Port's 2004 Budget Focuses on Infrastructure Investments

A dramatic new arrivals hall at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, security enhancements at the airport and seaport, and investments in regional transportation and economic development are part of the Port of Seattle's 2004 budget.

The Port Commission today adopted the 2004 budget which includes $363 million in operating revenues and $740 million worth of capital investments aimed at bolstering the region's economy through infrastructure improvements that support trade, transportation and tourism.

However, the budget also includes staff reductions at the airport and very tight fiscal restraints. There will be no pay increases in 2004, and Port employees are paying more of the health care and benefit costs.

"We've made some difficult decisions," said Commission President Patricia Davis. "But we're continuing to make the investments that will produce jobs and make our Port competitive now and in the future."

The Port also is taking steps to continually improve security at the Seaport, including investing millions of dollar in federal security grant monies and working with partners to facilitate projects that demonstrate new techniques and technologies for end-to-end cargo security.

"One in three jobs in our state is tied to trade," Davis said. "The investments the port makes provide the infrastructure to grow and sustain the flow of trade through this region. These flows produce jobs that would otherwise not be here."

At Seattle-Tacoma International Airport completion of the South Terminal Expansion Project is slated for next year. The project includes a new International Arrivals Hall and seven new terminal gates, bringing the total to 14. A number of new security features, which were added to the design after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, will make traveling through the airport safer than ever. The new gates will increase efficiency and provide capacity for future growth in passenger volumes.

Other major construction projects scheduled for 2004 at Sea-Tac include work on the Central Terminal Expansion Project, improvements to the subway system and - pending permit approval - construction work on the Third Runway.

On the waterfront, the Port will continue work on upgrades to the container handling facility at Terminal 46. The $71 million project complements the more than $600 million the Port has invested over the past 10 years in container facilities at Terminal 5 and Terminal 18.

Capital improvements at Fishermen's Terminal and Terminal 115, both of which serve the critical economic link between Alaska and the Puget Sound region, will also move ahead in 2004. The Port will also begin renovation of the Shilshole Bay Marina, a project that will stretch over the next five years.

The Port will continue to contribute to the FAST Corridor program - a long-term effort to separate road and rail traffic at key locations throughout Puget Sound. Projects slated for 2004 include work on the East Marginal Way Overpass, the Spokane Street viaduct and realignment of a portion of Alaskan Way.

"Maintaining and enhancing our ability to compete on a global scale is the goal of these investments," said Port CEO M. R. Dinsmore. "Transportation connections have been, and continue to be, among our region's most valuable economic assets."

The Port also is working on plans to help diversify and grow the regional economy and strengthen the Port's revenue stream by exploring new uses for some of its properties. A $5 million effort to begin master planning and the permitting process for redevelopment of property in the Interbay area in 2004 was recently approved by the Commission.

While the specific details of the project are not yet known, the goal is to make the area an employment center for jobs that will help carry the economy forward for several decades. Public input will be a key element of the redevelopment effort.

An important environmental project slated for 2004 is the removal of about 200,000 cubic yards of polluted sediments from the East Duwamish Waterway. The contaminants are the result of more than 100 years of industrial activity along the waterway. Their removal will improve habitat for fish and some of the species upon which they prey.

The 2004 budget includes a property tax levy that will raise $59.66 million. The tax levy rate will be 25.5 cents per $1,000 assessed valuation - about half a penny less than in 2003.

Unlike other public agencies, the Port does not use tax proceeds to cover general operational expenses. Tax revenues are used primarily for Seaport-related capital projects, environmental restoration, and to pay off general obligation bonds.

"The investments the Port is making in our economic infrastructure are more critical now than ever," Davis said. "They will help pull our region out of the economic downturn by generating jobs and business activity and enhancing state and local tax revenues. They will put us in a stronger position to make the most of the recovery once it begins."