to hear from folks
here during Open forum. You can
email the commissioners, you
can call the office. We'll get
you in touch with the
commissioners. And I again,
encourage folks to get on the
port's website. We have a lot
of great information on the
website about projects and
what's happening at the port.
And so with that, we will roll
into our workshop and this is a
terminal one update. So I'd
like to welcome Mike Bohmer,
our Chief Economic Strategy
Officer and a terminal one
project sponsor who is going to
provide an update on terminal
one.
>> Good morning, commissioners
CEO Mahler. Lisa, members of
the public, I am very pleased
today to be here to give you an
update on terminal one, our
waterfront development project.
Next slide please. So before
let's go, one more slide before
we talk about where we are
today, I wanted to note the
historical significance of the
terminal one site and
acknowledge its location along
the Columbia River, as it's
been a vital trading and
gathering site for Native
American peoples for thousands
of years. This area later
became home to the Fort
Vancouver in 1824, which
catalyzed regional economic
growth. And in the late 1800s,
terminal one site hosted lumber
mills and rail yards. As rail
expansion changed this area
dramatically, the site then
shifted to shipbuilding toward
the end of World War One, with
the standard for shipyards. As
you can see in the photo there,
in the early 1900s, Vancouver
became known as the capital of
the world, and in 1912,
terminal one became the
birthplace of the Port of
Vancouver. A municipal dock was
built in 1921, and we actively
exported lumber, prunes and
shingles at this site. As the
second span of the I-5 bridge
was opened in 1959, our
maritime operations moved west
and hotels were built on the no
longer active working dock, the
Thunderbird, and then the Red
lion at the Quay operated from
1960 until 2015, and the old
Centennial Building was a
community gathering place for
groups like the Rotary Club of
Vancouver, as Columbia
Waterfront LLC and the city
moved forward with their
waterfront vision in the late
2000, the port was a key
partner in helping to advance
infrastructure investments to
improve access to the
waterfront, while also creating
major efficiency improvements
to the rail access to the port,
as well as the BNSF mainline.
Between 2015 and 2022, the site
had interim uses including the
popular warehouse 23 and hosted
Night Market Vancouver. During
this time, the Port Commission
established a vision and staff
advanced a plan for the future
of this special place, which is
now becoming a reality. Next
slide please. Wanted to just
set a baseline and for both the
Commission as well as the
public to understand the key
documents that guide our work
as we develop this site. In
2015, the port embarked on an
ambitious plan to develop
terminal one as a place that
was accessible to the public,
both in its features and its
connection points, as well as
its price points. Sustainable
both environmentally and
financially, and as a gathering
place where residents and
visitors alike could learn more
about their community, their
history, the river economy and
the impact that the port has on
our region. This was a
collaborative effort that
included many community
stakeholders and resulted in
the adoption and the city's
approval of the terminal one
Concept Development Plan in
December of 2016. This document
outlines key requirements for
the site to ensure that
investments made are consistent
with the Commission and the
community vision. In 2017, the
port's mission was updated to
include waterfront development.
That same year, the port
advanced the 2018 strategic
plan, which included the goal
to implement the vision of a
destination waterfront at
terminal one for strategies,
further defined this goal one
to build a public marketplace
on the Columbia River. Two to
create a financially
independent business model by
securing long term partnerships
to support the operating and
capital costs. Three to support
public enjoyment and tourism
through activities such as
river cruises and events at
terminal one and four to
explore partnerships in arts,
culture and historical
interpretation. Additional
agreements such as the hotel
lease with the AC Marriott
Lincoln Property Company's
Development Agreement, the
Department of Natural Resources
and Recreational Conservation
Office agreements further
define this work, all
consistent with this broader
vision. Together, these
documents set the stage for our
day to day work and advancing
projects at terminal one. So
let's chat about how we go
about implementing this vision.
Next slide please. So just a
quick outline of the roles and
responsibilities. And before I
dig into this, I want to give a
huge thank you to our previous
T1 sponsor, Jonathan Etter, who
really got us to where we are
today, as well as the dozens of
folks at the port with their
technical expertise who help
advance the vision of the
Terminal One project. It is
truly a blessing and an honor
to work with these folks day in
and day out. The Port of
Vancouver and Commission and
Executive Leadership team
helped set that vision and
guidance. Make sure we keep us
honest as we go through this
process. The project sponsor
myself. I'm responsible for
coordinating and executing the
Terminal one planning Group,
which is a large cross
departmental group, works and
meets regularly on a broad
variety of terminal one issues,
and the T one working group,
which is project delivery and
technical oversight, work on
the very specific and technical
needs of the project. We also
use a variety of external
consultants, partners and
technical resources to provide
market expertise, community
input, technical design and
help us with operations. Next
slide please. So you may have
seen this slide before. I think
it's up on our website as well.
The pledge commitments at
terminal one are substantial.
They include over a half a
billion. That's with a B
dollars of private investment,
over 130 million in port and
other contributions. And we've
already received $12 million
from state capital project
funding. The site is already
also generating significant
local and state tax dollars,
including tens of millions in
property and tax, over 50
million in construction and
general sales tax, over 10
million in combined REIT and
leasehold excise tax, and over
5 million in lodging tax. Next
slide please. So a big thank
you to Jack Pflug and Patricia
for helping to put together
this sources and uses slide. As
you can see the private
investment remains the lion's
share with the port state
capital grants and philanthropy,
which we'll discuss later.
Making up the rest on the uses
side. The next slide. Private
investment is paying its fair
share. While the port will
continue to invest in the
public infrastructure, new dock,
public market and other public
amenities at the site. Next
slide. So let's just do a quick
overview of the site itself for
more detail. From west to east
we have lots one which this
will be the next one to open up
is the 440 West Apartments.
Just south of. That is a
similar plan for apartments at
lot two. Then we have the AC
hotel by Marriott. To the north
is the offices at terminal one,
which are home to Zoominfo
World headquarters. Below that,
the Daniels Way Plaza proposed
and a future mixed use site
currently called lots five and
six. To the south of that is
the transient or lower dock
Vancouver Landing and the
future home of the new dock and
public market. To the right in
the dotted line shows is the
anticipated path of the new
Interstate five bridge and
approaches. Next slide please.
So this is also listed on our
website and just gives you
again, a sense of the timeline
as we're moving through. So
again, master planning in 2015,
the first building to go
vertical was the AC hotel and
the completion of the Vancouver
landing in 2022. The old dock
was removed in 23 and 24, as
well as the construction of the
LPC building last year. In 2025,
Zoominfo actually moved into
their offices at terminal one
and we began the new dock
construction. LPC began their
mixed use residential buildings,
and that will be completed this
spring. And then as we advance
design for the public market
that will begin construction
anticipated in 2028. We also
have the Daniels Way Plaza, and
lots five and six will be
anticipated once the completion
of the I-5 bridge, as well as
the other projects at terminal
one are finished. Next slide.
We're very proud, as Matt
mentioned earlier, of a lot of
the environmental commitments
and sustainability features
that we have, including those
at terminal one. Terminal one
is a Leed that's a leadership
in energy and environmental
design site. It's a Leed gold
neighborhood, and the
environmental features are not
limited just to its buildings,
but also in everything from
native common area plantings to
access to multi-modal
transportation options. Other
features that you see up on the
slide are things like bird safe
windows, sensitive lightings to
project measures like fish
friendly, fish friendly gravel
or fish mix placed on the bank
and bubble curtains for the
dock rebuild to protect fish
and to improve aquatic habitat.
Next slide. So digging into the
projects a little bit, the
Vancouver landing area was one
of the first projects at
terminal one, and this project
included phase one improvements
to the Renaissance Trail behind
the AC hotel, a new Rotary Way
historical walkway that was
funded in part by a generous
donation from the Vancouver
Rotary Foundation. This is the
largest donation ever from
their club and was part of
their 100 year celebration, as
they had been meeting up at or
near the site for most of their
100 year history. The new and
improved landing also includes
features that highlight the
Columbia River watershed,
historical displays honoring
labor and the history of our
river economy, as well as fun
Vancouver Easter eggs and a nod
to our sister city partnership,
which I'm very fond of. Of Joyo,
Japan. Last year, students from
Washington State University Go
Cougs expected something a
little louder. Ryan, but that's
okay. Thanks. From their
digital Technology and culture
program, built an interactive
vignette application that
allows visitors to blend
virtual and real to learn even
more about our area, past,
present, and future. Next slide
please. The Renaissance Trail
is another important project
linking terminal one to the
rest of the Vancouver
waterfront and to a large
planned trail improvement
partnership across the county.
Phase one of this project is
complete and included both
state and federal funding of
nearly $1 million. This portion
of the trail is wide enough for
a variety of users, as well as
access for emergency vehicles
to all areas of the site. Next
slide. The AC by Marriott Hotel
at Vancouver Waterfront is a
gem and a catalyst for this
site. Opening in 2022, the
project was the first to go
vertical and reflects a great
partnership with the local
hotel developer. This hotel has
150 guest rooms, including
three suites, and is already a
go to meeting space for many
mid-size events, including
weekly meetings for the Rotary
Club. Next slide. The terminal
one lower or transient dock,
was built in 1992 in
partnership with the City of
Vancouver and the Recreational
Conservation Office. This
public day use dock has become
an increasingly popular with
voters since the activation of
the waterfront. The city and
the port are currently working
together to chart a path
forward for the future of the
dock, and will be bringing
forward a series of options
later this fall, with
recommendations on how to
address emerging challenges at
this site. Next slide. You've
all received regular updates on
the dock and replacement, but
I'll give you just a few
highlights from this project.
Set to be complete in February
of 2027, we removed nearly 1100
creosote pilings from the site,
including some really cool.
Depending on how you look at it.
Inverted Doug Firs construction
methods have definitely changed
over the years that were over
100 years old. Reconstructed
ground improvements and
bulkhead wall to make sure the
site was seismically resilient.
And during the last in-water
work window, which was October
through January, the contractor
installed 199 steel piles and
is now installing pile caps and
concrete slabs at the site.
This fall, the contractor will
install the remaining fender
piles and complete the deck.
Next slide. Terminal one
includes a variety of public
spaces and infrastructure that
support the site. Seen here is
the launch at the offices at
terminal one, which offers
spectacular views both looking
north to downtown Vancouver as
well as south to the river and
to Portland. The launch was
built as a nod to the standard
for shipyards, which were
operated on site again at the
end of World War One, and to
the right is an example of a
great partnership with
Vancouver's Downtown
Association. You may be
familiar with their flower
basket program. We've joined
that, and we'll continue to
expand the number of seasonal
baskets as the site develops.
Next slide. So block one soon
to be open as the 440 West
Apartments features 194 market
rate units, starting with
studios from 1550 per month.
This building includes ground
floor retail and some great
modern amenities. We look
forward to touring it with you
this spring. Block two is set
to be a similar type of
building. It's just to the
south and is set to start soon
after, with possible
construction commencing as
early as 2027. Next slide. And
now to the crown jewel of the
site, the public market. The
market is currently estimated
to cost 47 million and will be
a 40,000 square foot building
with several anchor tenants,
many configurable spaces for a
variety of small business types,
catering kitchens, and event
and entertainment spaces. The
market is currently at 30%
design and will advance to 60%
design this year. As part of
this year's work, the port will
be working with consultants and
stakeholders to further define
and optimize the project to
ensure operational and
financial sustainability. Next
slide. So the original
inspiration for the public
market was drawn from the
warehouse in the 20s that was
on site and was remodeled into
a hotel and event space. In
more recent years, a project
relatively close by that gives
a sense of the scale and form
of the project as the purpose
market. In Wenatchee, the port
engaged early with the owners
of this project to better
understand opportunities and
lessons learned from their
experience. Additionally, the
port has researched and even
toured dozens of other public
markets across the country and
really the world to gain
inspiration and ideas as we
advance the vision of this
iconic site. Next slide. So
fundraising over the next past
couple. Sorry, over the past
couple years, the port has been
working to create a
philanthropic giving as part of
the public Markets funding plan.
We started with research on the
best and most appropriate ways
for the port to provide a
vehicle for receiving these
funds, and concluded that
establishing a field of
interest fund with the
Community Foundation of
Southwest Washington was the
optimal approach. The Community
Foundation is a long standing
and trusted partner with
experience in establishing
these types of funds for public
benefit. The next step is to
release an RFP to bring on a
fundraising campaign consultant
to structure and launch a
multi-year effort to raise a
minimum of 10%, or around $5
million. A couple important
notes. We don't plan to offer
naming privileges for the
market itself, and funding will
be dedicated to areas of public
benefit and enjoyment. Next
slide. Highlighting Vancouver's
great arts and culture
community, terminal one will
include a variety of art
installations. Jim Hagar on our
team has been working to launch
an RFP for this year's budgeted
art additions at the Vancouver
Landing. This work is done,
been done thoughtfully and in
partnerships with tribes and
local partners to ensure that
the site truly reflects our
community and our culture. On
the left is a rotary peace pole,
which includes 13 languages
common to the community, as
well as Braille and American
Sign Language. On the right is
the Aqua Gallery at the offices
at terminal one, and that's a
great example of how partners
are also advancing arts and
culture at the site. Next slide.
As mentioned, operational
planning for the public market
will take place this year, both
in our work to advance the 60%
design, as well as establishing
an operations plan for the
market that will help us better
understand what the port's
direct role will be in
operating the markets in the
many facets of the market
versus contracting with third
party partners. And there is
more to come soon on this
effort. Next slide. So, as
Commissioner Lentz mentioned,
we have been coordinating
closely with IBR, not only on
freight and river navigation,
but also on the interaction
between the project and the
program and the terminal one
site. We are meeting regularly,
very, very regularly to talk
through the details, to try to
avoid impacts at the site as
well as to look at how do we
optimize both temporary and
permanent solutions to ensure
operability, and that both
sides can thrive? Next slide.
Okay, so that is the end. I am
happy to answer any questions
you may have. Hearing.
>> Coming in newer to this are
there? What are the kind of
guiding principles for
development of the operations
plan and getting to 60%?
>> Yeah, so kind of the mantra
that I use is accessible,
affordable, and then either
educational or enlightening,
right? So there's accessible as
making sure that that not just
from a, you know, construction
design standpoint, but really
everybody in the community is
able to access and enjoy
terminal one. And so we try to
be really thoughtful and reach
out to a lot of different
groups in meeting that
affordable. And again, we have
to find that fine line between
an operation plan that's
financially sustainable, but is
also something where people
feel like it's not out of their
pocketbooks to come and enjoy
terminal one. So that is a
guiding principle as well. And
then again, that educational
piece is such a great
opportunity, especially as
we're several miles away from
downtown and a lot of the core
of where people gather, it's a
great opportunity to educate
folks not only about the river
economy and the port, but also
just Vancouver and the history.
So we want to make it an
engaging and interactive site
where people can really enjoy
that. So those will all be
elements as we advance the 60%
design beyond the technical and
the materials and all the other
things of how is this actually
working?
>> Great. Thank you.
>> I was going to ask about you
mentioned anchor. Tenant. What
that looks like, you know, kind
of what we're what we're
envisioning. When I think about
like Oak Tree Station or over
in East Vancouver or Pike Place
Market or any number of other
kind of these kind of public
markets, I don't necessarily
get a sense that they have an
anchor tenant per se. And it's
more the space is, is dedicated
toward those smaller vendors.
So I'm wondering when you say
anchors and kind of what we're
what we're thinking there.
>> Thanks for that,
Commissioner. I think it's an
important distinction because
sometimes when we think anchor
tenants, we might be thinking
like Walmart, right? Or
something, some very large
development and anchor tenant
in this sense is somewhere
between, I think, 1500 and
2000ft². So we're talking about
restaurants that are there. And
again, there's some of those
parameters are what we're going
to be setting with that
operations plan on. How do we,
again, to your point, make it a
reflection of Vancouver and the
region in the area and make it
affordable as well too. So we
do have some controls in that
space, but typically that
anchor tenant piece or those
areas that just have a little
bit more in terms of their
facilities and equipment and
things like that, that are a
little bit more permanent than
the other areas that can move
as we do events or other things
within the facility.
>> Wahler. Terren.
>> Okay.
>> No gum wall.
>> Sorry.
>> He was talking about an
anchor tenant. You're not going
to have a gum wall like they do
at Pike Market.
>> I was just there this
weekend actually, as a matter
of fact. So if it's the will of
the commission and the
community, we can certainly
look into that. But that is not
something I am planning. All
right.
>> Excuse me.
>> And the other thing I'll add
is that we still are learning.
And that's part of why we are
bringing experts on board to
help us understand what is that
proper makeup to make sure that
we are financially have that
financial stability and that
that operational mix. And so
that's part of what we're
trying to understand is how do
we preserve the affordability
and the ability to support
small incoming or new new
businesses who are maybe making
that transition from, say, a
seasonal, seasonal business to
maybe wanting to do a year
round business. So we're just
trying to understand what is
that operational makeup that
will help be able to support
all types of business?
>> I think, I mean, Vancouver's
got a lot of international
flavor. That's that's pretty
well established. And so I
don't. And this is this is me
personally. So feel free to
chime in, but I'm thinking less
along the lines of like
business incubator, new
business, making those kinds of
transitions and maybe more
along the lines of showcasing
some of the established
businesses that we already have.
That might be more financially
prepared to, to participate
down at the waterfront. But at
the same time, I think we get
more flavor if it's smaller,
smaller spaces and depending on
who, depending on who I talk to,
you know, there is sort of that,
that assumption of like, well,
this is what we do. We have
anchor tenants, and then you
kind of fill in with the nail
salon and the coffee shop next
to it kind of thing. But we've
also, I think we've also got
some really good examples
throughout the northwest of
ones that don't have, you know,
public spaces that don't have a
traditional like anchor tenant,
like Pike Place or Oak Tree
Station or any number of others
that. Maybe they just didn't
get the memo, but they're doing
really well. And I'd rather see
that that kind of mix. Yeah.
>> Thanks, Commissioner. That's
a great comments. And I think
it's consistent with what our
team sees as the vision for
terminal one. We have already
talked with groups like worth,
Point Forward, Hispanic Metro
Chamber, the Vancouver Chamber,
about what programs they have
and how we can partner in
looking at micro-enterprises
and supporting them and being a
resource to that so that people
see the public market not as an
end destination, but as an area
where they can start to explore
Vancouver and to understand
other areas and kind of branch
out into spaces where they can
explore and really discover new
businesses that are doing
amazing things in the area. So
we're excited to do that. We'll
certainly be collaborating with
you along the way as well to,
to make sure that vision stays
consistent. And I think that is
the goal of both of our teams.
>> Coming, coming from a small
business background, my
perspective might be a little
different than yours. And I'd
love to see us. Encouraging
people, encouraging folks in.
Getting started. And, and I
think we have a space that,
that some of the spots by what
I've seen in other markets and
what we've maybe talked a
little bit about, some of them
are not even full time spots
that they're rented for a
little bit and show people what
they are about and, and try out
making. A more permanent, not
Vancouver market, which is a
different flavor. But, but if
you go down to the Portland
Saturday market, they got a
bunch of vendors with various
stuff that they make, but
they're only there a day, a
week or I don't even know where
they are anymore. I don't go
down much, but that's just kind
of my $0.02 worth in that zone.
So appreciate anything you
throw in to finish this off.
>> I've got a couple more cents.
I just want to say that I
really appreciate the, the, the
direction and strategy that
you're taking. And I think what
I've heard is that it does
incorporate all of this. I
think my personal understanding
of, you know, just market
factors and how we draw
audience. I think that some
kind of anchors will probably
be necessary. But also, I'm
very glad to hear that we're
talking about incorporating new
and emerging and diverse
businesses as well, and
creating this opportunity for
consistency as well as
discovery is, is something that
is will be incredibly valuable,
I think, down there, and that
this will integrate nicely with
the waterfront that is already
there, but also offer something
that we don't yet see there.
And I'm really happy to see
that moving forward.
>> I appreciate that.
>> Thank you.
>> And just what you're
describing to my brain, when I
think of an anchor tenant, I
think of JCPenney or Sears. I
certainly whatever. But what
you're describing and you
describe as an anchor tenant,
1500ft², according to my mental
math, says something smaller
than 40 by 40, which is not
that's not a big restaurant,
right? That ain't a big
anything. So.
>> Correct.
>> Yes. Thank you very much.
Thank you. Everybody have
another bite of the apple they
want.
>> Sure. I'll I'll mention to
the one of the, one of the
other concepts that came up in
some previous iterations was
the concept of day tables in
some of the, in some of the
open areas. And I think that is
part of, you know, the bigger
discussion of we want to work
in concert with like the
farmer's market and the stuff
that's already down there. And,
and make sure and, and it's a
careful needle to thread to
make sure that we're not in
competition with or pulling
vendors away from them. And
that's, I think a good, I'm,
I'm sure we're already aware of
that, but, but a good thing to
keep in mind as we go that
we're really adding to what to
what they have. And I'm sort of
envisioning this continuous
experience where someone can
start down at the waterfront
and kind of mosey throughout
the day on up toward Esther
Short Park, or vice versa,
without, without us tripping
over each other.
>> So yeah, and thank you for
that prompt, Commissioner, I
completely agree. Now, the
number one question, and it's
great to be in this venue to be
able to talk about it a little
bit is are you replacing the
farmer's market or is the
farmer's market moving into the
public market? And the short
answer is no, it is meant to be
a partnership. They've
certainly been involved. They
were involved early on and will
continue to be involved in that
conversation. And and the idea
is to reinforce, again, kind of
that discovery of maybe you see
the public market when you're
driving across the bridge, and
then you learn that there's
this amazing farmer's market
that's doing amazing things
down here as well, too. And so
our goal is to be a bridge and
a partner in that. And
certainly there may be some
crossover and vendors going one
way or the other, but the idea
is to help support that, not to
replace it or to move it.
>> Thank you.
>> Thank you so much, Mike.
>> Thank you so much for the
time.
>> Thank you Mike.
>> I believe we we are going to
end this meeting. The folks
sitting up here, we're not
going to adjourn until after we
signed our documents. AM I
missing anything?
>> Nope. You are spot on.
>> Alrighty. Thank you all.