Board will hold public hearing on comp scheme amendment and consider five action items

VANCOUVER, Wash. – The Port of Vancouver USA Board of Commissioners will meet Tuesday, August 26, to attend to five action items, including a proposed amendment of the port’s Comprehensive Scheme of Harbor Improvements and Industrial Development (Comprehensive Scheme). As part of the amendment process, the board will hold a public hearing on the proposed changes during the August 26 meeting.

Open session begins at 9:30 a.m. in the Commission Room at the port’s administrative building, located at 3103 NW Lower River Road, Vancouver. Click to view the complete agenda and meeting materials.

AUGUST 26 ACTION ITEMS

Amendment to the Comprehensive Scheme

Intended to inform the public on how the port invests or divests of its assets, Comprehensive Scheme amendments describe changes that are a result of construction, demolition, improvements, remediation and mitigation of port property. Changes covered under the proposed August 26 amendment include the surplus of port property to support the city’s waterfront redevelopment efforts and the development of Centennial Industrial Park; acquisition of property for the construction of an electrical substation; the construction of a new port security office; and the surplus of several port buildings.

Assignment and Assumption Agreement with RLH Partnership and Red Lion Hotel Holdings / Third Amendment to Lease between the port and Red Lion Hotels Holding, Inc.

Currently, port property occupied by the Red Lion Hotel Vancouver at the Quay is leased to RLH Partnership, LP, and then subsequently subleased to Red Lion Hotel Holdings, Inc. If approved, the Assignment and Assumption Agreement and the Amendment to Lease will remove RLH Partnership, LP from the lease agreement and establish a direct lease between the port and Red Lion Hotel Holdings, Inc. As part of the Assignment and Assumption Agreement, the sublease will be terminated upon the port’s payment of $3.4 million to RLH Partnership, LP by no later than August 29, 2014.

Establishing a direct lease between the port and Red Lion Hotel Holdings allows the parties to move forward with the removal of the Centennial Center and construction of Columbia Way on its final alignment. The new roadway, which will support waterfront redevelopment efforts, is a joint effort by the port, the city of Vancouver and Columbia Waterfront LLC. The amended lease also sets the stage for continued discussions between the port and Red Lion Hotel Holdings, Inc. on future plans for the hotel and the surrounding property.

Extraterritorial Rail Services Resolution

Building on the port’s effort to strengthen trade connections between the Pacific Rim and the Midcontinent, the Board of Commissioners will consider adoption of a resolution allowing the port to establish dedicated rail service between the Port of Vancouver USA and logistics partners in North Dakota. The primary focus of the port’s efforts will be to move agricultural products from the U.S. Midwest to Asia and Latin America. Because energy industry products are already moving into the Midcontinent from the U.S. West Coast by rail, the port and its partners are planning to fill what would have been empty, return-trip box cars with cargoes such as wheat, corn, beans, and specialty crops such as peas, lentils and flax.

Executive Director Compensation

It is anticipated that the Board of Commissioners will establish the port’s executive director’s salary and monthly automobile allowance for 2014 during the August 26 meeting.

For those not able to attend, the board meeting will be televised live on CVTV (cable channels 21 and 23). It also will be streamed live on www.cvtv.org and archived later on the same website for future viewing.

– POV –

The Port of Vancouver USA is one of the major ports on the Pacific Coast, and its competitive strengths include available land, versatile cargo handling capabilities, vast transportation networks, a skilled labor force and an exceptional level of service to its customers and community. For more information, please visit us at www.portvanusa.com.