EVERETT — The Port of Everett may let voters decide the fate of the historic Collins Building.
The red and white structure is the last remnant of the wood-products factories that once crammed Everett’s waterfront, lending the community its nickname as the City of Smokestacks. It had been set for demolition, but backers recently won a temporary injunction in court that has placed its future in limbo.
Port officials suggested Tuesday that voters should get the chance to show their love for the former casket company building in the form of a tax levy on the November ballot that would raise $15 million.
“We’re trying to avoid a win-loss situation,” said John Mohr, the port’s executive director. “The question of concern about the Collins Building has always been how it’s going to be paid for. This could make the building an asset to be used by the community.”
The port has always contended that it would be illegal for it to spend the money to make the building habitable because it would be a poor investment of public money. A private effort to get financing for the project was unsuccessful.
The port has received approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for demolition, but now faces the injunction and an appeal from backers of the building, which is on the state and the national registers of historic places.
Building supporters were skeptical of the proposed levy Tuesday, suggesting the port would use public fear about the recession to kill the building once and for all.
Everett City Council member Mark Olson, who is running for election on the port commission this fall, applauded the idea of a public vote but questioned what he called “the aggressiveness of the tax.”
“I would suggest you look seriously at extending the measure to make it palatable,” he said. “This highest possible tax during the worst possible economy is likely to be defeated.”
Annie Lyman also said she was concerned about the timing of the measure, saying that during the existing economy, voters would approve levies for schools or emergency services before one for a historic structure.
“You really need to look at where this community is right now,” she said, suggesting the port wait a year.
Former port commissioner Connie Niva, who stepped down after buying a home outside the district, attended the meeting Tuesday and said she was surprised by the comments. “We’ve been told in this room for years that the entire community supported this building,” she said. “Now there’s this huge sucking sound out there about giving the community more time. We owe the public an opportunity to end this process, to make a decision so we can move on.”
The commissioners didn’t make a decision on putting the measure on the ballot, but are scheduled to do so at their meeting next week.
The $15 million figure comes from previous estimates of what it would take to restore and substantially renovate the 75-year-old building to meet building codes. If approved, property owners would pay $1.06 per every $1,000 of assessed property value, or $318 for a $300,000 home.
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