March 2009

Ocean Shores

Largest Turnout for Clam Fest

The third annual Clam Fest was the largest ever. It may have been called a Razor Clam Festival but the way it packed people in made the Ocean Shores Convention Center feel like a sardine tin.

It’s estimated that 9,000 people attended the festival. The clam chowder pots ran out fast as clam fans went from booth to booth trading $1 tickets for small cups of chowder. There were booths of all sorts of clam memorabilia for those who really dig razor clams.

The festival also hosted the razor clam queen and king, Berda and Bob Augustus who do a lot of community service. There were 16 entrants in the amateur razor clam chowder competition, so the competition was tight. All top spots were taken by Ocean Shores’ residents.

NEWS FROM AROUND THE HARBOR

Stimulus Cash for Grays Harbor

Grays Harbor will receive more than $2,4 million in economic stimulus money, trickling down from the federal government to local agencies and even to make public housing more energy efficient as well as  construction of roads and sidewalks.

Grays Harbor County was awarded $750,000 toward its road realignment and paving projects alone the Wynoochee-Wishkah Road corridor. The total project will cost the county $28.j8 million and will be funded through grants and county road money.

The City of Aberdeen received $730,000 toward the $948,000 sidewalk revitalization effort along Heron Street. The city of Hoquiam has been awarded $195,000 to help finish the city’s downtown sidewalk revitalization project.

The Housing Authority of Grays Harbor was awarded $627,184 to fix up low-income residential buildings. The money will be spent on buildings that are part of the authority’s low-rent program.

The Housing Authority has 12 months to spend the money. The road projects need to be started within the next 120 days.

Plans to turn Wood Waste to Biofuel

Harbor-based wood chip manufacturing company Willis Enterprises LLC has proposed building new wood-based biofuel plant to create liquid fuel and up to 80 new jobs.

Company president Paul Willis announced he is seeking funding for a new $2.5 million to $35 million bio-refinery of Hoquiam to produce lingo-cellulosic liquid fuel from wood products alongside his current chip operations. The plant would require 35 to 50 workers with another 15 to 30 new jobs for harvesting and gathering materials.

The project plans to seek state and federal grants for constructing the new facilities and the City Council unanimously approved voicing support for the proposal.

Higher Revenue for the Port

The Port of Grays Harbor’s operating revenues of $9 million for last year were a 25% improvement over the year before. The higher revenue reflects increased shipping traffic which account for almost 70 % of the Port’s operating revenue. But for the third year in a row, the Port’s operating expenses, $9.2 million, exceeded its revenues because it allowed the Port to catch up on a backlog of maintenance projects it had not been able to address in years past.

The Port handled more cargo in 2008 than in any year over the past decade and saw its business activity overall increase 27 % over 2007. The cargo was heavy on agricultural products, biodiesel from Imperium and autos. This represented a continued shift away from timber products, which was mainstay for years bat has slowed to a trickle over the past decade.

The growing agricultural export business and a marketing agreement between the Port and the Pasha Group to bring a variety of cargoes to the Harbor seems certain to bring in more business. In order to attract more business they might need to investigate dredging the shipping channel to a deeper depth.

Job Cuts at Imperium

Imperium of Grays Harbor announced that 24 employees will loose their jobs in response to a global drop in demand of biodiesel. The increased cost of feedstock for producing biodiesel and the drastic changes in regular gasoline and diesel prices during the past 18 months has undermined the stability of the company.

The Seattle-based company has undergone a number of challenges since opening its Hoquiam facility in August of 2007, the largest biodiesel plant in the country at the time and employed about 60 Harbor workers.

John Plaza, founder and CEO of the regional biodiesel manufacturing company, said that the staff cuts had to be made to reduce costs and save money for the company’s future.

Some of the best Forcast for Coho Salmon

This year’s salmon returns are expected to be some of the best since 2001 for Washington. More than 1 million Columbia River coho are expected to return this year, which is nearly double last year’s return but Oregon and California show diminishing numbers of salmon

The Pacific Fishery Management Council adopted three options for this year’s ocean salmon season. The options virtually shut down sport and commercial fishing off the coast of California to allow salmon to rebound, while offering limited commercial and sport salmon fishing in Oregon.

In Washington the coho salmon runs appear to be some of the best in years, which could give commercial and sport fishermen a much needed boost. Coho options for all fishermen are eight to nine times that of last year, and Chinook fishing will be allowed, the Council said.

Grays Harbor Shorebird Festival from April 24 through 26^th

Huge flocks of shorebirds scuttle across mudflats and take to the air in massive flocks. These birds feed and prepare for the next leg of their long journey to Arctic breeding grounds. Birders come from all over the world to Grays Harbor to spot birds, take classes and seminars or go on guided field trips.

Some of the birds fly 15,000 miles during the migration, which is one of the planet’s great wildlife spectacles. The massive shorebird migration from wintering grounds in South America, Central America and the southern United States funnels millions of birds through Grays Harbor mudflats, beaches and marshes.

The Shorebird Festival will be held at Hoquiam High School this year.  Birders should sign up now for limited spots on field trips as they fill up very fast, they can logon www.shorebirdfestival.com  or phone 800-303-8498. The festival itself offers free and pay-to-play field trips to great birding spots.

PUD considering raising Power Rates by 4%

Grays Harbor PUD commissioners are considering raising power rates by 4% to offset declining revenues and increased costs from the Bonneville Power Administration. The increase would be about $3.35 per month on the typical Grays Harbor home using 1,300 kilowatt hours. In addition to raising rates, the commissioners are also “looking at all possible cost saving measures,” including cuts in services.

A Marine Resource Council for Grays Harbor

There are plenty of marine resource councils along the Puget Sound but no such groups along the state’s coast. The county commissioners officially created a Grays Harbor Marine Resource Council. The Legislature allocated $50,000 to help set up the group last year. The group will now be charged with looking after issues that impact all areas of the coast, including recent discussions about a private company wanting to set up wind turbines off the coast and a push to develop wave energy platforms.

Seaport receives a $50,000 donation

Ken Birdwell, a software developer from Bellevue WA has donated $50,000 to the Grays Harbor Historical Seaport Authority to ensure kids have an opportunity to continue to learn about the nautical ways of the Lady Washington. The developer for Valve Software said he spent 4 weeks on board the tall ships in 2007 and walked away having nothing but “life changing moments.”

After paying a fee to cover on-board expenses and signing a contract, volunteers join the crew and take part in many of the normal activities of sailing a tall ship, such as climbing the rigging, weighing anchor and greeting guests at various ports.

Birdwell said he found out the ship’s education program was also geared to youth and he wishes he had the chance to hang out on a tall ship when he was growing up.  Seaport Executive Director Les Bolton said the donation couldn’t have come at a better time, as the recession has taken quite a toll on the revenue the Lady Washington usually brings in. The Seaport is grappling with cutbacks everywhere and is planning its first trip down the Columbia River in more than a decade in an effort to find new ports of call and new sources of revenue for the ship. The donation will be used to support the Seaport’s educational and volunteer programs.

A Windfall of Housing

The cities of Aberdeen and Hoquiam will share about $1.2million from a new federal grant geared toward the acquisition of foreclosed or abandoned properties to build new homes for low-income residents. The money came from the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development and the beneficiaries of the money will be Neighborworks of Grays Harbor and Habitat for Humanity.

The City of Hoquiam gets $448,918 in neighborhood stabilization funding while the City of Aberdeen gets $756,938. Hoqiuiam City Administrator Brian Shay, said a portion of Hoquiam’s money will be given to Habitat for Humanity, which uses mainly volunteer labor to build homes for low-income residents.

Aberdeen plans on giving around $200,000 to Habitat. The rest of the money would likely be given to Neighborworks and could be used to offer low-interest loans to first-time home buyers and to help low-income residents afford homes. Money paid back would go right back into the program. The money can also be used to acquire homes and properties that have been abandoned or foreclosed on and to fix up existing homes or build new ones.

Planning a visit to Ocean Shores?  Go to our new website for lodging, dining, shopping and activity information and even driving directions!www.TourismOceanShores.com

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