Formation of a port district in Spokane County, something that will not likely be voted on at least until 2017, could provide neighbors to Allpak in Cheney.
Establishment of a port district in Spokane County, an old idea which would make it easier to help businesses development, is getting a second look.
Spearheaded by Greater Spokane, Incorporated, formation of this new taxing authority would aid economic development, proponents like Cheney Mayor Tom Trulove say.
The proposed vote will not come until at least 2017 and not before GSI initiates an educational campaign on the perceived benefits of such an entity. Cheney and Airway Heights have each pledged $5,000 to assist while Medical Lake will pledge $2,500. Spokane is spending $10,000 and the city of Spokane Valley $7,500 on the campaign.
"Clearly when you're setting up a new taxing district that has the potential of raising property taxes you have to make a pretty convincing, compelling argument or folks are not going to go along with it," Trulove said.
Robin Toth, vice president of business development for GSI, presented the idea to the Cheney City Council, Aug. 25. Formation of a port district allows the collection of additional tax dollars to fund both infrastructure and business development by assisting companies with funding that might not readily be available.
Toth told the council that Spokane County is lacking a major tool in attracting business without a port district.
Trulove, who also serves on the steering committee with others both in the public and private sectors, has long been a believer in the port district idea.
"I've worked with port districts for a long time for a number of years, I think about 13 years (while) I was on the Community Economic Revitalization Board," Trulove said.
That was a state program that made loans and grants to local governments to help lure private sector business to a community. "It was a very successful economic development program," Trulove said.
But a public entity was required to apply for the loan or grant to put in the needed infrastructure that would attract business.
"What I found, I suspect about 80 percent, if not more of the successful loans and grants were to port districts across the state," Trulove said. Currently 14 of Washington's 39 counties do not have port districts and there are 75 in the state.
Trulove sees establishment of a port district for Spokane County having local impact on Cheney's slow to develop industrial park west of town on State Route 904.
Land in the park could be sold to a port district, which in turn would construct a spec building where a business - or businesses - could locate and bring new jobs to the community with a tenant's lease payment paying off the building.
"Oftentimes firms that want to relocate, if they get help with the building, they're perfectly happy to pay the lease payments," Trulove said. "It saves them trying to go out and borrow the money."
A port district has taxing capabilities that enables them to issue revenue or general obligation bonds, both of which are backed by federal, state and local governments.
Most ports districts have a fairly low tax rate. Moses Lake is just below the 45 cent maximum at 43 cents while Walla Walla collects 37-cents per $1,000 in a property's taxable value. A $175,000 home would be assessed just under $80 per year at the maximum rate.
The Port of Walla Walla is one example where a port district has helped fuel its wine-making industry that has taken off and put that community on the world map for something other than onions. The Port of Whitman in Pullman has built what are known as incubator buildings that have 4-6 bays and house start-up businesses.
Trulove cited the Port of Grant County in Moses Lake which took over the former Larson Air Force Base that closed in the mid 1960s and has been able to secure relocation of companies like National Frozen Foods and Genie Industries, the garage door people.
"Spokane just doesn't have the capacity to do that," Trulove said.
When the port district concept last surfaced in 1984, Trulove admits he didn't pay that close of attention to the idea. As an economics professor at Eastern Washington University at the time Trulove said he thought it was a good idea.
The measure met with thundering disapproval at the polls by a 4-to-1 margin.
"I think the problem back then was they didn't study it enough to make a good case," Trulove said.
Paul Delaney can be reached at pdelaney@cheneyfreepress.com.
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