On Monday, we noted we were checking on an “open house” plan briefly mentioned in the slide deck for the Northwest Seaport Alliance managing members’ Tuesday briefing on the Terminal 5 project. We’ve since confirmed with spokesperson Peter McGraw that the June 22nd open house is a public event, 9:30-11:30 am at Jack Block Park (2130 Harbor SW; map). The event annoucement says, “Members of the Terminal 5 project team will be on hand to discuss the project, including the scope and environmental mitigation measures for noise, traffic, and air emissions.” Work is expected to start by midsummer.

That’s the slide deck for a briefing on the Terminal 5 modernization project, planned for tomorrow’s meeting of the Northwest Seaport Alliance managing members – aka port commissioners for Seattle and Tacoma. Some notes of interest in the slides and the accompanying memo (PDF):

–Orion Marine was successful (and lowest) bidder at just under $160 million, $24 million below the engineering estimate for the project. Four others submitted higher bids, highest at $200 million.

-The construction-management team is now working in the Administration Building at the site

-An “open house” is scheduled later this month and groundbreaking in July; we’re checking to see if either will be a public event

The briefing is scheduled toward the end of the agenda for tomorrow’s meeting, which starts at 11:30 am at the Sea-Tac Airport Conference Center and includes a public-comment period in the early going.

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

After almost five years of near-emptiness, Terminal 5 in West Seattle has container ships in its future again.

Seattle and Tacoma port commissioners, meeting as managing members of the Northwest Seaport Alliance, gave their approval today to an entwined package of leases that shuffle some other terminals as well as setting up T-5 for a $300+ million modernization project starting soon. Memos and overviews are all linked from the agenda – here’s the main one used by a series of presenters before the vote:

The vote wasn’t unanimous – two Tacoma reps expressed a variety of concerns – but it was emphatic.

Just before the vote, which followed a 3-hour briefing/discussion in the Sea-Tac Airport Conference Center, Seattle commissioner Peter Steinbrueck declared that it was no less than a question of “Are we a seaport of the future or a seapart of the past?” He said the plan is evidence “we’re thinking of the future … efforts to produce one of the best seaports on the West Coast” and proclaimed it “grand” as well as “overdue.”

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(Terminal 5 photo from portseattle.org)

Tomorrow (Tuesday, April 2nd), Seattle and Tacoma port commissioners meet as managing members of the Northwest Seaport Alliance, voting on a variety of documents key to the future of West Seattle’s Terminal 5. Among them, a sheaf of leases, from the two-phase lease with SSA Terminals to be the T-5 tenant post-modernization, to an interim lease that will move Matson‘s Hawaii service there, to leases that don’t directly involve T-5 but are part of the overall shuffle. Included in those, the plan for the Port to develop another cruise-ship terminal on the downtown waterfront, as noted in our February coverage. Also to be discussed/considered, the latest on the T-5 modernization project, for which agenda documents say bids are expected to be opened April 10th. Those documents and others the commissioners will consider tomorrow are all now linked from the agenda for the meeting, which starts at 11:30 am Tuesday at the Sea-Tac Airport Conference Center. There’s a public-comment period too.

As reported here Thursday, the Northwest Seaport Alliance hasn’t finalized all the details of the new Terminal 5 lease package, so it postponed plans for managing members – port commissioners of Seattle and Tacoma – to vote on it next week. Now the new date is set: April 2nd, in a special 11:30 am meeting at the Sea-Tac Airport conference center.

In case you’re keeping track: The vote on new leases for West Seattle’s Terminal 5 has been postponed again. It was first expected on March 5th; while the Northwest Seaport Alliance managing members (port commissioners from Seattle and Tacoma) voted that day to authorize sending the T-5 modernization project out to bid, a vote on the leases first outlined last month was postponed until next Tuesday (March 19th). Then last night the NWSA changed that to “postponed/TBD.” So we checked today to see why. NWS spokesperson Nick Demerice tells WSB that some of the details are still being finalized, noting that the plan centered on SSA taking a berth at T-5 post-modernization isn’t just one lease but multiple leases, multiple parties, from multiple nations. They’re hoping the special vote meeting can be rescheduled for later this month. (When it is, you’ll see that here.)

(2015 photo of Terminal 5 by Long Bach Nguyen)

As previewed here Monday, Seattle and Tacoma port commissioners – meeting as the Northwest Seaport Alliance‘s managing members – voted Tuesday on soliciting bids for the Terminal 5 modernization project. They voted to authorize staff to proceed with that, and are now moving toward a March 19th vote on leases for T-5, following a briefing back on February 5th. Video from this week’s meeting is viewable here, where you’ll also find documents from the meeting. If the bidding process for the $340 million project proceeds as planned, work could start as soon as June. Before then, if its lease is finalized, Matson will move its operations to T-5 starting in April. According to Tuesday’s briefing, while SSA‘s lease as the long-term tenant of T-5 also would start in April, its rent payments wouldn’t start until 2021 – assuming Phase 1 of the modernization project is done by then.

P.S. If you see this before 6:30 pm, a reminder that a port rep is on the agenda at tonight’s West Seattle Transportation Commission meeting to talk about T-5. The meeting’s at Neighborhood House-High Point, 6400 Sylvan Way SW.

(July 2016 aerial of West Seattle with Terminal 5 at left, shared by David)

It’s been almost three weeks since the long-awaited announcement of a tenant for Terminal 5, enabling the Port of Seattle to move forward with a $340 million plan to modernize T-5. Managing members of the Northwest Seaport Alliance – the port commissioners of Seattle and Tacoma – meet this Tuesday to vote on sending the project out to bid; their votes on the leases for T-5, short term and long term, were also originally set for this meeting but are now not expected until March 19th. Tuesday’s agenda has links to the documents that have been made public so far. From those documents, here’s the overview recapping what the $340 million project is intended to do:

Program Objectives
Program objectives include a terminal that is capable of handling two ultra-large class vessels, by early-2023. The improved wharf will support up to 12 cranes and provide ship-to-shore power for vessels berthed at the facility. …

Scope of Work
The Berth Modernization Project includes reconstruction of the waterside and landside crane rails, slope stabilization, berth deepening, and electrical supply/distribution upgrades, new fender system, and structural rehabilitation of the dock.

The upcoming program authorization request will cover construction of the Berth Modernization Project, tenant reimbursable stormwater treatment construction, and design and permitting of the remaining Uplands Improvement Project elements.

Schedule
The Berth Modernization Project construction documents are ready to advertise, allowing work to begin as early as June 2019. Completion of the project would be phased to allow operations to begin in the north berth (Phase 1) while construction of the south berth is underway (Phase 2).

The north berth is where Matson would move on an interim basis, relocating from Terminal 30, as announced when the T-5 plan was revealed earlier this month.

Meantime, if you are wondering exactly where the $340 million is coming from, we asked port spokesperson Peter McGraw. Since this is an NWSA project, Seattle and Tacoma will basically split the cost. He adds:

Port of Seattle will be using a combination of tax levy cash, currently in the Harbor Development Fund that was set aside for this purpose, and general obligation bonds.

The Port of Tacoma anticipates using existing cash reserves generated through operations and previous borrowing. No additional Port of Tacoma debt will be required to fund this program.

There will also be investments from the proposed terminal operator.

That’s SSA, which is expected to invest up to $140 million in the T-5 first phase ($50 million in cranes, $50 million in “backland paving/improvements,” $35-$40 million in yard equipment).

The aforementioned levy is a countywide tax from which the port gets some of its money and has long been collecting below its authorization level. This document includes an explanation of this year’s levy increase:

… median household property tax payment to the Port would increase by $1.39, going from $68.80 per year in 2018 to $70.20 per year in 2019. In 2018, of the $5.6 billion that King County collected in property taxes, just 1.3 percent went to the Port of Seattle. The property tax levy made up less than five percent of the Port’s cash revenue in 2018.

McGraw says, “The Port has included the T-5 modernization program into its tax levy uses for the past few years before the levy increase, set aside in the Harbor Development Fund. Although T-5 is part of our waterfront re-visioning, the bulk of the increase is going toward … other waterfront projects.”

Meantime, the next three weeks before the T-5 lease vote on March 19th, McGraw says, will be used to “complete due diligence on the leases, which are decades-long commitments involving many entities, including local companies and international cargo carriers.”

Tuesday’s meeting starts at 9 am at the Conference Center on the south side of Sea-Tac Airport, and will include a public-comment period. If you have a comment on the T-5 plan, you can also contact the NWSA via e-mail.

P.S. Tuesday’s agenda also includes more on the future of Terminal 46, part of which the Port of Seattle is proposing using as an added cruise terminal. The groundwork is being laid by an agreement between the NWSA and the port that says 29 acres at the north end of T-46 would be used as a cruise facility starting in 2022. $200 million – half – its cost is envisioned as Port-funded, the other half by its prospective tenant.

(January 2015 photo of Terminal 5 by Long Bach Nguyen)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Just one week after a new promise that a tenant for Terminal 5 would be announced “soon” – we know who’s moving in.

And that news opens the door for the modernization project to begin; the city has just granted the permits.

A briefing is set to start at 11:30 am at the Northwest Seaport Alliance‘s managing-members’ (Seattle and Tacoma port commissioners) meeting at Sea-Tac Airport – you can watch the stream here.

First, the toplines. The last major tenant at Terminal 5, Westwood, moved out in 2014. The port and the NWSA have been planning the modernization project and seeking a tenant. From the announcement that’s being made today:

… The investments in Terminal 5 will be coordinated with the proposed new tenant, Stevedoring Services of America Terminals (SSAT) and Terminal International Limited (TIL Group). The proposal calls for a new 32-year lease with these two terminal operators, which together are in partnership with several of the world’s largest ocean carriers.

To support the Phase I construction schedule for Terminal 5 modernization, estimated to begin this Spring and be completed by 2021, the Port Commissioners will be considering a realignment of marine cargo in the Seattle Harbor. Specifically:

Matson’s Hawaii service moves from T-30 to the South berth of T-5 in Spring 2019.

International marine cargo would be re-assigned to the Terminals 18 & 5, beginning with the current customer at T-46, TTI, moving to T-18.

This presents the opportunity to use Terminal 46 for other project and break-bulk cargo, and relocating Seattle-based Foss Maritime, to this terminal. The Port of Seattle Commission is also studying using approximately 29 acres of the 86-acre Terminal 46 could be accommodate a cruise berth to meet the demand for Alaskan cruise industry, which is a growing business in Seattle. …

Foss has been an interim tenant at T-5.

Port commissioners are expected to take final action on the newly unveiled plan on February 26th.

1ST ADD: We talked this morning with Seattle Port Commissioner Fred Felleman, in advance of the briefing/meeting. First, what’s been a big issue for many West Seattleites looking ahead to the modernization project: No, the deal does not require ships to use shore power while berthed at T-5. But it will be shore-power capable, and he contends that will be attractive to shippers for financial as well as environmental reasons, since electricity here is relatively cheap.

He also notes that the new plan basically consolidates many freight operations at the two on-dock-rail-equipped terminals, 5 and 18 (which is on Harbor Island), which makes a dent in truck traffic. The port’s requirement for newer, cleaner trucks is already in place. And Felleman noted another port program that is making it possible for trucks to get in and out more efficiently, an economic benefit to drivers as well as an efficiency enhancement regarding traffic. And the T-5 project will come with a railroad “quiet zone,” as previously reported.

On another environmental point – Felleman notes that, with a background as a whale biologist, he shares the newly intensified concern about shipping noise and its effect on marine life including the Southern Resident Killer Whales. He is hopeful that fewer – though larger – ships will have less of a noise impact, though he acknowledges that research hasn’t verified that yet.

While the new T-5 tenants have partnerships with shipping alliances that already call in local ports, Felleman says they expect there will be a net increase in jobs.

2ND ADD, BRIEFING UPDATES, STARTING AT 12:24 PM: We are now at the NWSA meeting briefing on this, which is happening in the conference center at Sea-Tac. (Looks like the feed is up and running here.) The first slide deck they’re going through is here, and it begins with toplines from the report unveiled last week at T-18, regarding regional cargo-shipping economic impact.

Preceding this, it was reiterated that final action on this is three weeks away and the commissioners want to hear from the public. NW Seaport Alliance CEO John Wolfe called this “an exciting day” as they unveil the T-5 details, and noted that along with the port’s $340 million capital investment, there are two phases of private-sector investment totaling $250 million, “overall investment of half a billion dollars.”

Speaking of money:

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(WSB photo: Commissioners Clare Petrich and Fred Felleman at Terminal 18 media briefing)

12:20 PM: Four and a half years after Terminal 5‘s last major tenant left, we’re still waiting to hear word of a new tenant. Last fall, the projection was that there’d be an announcement before year’s end. Now, one month into the new year, the new estimate is “soon” – as in, before the end of the first quarter. So said Clare Petrich, Tacoma Port Commissioner speaking on behalf of the Northwest Seaport Alliance partnership, as NWSA released a new report about the value of the maritime business to our state. Plans for upgrading T-5 have been awaiting news of a tenant. Among the other speakers at the report’s unveiling was Seattle Port Commissioner Fred Felleman, who declared the report to be evidence of a “renaissance” in the maritime business. He, Petrich, Dan McKisson from the ILWU, and Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan (who toured a dock crane first) all spoke during today’s announcement at Terminal 18 on Harbor Island. We’ll add video when it’s ready, and a few more details from the report later; you can see the report in its entirety here (PDF).

(Added: Photo courtesy NWSA)

4:05 PM: Here’s our video:

The report focuses very specifically on the impact of cargo shipping. Petrich noted that 90 percent of the world’s trade is done by water. One of the notable breakout charts in the report:

Here’s the NWSA news release with other highlights.

An FYI from Port of Seattle spokesperson Peter McGraw:

The THORCO ROYAL will be berthed at Terminal 5 in West Seattle for about three weeks starting tomorrow (Friday) to undergo vessel repairs prior to returning to sea.

It will be berthed from mid-dock (1500 foot mark) north to about the 2200 foot mark. There will not be any cargo activities associated with its layberthing at T-5.

MarineTraffic.com shows the cargo ship is already in West Seattle, currently at a dock on the Duwamish River.

(Terminal 5 photo from portseattle.org)

Though a tenant has yet to be announced, the modernization plan for Terminal 5 in West Seattle is moving forward. The Northwest Seaport Alliance – the partnership of the Seattle and Tacoma ports – approved a 2019 budget today, and T-5 plans factor heavily into the announcement, which mentions “final negotiations with a potential tenant”:

At today’s special dual meeting, the Managing Members of The Northwest Seaport Alliance adopted a budget for 2019 as well as a five-year capital investment plan. The budget and investment plan allow for terminal modernization to accommodate larger vessels and retain a competitive position in the global marketplace. The budget also includes environmental and business development investments.

“With the adoption of this budget, we are sending a clear message to the industry and our communities that The Northwest Seaport Alliance is working,” said Courtney Gregoire, Port of Seattle commission president and co-chair of the NWSA. “It allows us to make transformative investments in our harbors so we are competitive in the global marketplace, attracting jobs and retaining the economic vitality of the Pacific Northwest.”

“Now in its third year, The Northwest Seaport Alliance remains strong,” said Clare Petrich, Port of Tacoma commission vice president and co-chair of the NWSA. “Our partnership with the Port of Seattle is good not only for our local communities but for manufacturers and farmers across the nation. This budget ensures the alliance will continue to benefit our region well into the future.”

Planned capital improvements take the NWSA one step closer to transforming Seattle’s Terminal 5 into a premier international container facility on the West Coast. The Managing Members passed a motion authorizing CEO John Wolfe to prepare a lease, bidding documents and a request for construction funds for the necessary upgrades. Final negotiations with a potential tenant are currently underway.

Improvements to T-5 will include dock and power upgrades and berth deepening to handle the world’s largest cargo ships. Currently, T-5 can handle vessels with a capacity of up to 6,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), but shipping lines are now investing in vessels with 18,000 TEU capacity or greater. Once complete, T-5 will have a capacity of a 3 million TEUs annually.

Modernizations at T-5 bring environmental benefits as well, allowing creosote-treated wooden piles to be replaced with a panelized fender system and increasing the electrical capacity of the terminal for quieter, cleaner operations.

A negotiated lease and a request to initiate construction are expected to come to the Managing Members for approval in the first quarter of 2019.

Port reps had previously said that news of a T-5 tenant was likely before this year was out (most recently, when Seattle Port Commissioner Ryan Calkins spoke to the WS Chamber of Commerce two months ago). More than four years have passed since the last cargo-line tenant left T-5. Meantime, you can see the draft 2019 budget by going here. (We’re still reading through it for the financing specifics.)

UPDATED WEDNESDAY, 10:03 AM: NWSA says its estimate of T-5 volume was an error and so we have added a strikethrough above – they’ve removed it from their release, which you can see in its entirety here.

(WSB photo of MV Green Cove @ T-5, as seen from West Seattle Bridge last Monday)

The ship that called at West Seattle’s Terminal 5 to pick up hundreds of pieces of U.S. Army equipment has left for South Korea. Thanks to Andrw for the tip; the vehicle carrier MV Green Cove left last night. While its destination information on MarineTraffic.com had displayed as simply “Far East” earlier in the day, it was listed a day earlier as bound for Busan, second-most-populous city in South Korea. The Port of Seattle had circulated advance word of the shipment plan earlier this month, and cargo like this caught eyes in the T-5 vicinity:

Thanks to Richard for that photo from last Saturday. The port said the shipments were being handled by its interim T-5 tenant Foss.

Thanks to Jim for the video. As seen on the rails behind Chelan Café this morning, that’s a closer look at some of the military equipment moving through Terminal 5 right now. As described by a Port of Seattle spokesperson, it’s part of “U.S. Army equipment, supplies, and provisions … part of a scheduled unit rotation of U.S. Forces to Korea,” being handled by Foss as part of its interim lease at T-5. Port Commissioner Ryan Calkins told the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce on Thursday that the shipments are primarily from Texas.