The Seattle Port Commission has narrowly approved a controversial plan to transform its 57-acre North Bay property so that it includes research and development, office space and retail uses.
The 3-2 commission vote on June 28 followed through on an earlier decision to eliminate housing from the mix - despite a staff recommendation to include residential uses.
Space for existing and future maritime use would almost double under the proposal, 2.2 million square feet would be reserved for R&D and related manufacturing, 1.1 million square feet would be targeted for office use, and 100,000 square feet would be set up for retail businesses.
A greenbelt on the Magnolia side of the property also would be enhanced and linked to the site with walkways and a bike path, according to the Port. The plan includes plazas, courtyards and waterfront access as well.
The idea has been touted as a way to bring in roughly 10,000 new jobs and generate between $2 billion and $3 billion in private investment on the largely vacant land in the next 20 to 25 years.
New tenants would construct their own buildings and lease the Port property, according to the proposal. But the Port would be responsible for building new roads and making infrastructure improvements on the site at a cost of approximately $25 million - and maybe more.
A Port press release about the vote maintains that the investment would generate $162 million in tax revenue for the city, county and state.
The Port also estimates its investment will bring in a return of approximately $77 million, but Port Commissioner Alex Fisken is dubious.
He and commissioner Lawrence Molly voted against the proposal, and Fisken said he thinks the Port will lose a lot of money trying to develop the property.
In addition, the proposal flies in the face of the city's Comprehensive Plan, which reserves the area for manufacturing and industrial uses, Fisken said.
"That office space could go anywhere in the city," he added. "You might as well go to the Seattle Center and put insurance offices under the fountain."
There also could be a spillover effect, according to Fisken. "I think going in that direction... and changing the city's Comp Plan will lead property owners on the Ship Canal to ask for the same thing," he said. "Once you start chipping away (at the manufacturing base), people will say, 'Oh my golly, we'll see condos in the future.' "
The Port proposal also calls for raising the zoned height limits to 110 feet, but that's a minor issue for Fisken. "For me, I think that's too high, but I'm much more concerned with the uses," he said.
Mayor Greg Nickels and the city council have to amend the Comprehensive Plan before the Port proceeds in North Bay. The mayor is expected to submit his recommendation for all Comp Plan amendments to the council on Aug. 1, according to Stephanie Pure, an aide to councilman Peter Steinbrueck, who chairs the Urban Development and Planning Committee.
A public hearing will be held 30 days after that, and Steinbrueck's committee will discuss and make recommendations about the amendments to the full city council in September, according to Pure.
Council members, she noted, are prohibited from discussing their views on the North Bay issue because their decision on a Comp Plan amendment will be a quasi-judicial one.
Port Commissioner and Queen Anne resident Paige Miller voted for the proposal, but she did not return a call for comment. Neither did commission president Bob Edwards, who also voted for the plan and who was supposed to be the commission's press contact, according to a Port staffer in the commission office.
But Fisken doesn't think the North Bay proposal will fly with the council. "I think they'll reject it," he said, "but you never know."
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