Funding intended to attract and expand manufacturing activity and job creation in rural Washington
OLYMPIA, WA—The Washington State Department of Commerce has awarded $2 million in grants to eight projects that will expand the state’s portfolio of project-ready industrial sites, with incentives for private investment. The one-time grants will help publicly owned sites become more competitive for business attraction and investment. County governments, port districts and tribal governments submitted proposals to support specific industrial site projects.
“We’re delighted to award these grants to support some exciting projects envisioned in rural communities around the state,” said Commerce Director Mike Fong. “These sites have the potential to attract manufacturers with good jobs that can be a catalyst for additional economic activity.”
The eight grant recipients are:
City of Chehalis: Chehalis-Centralia Airport (Lewis County) – $350,000
The city’s site readiness project is located in the northern portion of the Chehalis-Centralia airport. It includes 135 acres suitable for projects related to alternative fuels, advanced air mobility and emerging technologies. Project funding will support environmental and engineering studies, a cultural resources study, and pre-design activities.
City of the Dalles/Klickitat County: Columbia Gorge Regional Airport (Klickitat County) – $250,000
Plans for the aviation business park within the 430-acre site include aerospace manufacturing, aviation research and development and aviation schools. The grant will fund civil engineering work regarding traffic, waterlines, sanitary sewer and stormwater, drainage, grading and preparation.
City of Richland and Port of Benton: Northwest Advanced Clean Energy Park (Benton County) – $200,000
The project focuses on site readiness planning studies and infrastructure planning for 837 acres of the Northwest Advanced Clean Energy Park. Engineering studies will determine whether infrastructure can accommodate large-capacity developments.
Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation: Old Okanogan Casino-Bingo Hall (Okanogan County) – $200,000
Located at the Old Okanogan Casino-Bingo Hall in the Colville Reservation, the project includes a Rail Improvement Study, an electrical feasibility study, a traffic analysis study, a water supply assessment, a wastewater infrastructure assessment and a market study.
Port of Chehalis: Bishop Road Industrial Sites 1 and 2 (Lewis County) – $250,000
The project positions the property for permitting and availability to fill and grade the property in preparation for being completely shovel-ready for industrial and manufacturing use. Funding will be used for property demolition, waste removal, brush removal, drainage maintenance, and a cultural resources study.
“This grant will kickstart our master plan and prepare the Chehalis-Centralia AIrport for the design and construction of the Chehalis Hub for Aviation Innovation and Sustainable Energy (CHAISE),” said Airport Director Brandon Rakes. “The grant funds help us complete environmental studies and pre-design tasks, enabling a biological assessment that will likely put us 12 months ahead of schedule.” Rakes said CHAISE will be a place for emerging aviation technology companies to demonstrate their technology, provide connectivity to Lewis County, and workforce development opportunities in the community, while simultaneously reducing the airport’s carbon footprint and generating clean energy.
Port of Othello: Bruce Industrial Area (Adams County) – $350,000
Project funding will support a comprehensive master engineering plan study, economic feasibility study, and engineer’s estimate costs associated with constructing necessary infrastructure and addressing all pre-permitting required to achieve shovel-ready status for the 109-acre site.
Port of Shelton: Johns Prairie Industrial Park (Mason County) – $200,000
As part of community economic revitalization efforts, the 385-acre site is planned to support large-scale projects, including aviation-related industrial development. The site readiness project will address infrastructure resource needs in the industrial park through sewage capacity and conveyance improvements.
Port of Port Townsend: Jefferson County International Airport Light Industrial Park (Jefferson County) – $200,000
The project is part of the port’s site readiness plan for overall layout and design, including utility and site engineering and permitting for the industrial park. The designs reflect a master-planned industrial campus generating up to 300 jobs in the rural county.
These eight grants will fund a range of activities, including engineering studies, permitting, and site due- diligence activities designed to accelerate development at large industrial sites for manufacturing activity and create economic opportunity and jobs, particularly in rural communities. Industrial Site Readiness Grants support the 2021 Building Economic Strength Through Manufacturing (BEST) Act, which provides a framework for Washington to add 300,000 new manufacturing jobs over 10 years. Commerce awarded $2.5 million to six projects in the first round of funding in January 2023.