VANCOUVER PORT COMMISSION TO CONSIDER OPTION AGREEMENT

VANCOUVER, Wash.-A special meeting of the Vancouver Port Commission has been called for 8:30 a.m., Tuesday, March 4 to consider action on an option agreement for land.

On the special meeting’s only action item, staff will ask Commissioners Brian Wolfe, Nancy Baker and Jerry Oliver to consider approving an option agreement with Sutherland Development LLC to acquire or long-term lease for one parcel at the port’s property on the former Rufener Farm – a section known as Parcel 8 – which is zoned light industrial, north of Lower River Road, across from the port’s headquarters.

Commission approval of the option agreement is needed for negotiations to continue on to the next steps.

The property is currently being filled by the port to bring it above the flood plain, and provide suitable surface that is shovel ready for light industrial development.

For just more than a year, the port and Sutherland Development LLC have been negotiating a possible long-term lease or sale of the 58-acre Parcel 8. Due to a confidentiality agreement, the port cannot identify the eventual tenant, which will have a light industrial facility on the property, bringing an estimated 600-800 living-wage jobs to the community. Sutherland Development will conduct the engineering and entitlement procedures while negotiations continue.

The option agreement being presented to the commission provides terms and conditions for negotiating either a purchase and sale agreement, or a long-term lease of up to 80 years. Those highlights include:

• The option agreement begins with its approval, and runs out May 26, 2009;
• Sutherland Development will provide the port with a promissory note at the time of its signing. That note will be turned to cash by December 31, 2008;
• Sutherland Development is required to provide the port with board approval from the eventual tenant by no later than August 31, 2008;
• Upon approval from the eventual tenant’s board, Sutherland Development will begin making monthly payments to the port no later than August 31, 2008;
• The port and Sutherland Development will announce the identity of the eventual tenant no later than December 1, 2008;
• A purchase price or lease payment will be determined by appraisals;
• Sutherland Development and its client may not move forward on the option until after approval of the board of the eventual tenant, and until after the eventual tenant is identified;
• The decision of whether the final deal will be a land purchase and sale agreement, or a lease agreement, will be determined during the option agreement negotiations;
• Sutherland Development will conduct its due diligence and feasibility during the option agreement negotiation period;
• Exact acreage that will be used by the eventual tenant will be determined during the option agreement negotiation period.

This option agreement follows the Port of Vancouver’s Strategic Plan, which includes a goal to maximize industrial business development by providing opportunities for new and existing businesses to expand and become more efficient, and to provide additional living-wage-earning jobs.

Development of the former Rufener farm property is another step in the port’s expansion of industrial space, and includes not only the 58 acres on Parcel 8, but also additional acreage on Parcel 7, located to the west of Parcel 8.

At a Glance
Who: Vancouver Port Commission
What: Special meeting
When: Tuesday, March 4, 8:30 a.m.
Quick Facts: The Port of Vancouver is negotiating with an eventual tenant for the first developed light-industrial property on the former Rufener Farm.

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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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