Train Leaves Blue Mt. Station

DAYTON - Blue Mountain Station will soon be a flurry of activity.

Blue Mountain Station, a proposed organic and natural foods processing facility and foodie attraction, has just been approved for $750,000 from the state legislature. And the Port of Columbia, which is behind the project, has a big to-do list.

The ground was broken at the station's site in Dayton about this time last year. The site will hopefully one day have many buildings full of organic and natural food companies. And now, after not seeing much progress other than a nice parking lot and some weeds, a building and landscaping are on order, said Port Manager Jennie Dickinson.

With $750,000 from the state, some port money and some funding from private investors, Blue Mountain Station will soon have its first building that will, with hope, draw some new companies to Dayton.

"The economy has really changed since we started the project," Dickinson said.

There has been interest in developing at Blue Mountain Station from companies that make cheese, wine, spirits, goat products, hot sauce and beer, she said.

Many companies were interested in moving to the site, but they didn't necessarily have the money to build their own facility, Dickinson said. So, the port will construct about an 8,000-square foot building with small, affordable processing units, a small flour mill and a commercial kitchen for testing products.

The idea is to bring multiple organic and natural food companies into this building. When the companies expand, they can do so with a new building on the Blue Mountain Station site.

The building will likely be situated on the east end of the property, Dickinson said. All of the utilities are already laid, so the port next needs to look at designs and what it can build for about $1 million, she said.

Gary White, the marketing consultant for Blue Mountain Station, said there has been a lot of interest from growers in the local community for a flour mill or even equipment that could turn their grain into pancake or bread mixes.

"We wanted to fill a need in the community," White said.

Dickinson said the small flour and grain mill that will be built can accommodate both organic and natural grain simply by cleaning the mill in between customers, she said. She didn't want to rule out natural food companies by only including organic companies and vice versa.

"We're trying to not be too narrowly focused," Dickinson said. "The two go hand in hand."

A test kitchen and some more space were also voiced as needs by the companies who have expressed interest. Some of these companies have been operating out of their home kitchens, White said. Some food companies are looking for a larger commercial space.

Dickinson wants the community to know the port has been working hard researching and building relationships with companies who may want to move their business to Dayton.

"It's not just a stab in the dark," she added. "We had a plan, a vision and we made good progress."

And it won't be long before the community sees progress. A landscaping plan will begin immediately at the site and will include many native plants. Next, the design will be completed and construction will begin. Dickinson expects construction to take about one year.

White said he is ready to get everything up and running so companies can move in, they can "continue with the momentum of the project" and possibly continue to build and expand.

Dickinson thanked Rep. Terry Nealey, Sen. Mike Hewitt and Rep. Maureen Walsh for their work on the project and helping to get the funding approved. She said this will be key to economic growth and job creation in Columbia County. But, she said, it won't happen overnight, but over 10 to 20 years.

"We have made tremendous progress," Dickinson said. "It's important for people to recognize that if we hadn't have kept plowing forward, we wouldn't have been in the position to get this money."