Port of Seattle press release:

The Port of Seattle Commission approved Wednesday, Dec. 5 an aggressive 25-year program that positions the port as a leader to help create 100,000 new jobs in the region while reducing the port’s environmental footprint.

“We established bold, achievable goals for the port and regional stakeholders in our Century Agenda,” said John Creighton, Port of Seattle commissioner. “It builds on the 100 plus year role the port has played in creating economic growth for the Puget Sound region and the state of Washington. The Commission thanks the hundreds of citizens who worked with us to a set a path forward for the next 25 years.”

“As commissioners, we’re getting to work, contributing resources and joining teams to pursue these new initiatives,” said Tom Albro, Port of Seattle commissioner. “We look forward to working with stakeholders throughout the region to accomplish the goals of the Century Agenda.”

To achieve its objectives, the Agenda identifies four strategies for the port to pursue with its business partners and stakeholders augmented by four regional initiatives that identify near-term opportunities for regional coalitions to collaborate and leverage the collective power of a shared agenda.
 
The port’s strategies and objectives include:


Position the Puget Sound region as the premier international logistics hub – Goals to help achieve this include growing the annual container volume to more than 3.5 million; tripling air cargo volume to 750,000 metric tons; tripling the value of outbound cargo to more than $50 billion; and doubling the economic value of the fishing and maritime cluster.

Advance the region as a leading tourism destination and business gateway – The Agenda seeks to leverage both Sea-Tac Airport and existing cruise ship activity to achieve this goal. One focus is to make Sea-Tac Airport the west coast “Gateway of Choice” for international travel by doubling the number international flights and destinations. In addition, the Agenda focuses on meeting the region’s air transportation needs and encouraging the cost-effective expansion of domestic and international passenger and cargo service. The second focus is to double the economic value of cruise traffic to Washington state.

Use the port’s influence as an institution to promote small business growth and workforce development – This includes increasing the portions of funds spent by the port with qualified small business firms on construction, goods and services to 40% of the eligible dollars spent. The Agenda also supports an increase in work force training, job and business opportunities for local communities in maritime, trade, travel and logistics.

Ensure the Port of Seattle is the greenest and most energy efficient port in North America – Over the next 25 years, the port will implement a multi-faceted approach to reduce energy use, air pollutants, carbon emissions and storm water runoff. This includes reducing air pollutants and carbon emissions from all port operations by 50% from 2005 levels and reducing aircraft-related carbon emissions by 25%. In addition, the Agenda calls for the restoration, creation and enhancement of 40 additional acres of habitat in the Green/Duwamish watershed and Elliott Bay.

The four regional initiatives include:

Strengthen access to global markets and supply chains for Northwest businesses – This includes aligning the efforts of organizations already working on these issues to strengthen the region’s role as a premier logistics hub and grow exports from Northwest businesses. The initiative also seeks to improve policies on taxation and land use.

Make Washington a preferred destination for international tourists from countries with direct flights to Sea-Tac Airport – This initiative focuses on encouraging business and tourism travelers to make longer visits to the region. It calls for strengthening the Washington Tourism Alliance and fostering closer coordination of efforts by tourism stakeholders to make Washington a “must visit” location.

Establish an educational consortium to serve the needs of maritime industry for workforce development, applied research and business growth – Today, the region boasts three times the national average in maritime industry jobs. This initiative seeks to strengthen this position by undertaking the steps necessary to create an educational magnet to incubate new technologies and bring more maritime-related businesses to Washington.

Foster a coordinated effort between Puget Sound ports to support Washington state’s pursuit of a healthier Puget Sound – This initiative encourages Puget Sound ports and other regional organizations to work together to restore the vitality of Puget Sound and protect and improve the shared environment while ensuring the vitality of the manufacturing and industrial districts.