PORT COMMISSION APPROVES LEASE TO COLUMBIA WATERFRONT LLC (6/26/07)

For Immediate Release

VANCOUVER, Wash. - Port of Vancouver commissioners today unanimously approved a long-term lease of 3.26 acres of port property to Columbia Waterfront LLC.

Approval of the lease was expected on June 21, but several concerns arose during discussion of the lease. Commissioners Arch Miller, Brian Wolfe and Nancy Baker requested that port staff and legal counsel make modifications consistent with discussion.

Port staff and legal counsel took care of “crossing T’s and dotting I’s” on the lease, in consideration of questions asked by commissioners in last week’s meeting.

The 3.26 acre parcel is located adjacent to the east end of the Boise Cascade property that formerly hosted a paper mill. That property is being purchased by Columbia Waterfront LLC for the purpose of developing a mixed-use waterfront area.

By leasing this property, and helping make the Columbia Waterfront project happen, the port gets another step closer to beginning construction on Schedule 1 of its West Vancouver Freight Access Project.

Terms of the lease include continued unrestricted public access to the waterfront, a monument to commemorate the Port of Vancouver’s original marine terminal and industrial area, as well as replacement for the 1.30 acres currently used as free parking for the Vancouver Landing and amphitheater.

Monthly rent is $16,492, with annual increases. The length of the lease is 50 years, with two 15-year extensions.

The Columbia Waterfront LLC will use the leased property to develop a “core” area for the mixed-use waterfront redevelopment of the Boise property consistent with the City of Vancouver’s City Center Vision. This lease area is expected to be the gateway to the waterfront project via the future Esther Street extension from Esther Short Park and the downtown center as well as via Columbia Street and the extended waterfront trail.

The port maintains reasonable approval rights for the Columbia Waterfront LLC’s design for buildings on the leased property. This lease is also contingent upon the Columbia Waterfront LLC successfully purchasing the former Boise Vancouver Mill Site.

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The Port of Vancouver, USA, created by Clark County taxpayers in 1912, is one of the major ports on the Pacific Coast. Its competitive strengths include available land, versatile cargo handling capabilities, vast transportation networks, a dependable labor force and an exceptional level of service to its customers and community.

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