Port Commissioners hear concerns about railroad right-of-way, Columbia Pulp asset auction

DAYTON – The Columbia Port Commissioners held their regular meeting at 5 p.m. on May 10, 2023, in the Port of Columbia conference room and on Zoom. Commissioners Genie Crowe, Seth Bryan, and the Executive Director, Jennie Dickinson, were present. Johnny Watts was absent.

During public comment, Joann Patras from All Saints Thrift Store thanked Dickinson for her help in the thrift store’s successful grant application to Sherwood Trust.

Patras addressed Dickinson, saying, “What a blessing you were to me. You were so kind and so helpful.”

She said that the result was that Sherwood awarded $10,000 more than they requested. The funds were used to buy a 2021 Silverado 1500 with decals of their logo on the side.

Crowe read a letter from Carol Anderson, who opposed the port selling the rail right-of-way. Anderson was most concerned about the line’s future should it be sold.

Dickinson said a new two-year lease at Blue Mountain Station, signed with Mast Year Cider Collective, is to take effect on June 1, 2023.

Dickinson said assets of Columbia Pulp, LLC are scheduled to be auctioned in June 2023. She said there were a couple of potential bidders who would need to develop a product.

She mentioned the Packaging Corporation of America announced the pulp mill at Wallua will be mothballed until autumn, laying off 300 of their 450 employees. Dickenson was worried about what that meant for the whole pulp industry.

There were no significant updates to the broadband project. The broadband project is going well. Columbia iConnect has signed a lease, and the port is working on others.

All customer issues have been taken care of with regard to ground cover and vaults that needed to be moved or modified due to sinking.

Lyons Ferry passed an on-site DOH septic inspection on large septic systems.

The restaurant increased operating hours, now serving dinner on Fridays and Saturdays. They have also begun offering local meat for burgers and fish caught from the river.

An Artisan miller considering space at BMS has chosen a different site because the port property does not have natural gas.

A citizen in the final public comment period expressed concern about selling the railroad right-of-way. Without the railway, the speaker was worried about farmers having efficient grain transportation if dams were removed and barge traffic was eliminated. He was concerned that a future owner could use the right-of-way for non-transportation use, including housing.

The regular commissioners’ meeting adjourned at 5:28 p.m., followed by a workshop facilitated by Maul, Foster, and Alongi on the Comprehensive Plan. Discussions included possibly building affordable housing on seven acres West of Blue Mountain Station. This affordable housing could consist of mixed single-family units and apartments.

The workshop adjourned at 6:24 p.m.