OLYMPIA — Snohomish County leaders are working to bring back a tenant to Paine Field who can make overseas transactions go smoother for aerospace companies.
They want to build a U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility to process incoming cargo flights with loads of plane parts for the Boeing Co. and other firms.
They are trying to restore a service provided until 2009 when new federal rules left the county airport with an undersized customs structure. That’s forced aircraft arriving from places like Europe and Asia to make a paperwork-processing pit stop elsewhere, like Sea-Tac International Airport, before heading to Paine Field for offloading.
Snohomish County Council members and County Executive Aaron Reardon spent the past two years working to get customs agents back.
“It’s a priority for us because it facilitates business and job development at Paine Field,” County Councilman John Koster said.
Designs are drawn for a stand-alone 1,500-square foot building on the south end of the airport. It will cost an estimated $500,000 to build and take a year to 18 months to build.
This week, the county learned state House Democrats included $350,000 for the project in their proposed capital construction budget for the next biennium.
County officials have been telling state lawmakers the facility will be a boost for local and statewide aerospace economy. And it will save Boeing and others some money; they estimated the extra stop required of aircraft adds as much as $40,000 per trip to the tab paid by the firms awaiting deliveries.
Several Democratic and Republican legislators carried Snohomish County’s request forward.
“This will help Boeing operate more efficiently and build more planes. That’s why it’s a good investment even in these tough budget times,” said Rep. Marko Liias, D-Edmonds.
If state aid is approved in the final budget, construction could begin this year, Reardon spokesman Christopher Schwarzen said.
Schwarzen said the building is solely for use by the U.S. Customs agents and is completely separate from discussions of a passenger terminal that might be built if commercial flights from Paine Field gain federal approval.
“The customs facility has nothing to do with commercial air service and it is not connected to or even near the proposed terminal,” he said. “The customs facility is designed to meet federal standards for a small general aviation facility — it is too small for the aircraft proposed by the airlines and does not have adequate space for terminal functions such as TSA, ticketing, and sterile holding area.”
Jerry Cornfield: 360-352-8623; jcornfield@heraldnet.com.
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