By Eric Rosane / ericr@chronline.com
An aquaculture startup has courted the Port of Chehalis to talk about purchasing part of the Bishop Road Industrial Site 1, located near Peace Lutheran Church, Port CEO Randy Mueller told commissioners Thursday.
The company, which Mueller didn’t identify, is interested in a 10-acre portion along the south side of the property to build a facility that will farm saltwater shrimp to service the Seattle and Portland markets.
The 23-acre Bishop Road Industrial Site 1 is currently listed by the port for $4.5 million. Mueller said the port would need to redraw its parcel lines if the deal goes through. The company was brought to the port through the Economic Alliance of Lewis County, formerly known as the Lewis Economic Development Council.
“When you think about farming and ag, you don’t necessarily think aquaculture. But aquaculture is food and it does fit in with the other work we’ve done in the food sector and the food industry. It diversifies the local economy. It’s not putting all our eggs into one basket. And it’s a small-to-medium sized business that I think we could really help leverage their startup and potentially grow it into something really big,” Mueller told port commissioners.
Though the port’s location between two major metropolitan cities provides a market incentive for the company, Mueller said the company is still looking at other locations.
The company estimates it would bring about 73 jobs to the area.
Mueller noted that based on jobs per acre, the return on employment would be higher than what many of their other tenants bring in.
Speaking to The Chronicle, Mueller said the company seemed quite enthusiastic to bring its business to the area. This business would be a first of its kind for Washington state, he said.
“On our end, we haven’t seen anything that’s infeasible,” he said.
The property currently has water-sewer line access from the city along Jackson Highway. Geotechnical analysis done previously by the port on the property came back favorable, though the company is looking at further analysis as it would have to install large, enclosed concrete shells to farm the shrimp in.
But Mueller said the facility wouldn’t use as many resources as one might assume.
“Their design is less resource intensive than other similar aquaculture designs because it is a recirculated system that cleans itself out and reuses a lot of the water,” Mueller said of the company’s “cutting-edge technology.”
Jobs for the site could include management, fish biology specialists, site maintenance, security, drivers and plant operation positions, Mueller said.
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