The first piece of waterfront land Port of Camas-Washougal officials will look to develop is the east side, where port commissioners want to set up a residential area.
“With the market where it’s at right now, it’s conducive to us that we move quickly,” said David Ripp, executive director of the port.
Ripp, along with port staffers, attended the port commission’s Strategic and Capital Planning Retreat Friday at Heathman Lodge in Vancouver.
“Our ultimate goal for the day is to figure our how to move this project forward in a unified fashion,” said John Spencer, one of the port’s three commissioners.
Port commissioners and staffers are planning to redevelop about 40 acres of waterfront property. The port owns about 27 acres of that, while the remaining 13 is owned by Parker’s Landing, which is represented by Vancouver-based commercial real estate developer Killian Pacific. Lance Killian, president of Killian Pacific, was present for the first half of the retreat on Friday.
The commissioners decided to develop the residential portion first because that could help make the rest of the land attractive to potential investors or companies. The exact mix of housing — condos, apartments, homes, or something else — will be discussed later. On Friday, Killian told commissioners that with residents there, there’s already a built-in consumer base, which could help when pitching the property to commercial or retail businesses.
The retreat focused mostly on big-picture ideas, with more detailed decisions to come later. So, when it comes to commercial businesses on the west end, the commissioners still need to figure out how much they think the port should develop themselves, or whether they should sell or lease land to a developer. There’s also the possibility of a land swap, a lease or a purchase agreement with Killian.
Ripp said he can see “shovels in ground” to kick off the first part of the project within the next 12 to 24 months, adding that development could start as early as next summer. He said the port had a study done to see where its visitors are coming from, and the study found that people using port property were coming from Stevenson through midway into Camas.
It’s up to the port’s decision-makers to give people a reason to come to the waterfront property, Ripp said, adding that building businesses and restaurants similar to those in Vancouver won’t attract those out-of-towners.
“We need to make it a destination,” Ripp said. “We need to give people a reason to come east.”
One new amenity the commissioners and staffers discussed at the retreat is a natural play area for kids, which is slated for construction in 2018. The play area will be along the new trail that opened in September at the Washougal Waterfront Park. It will be near the compass on the trail and could feature play items like a tunnel and musical areas.
One potential addition to the play area that was a conversation focus for a few minutes is a statue of an ogre or ogress. The estimated budget for the play area is $250,000, and the statue would add about $25,000 to that. Port commissioners and staffers plan on spending this year fundraising for the statue.
“That could be a draw,” Spencer said. “It becomes a destination by itself.”
Future of the port
The waterfront property was just one discussion item at the all-day retreat. The commissioners also looked at what they hope the port looks like in 20 years. Spencer said the overall goals are to have multiple marinas, a fully built-out industrial park at the Steigerwald Commerce Center and additional activity at Grove Field airport in Camas.
Ripp said the port has also discussed purchasing land within the Camas city limits. He said there is some land north of Lacamas Lake that he thinks would make for a good investment for the port, as the city prepares to develop that land. Ripp said the port is looking for light industrial property, and there isn’t much left in Washougal.
“For us planning a future, it’s going to be in Camas,” he said.
