Backers of the move to save the Collins Building on the Everett waterfront will get their first glance at the Port of Everett’s preservation plan at a public meeting Thursday night.
The meeting will be from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Marine View Conference Center at the end of 14th Street on the Everett waterfront. The port will also present a proposal to slow down traffic in the north marina area that is scheduled for redevelopment.
Port director John Mohr said the two ideas are part of the environmental review process for the proposed $200 million redevelopment.
In preparing its review, the port has heard complaints about traffic and about plans to raze the Collins Building, one of the few structures on the Everett waterfront with historic significance.
The meeting will show places for improving emergency vehicle access and for slowing down traffic at those places. Another plan calls for keeping the Collins Building intact.
“This is not meant to imply that this is a done deal or that this is the only design,” Mohr said. But he said port officials are seeking public comment on the agency’s plans to address the traffic and historic building issues.
The port plans to review a final environmental document in December and decide on a specific redevelopment proposal in January. At that point, it will seek building permits for the first phases of the project.
Port officials are also dealing with environmental studies on a second project that would involve building a new barge pier and railroad spur for delivery of aircraft parts to the Boeing Co.
Port engineer John Klekotka said that study, which was expected in September, probably won’t be ready until late next week. The port has shifted from plans to have cranes powered by diesel fuel to plans calling for electricity. And fire officials from the city of Everett oppose the port’s plan to install a pump that would pull salt water from they bay for firefighting.
Klekotka said that means the port needs to figure out ways to get higher-voltage power and water lines to the site, which would take more engineering time and increase the project’s costs.
He also said the port has been asked to study the cumulative environmental effects of not just the pier, but also projects nearby that would shift the ferry landing to a new site and add a transportation center for Sound Transit.
Those studies also will require more time, he said, meaning the port likely won’t be seeking a shoreline permit for the project until mid-November.
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