The Port of Olympia: Reinvesting in Our Community

port of olympia
Anthony's Hearthfire Grill is the anchor of NorthPoint Park which is owned and maintained by the Port. Photo courtesy: Port of Olympia
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The Port of Olympia was established by public vote in 1922 to stimulate economic activity and secure a role for our local communities in national and international trade. Most ports rely on tax levies to fund community infrastructure and accomplish large-scale projects. You may be surprised to learn that the financial support the Port of Olympia receives is returned directly back to the communities that support it. Based on the median value of a home in Thurston County, the Port of Olympia receives $50 per household annually. What does a household receive in return for that annual investment?

The Market District is Port property leased to the Olympia Farmers Market, Anthony’s Homeport, the retail shops in the Market Centre and the public spaces of the Port Plaza. Photo credit: Diane Waiste

The Port of Olympia has a large real estate portfolio in Tumwater and Olympia. The Port takes land that has been sitting vacant, not generating any revenue, and adds the infrastructure to make it appeal to private investment. This infrastructure includes things like roads, streetlights, curbs, sidewalks and trees.

The Market District is a perfect example of this private/public development. The Olympia Farmers Market, on Port property and leased out by the Port, was the anchor that led the way for investors to build the Market Centre. This upscale development houses retail shops, restaurants and office space. Once the Port of Olympia created an attractive environment close to downtown and the waterfront, businesses such as Anthony’s Homeport were eager to jump in and invest in Olympia.

Today, the Market District is one of the most popular areas in town. Weekends are busy with both residents and out of town visitors spending time and money at the Farmers Market, local shops and nearby restaurants. When a visitor strolls from the Farmers Market with coffee purchased from Batdorf and Bronson to the Port Plaza they are walking on land that is owned and developed by the Port to create revenue for Thurston County.

port of olympia
The clean-up project currently underway between State Street and the Hands On Children’s Museum is a Port of Olympia project to facilitate future investment and development.

Business activity created by the Port of Olympia supports nearly 5,000 family wage jobs resulting in $100 million in wages and $20 million in local tax revenue. Those revenues are used to support important services like fire, police and road maintenance. East Bay is seeing further private projects like those being initiated by developer Walker John. Without the Port of Olympia’s investment in infrastructure, these developments, and the revenue that is sure to follow, may have happened elsewhere, or not at all.

In Tumwater, the Port of Olympia is renovating the Clean Water Center. By retrofitting the existing buildings and making site improvements they have already attracted new business tenants such as Scribbles and Giggles Daycare creating 24 new jobs in a second location for this local business. It is worth noting that the parking lot lights are solar powered, making these buildings environmentally friendly and inexpensive to maintain.

Bucoda community center
Improvements to the Bucoda Community Center are another way that the Port of Olympia gives back to the community with the Small Cities Program
Photo courtesy: Port of Olympia

A lesser-known program of the Port of Olympia is the Small City program, currently in its seventh year of supporting the economic development of cities with populations of less than fifteen thousand. Each year the cities of Rainer, Tenino, Bucoda and Yelm submit an application for funds to support economic development in their communities. In almost all cases, the cities have been able to use the funds to leverage further investment in their communities by applying for matching grants.

Tenino used their $10,000 to improve signage and fencing at their very popular Tenino Quarry. The City of Yelm has improved their bicycle paths and invested in electric car charging stations. In the city of Bucoda, funds have gone to improve the local community center. “The small cities grant means a lot to us,” shares Bucoda Mayor Alan Carr. “We are able to use our own labor and really stretch those dollars, so it goes along way.” The community center contains a ballroom and two other spaces that are regularly rented out for birthdays and weddings.

Speaking of weddings, the Port Plaza in downtown Olympia can be rented for weddings, corporate and community events as well. Many local high school students have had their graduation and prom pictures at the Port Plaza. The blue water of Budd Inlet and the majesty of the Olympics provide the perfect backdrop for any photo. The Port Plaza is home to many summer events including Music in the Park, Saint Martin’s University Dragon Boat Festival, Harbor Days and Olympia Brew Fest.

Port of Olympia
The Port Plaza is home to many community events including Music on the Plaza, Olympia Brew Fest and the Dragon Boat Festival. Photo credit: Courtesy of the Port of Olympia

A short walk from the Port Plaza is the East Bay trail, owned and maintained by the Port of Olympia. This 1.2-mile trail extends from the East Bay Plaza, in front of the Hands On Children’s Museum, and all the way to the picnic tables at NorthPoint Park adjacent to Anthony’s Hearthfire Grill. Along the way, enjoy the pocket parks lined with native plants. Some of these gardens have been planted and maintained by Port staff as well. Local groups such as the Lion’s Club have adopted others. The Adopt-a-Garden program is available to residents and the contents of the herb gardens along are free for the harvesting.

If you are interested in a working waterfront tour, the Port of Olympia provides public tours once a month from April through October. Groups of 10 or more can schedule a private tour with the Port subject to scheduling availability. Not only are these tours free of charge but also the Port will reimburse 100% of the transportation costs incurred by any Thurston County school that would like to schedule a tour for their students. The Port of Olympia has provides free field trips to an average of 800 Thurston county students each year.

For more information on your Port of Olympia visit www.portolympia.com.

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