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Office of the Governer
416 14th Ave, SW
Olympia,WA 98504
e: City of Port Angeles support for the collaborative Emerald Coast Opportunity Zane application
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As part of the greater Olympic Peninsula,the City of Port Angeles is committed to driving positive
economic and social change through attractive investment opportunities. And, as Mayor of tile City of
Port Angeles l completely support the joint Emerald Coast Opportunity Zone application that is part of
" a historic collaboration between tribal,city,and county governments.
The recently passed tax reform bill, the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, included a provision that created
an incentive for investors making, lung-term investments in low-income rural and urban communities,
The Emerald Coast proposal seeks to leverage that incentive and demonstrates the City and our
partners' comtn,itnment to collaborative success.
The Emerald Coast.Opportunity lone application consists of three distinct parts,and the City supports
' each part described in the region's application proposed by ourAssociated Development Organization
(ADO)—the Clallarn County Economic Development Corporation (CCEDC), The CCEDC invited
local officials and Tribal representatives to gather and review the various census tracts that qualified as
the federal acts"low-income communities"(LIC).
(During a historic meeting, the tribal and local government representatives cooperated and developed
an agreed strategy to attract much needed investment in the region. The three parts of this strategy are;
1. The tribal nations designating five LICs as Opportunity Zones,,
2. The CCEDC/County ADO designating two LICs.,and
31 The community supporting,the prioritized list of LICs within the region.
Through this strategy, we seek sustainable economic growth that aligns with the peninsula's cultural
and environmental values_
Per your Commerce Department's guidance,each tribal nation can designated an LIC, and in the
Emerald Coast Opportunity Zone, each of the tribal nations has designated an LIC. The LICs include
the Hoh, Quilcute, Makah, and Jamestown 'l lallam tribal homelands. The Lower Elwha.Tribe
designated an LIC located within heart of port Angeles that the Lower Elwha Tribe and the City of
Port Angeles seek to cooperatively redevelop. These LIC designations foster investment in Tribal
innovations in marine trades, energy production,tourism/recreation,and housing:.
rrPhone.; 3 0- 17-4500 Fax 60- 17-4509 1 TTYy 3 - 17-4645
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j '" el site:www,cityofpa.us f mall cou ncd@cftyofpa.us
321 East Filth: Street/Port Angeles, WA 98362-0217
The City supports the designation of the following LICs by the tribal nations:
'Tribal Nation LIC Census Tract
floh Tribe 53031950702
QuileUte Nation 53009000400
Makah Tribe 53009940000
Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe 53009000900[Note: West Downtown& 17em Ter ininal in Pxtj
Jamestown S'Klallam 53009002300
The second component of the Emerald Coast Opportunity Zone is the ADO designation of two LICs.
Following a review of the potential LICs, the EDC/ADO recommended the census tract in the City of
Forks and its urban,growth area that include existing industrial lands. These lands are an important
aspect for the return of manufacturing jobs lost when three mills closed. The second LIC includes the
portion, of the City of.Port Angeles that contains the William Fairchild International Airport, the Lower
Elwha village of'"I"se-whit-zen, the Port of Port Angeles'development area and marinaand Ediz Hook,
Both of these LICs have existing industrial,commercial, and residential lands that could be developed
for not only uses that result in new jobs in the region, but also housing for those new businesses*
workers. The City supports the EDCADO's designation of the following two LICs:
ADO Designated LIC
Community LIC Census Tract
Forks 53009000300
Western Port Angeles 530109000700
The Emerald Coast Opportunity Zone's third component is a prioritized list of L,lCs that we offer to
you as "Competitive LICs." This priority list was established by our community and the highest
priority is the City of Sequin LIC. This LIC includes the Bell Creek area that is a focal point within
the heart of Sequim for an innovative, integrated,multi-use development that combines residential,
retail and commercial development that integrates the existing community with ideas for new
developi rient. In addition to this top priority competitive LIC, we support the other LiCs nominated
for consideration in your competitive review process. The prioritized list we support is as, follows:
Community ........ LIC Census Tract
L City of Sequirn 53009002100
2. City of Port Angeles (Skill Center) 53009000800
1 Lower Elwha Malian Tribal Res. 53009001500
4. Ciallam Bay, Sekiu, Ozette 53009000200
This is a first for our region and involved the quick creation of a strong, cohesive proposal that will
become the center of a concentrated and collaborative marketing effort to secure investment in the
North Olympic Peninsula communities. As a cooperative initiative, we believe that we have created
the investment spark for a positive chain reaction that will not only benefit investor portfolios,but
invigorate our communities with new residential, commercial,and industrial developments that will
become the cornerstone for economic stability and sustainability in the decades to come.
Sincerely,
Sissi Bruch
Mayor
cc City Council
City Manager
Director of Community and Economic Development