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CITY OF OR GELES
City Council
The Honorable Govemor Jay Inslee
Office ofthe Govemor
416 l4th Ave SW
Olympia WA 98504
Re: City of Port Angeles support for the collaborative Emerald Coast Opportunity Zone application
Dear Govemor Inslee,
As pad 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 ofthe City of
Port Angeles I completely support thejoint Emerald Coast Opportunity Zone application that is part of
a historic collaboration between tribal, city, and county govemments.
The recently passed tax reform bill, the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, included a provision that created
an incentive for investors making long-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' commitment to collaborative success.
The Emerald Coast Opportunity Zone application consists ofthree distinct parts, and the City supports
each part described in the region's application proposed by our Associated Development Organization
(ADO) - the Clallam 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 act's "low-income communities" (LIC).
During a historic meeting, the tribal and local government representatives cooperated and developed
an agreed stratery to attract much needed investment in the region. The three parts of this stratery are:
l. The tribal nations designating five LICs as Opportunity Zones,
2. The CCEDC/County ADO designating two LICs, and
3. The community supporting the prioritized list of LICs within the region.
Tkough this stratery, we seek sustainable economic growth that aligns with the Peninsula's cultural
and environmental values.
Phone: 360-4'17-4500 / Fax: 360-417-4509 / TTY: 360-417-4645
Website: www.cityorpa.us / Email: council@otyofpa.us
321 East Fifth Street / Port Angeles, WA 98362-0217
WASHINGTON, U.S.A.
March 20,2018
Per your Commerce Departrnent's guidance, each tribal nation can designated an LIC, and in the
Emerald Coast Opportunity Zone, each ofthe tribal nations has designated an LIC. The LICs include
the Hoh, Quileute, Makah, and Jamestown S'Klallam tribal homelands. The Lower Elwha Tribe
designated an LIC located within heart ofPort 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.
The City supports the designation ofthe following LICs by the tribal nations:
Tribal Nation LIC Census Tract
Hoh Tribe 53031950702
Quileute Nation 53009000400
Makah Tribe 53009940000
Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe 53009000900 fl/ole : West Downtown & Ferry Terminal in PAJ
Jamestown S'Klallam 53009002300
The second component ofthe Emerald Coast Opportunity Zone is the ADO designation oftwo 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
asp€ct 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 Intemational AirpoG the Lower
Elwha village ofTse-whit-zen, the Port of Port Angeles' development area and marin4 and Ediz Hook.
Both ofthese 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 EDC/ADO's designation of the following two LICs:
ADO Designated LIC
Forks
Westem Port Angeles
l. City of Sequim
2. City of Port Angeles (Skill Center)
3. lower Elwha Klallam Tribal Res.
4. Clallam Bay, Sekiu, Ozette
53009000300
53009000700
The Emerald Coast Opportunity Zone's third component is a prioritized list of LICS that we offer to
you as "Competitive LICs." This priority list was established by our community and the highest
priority is the City of Sequim LIC. This LIC includes the Bell Creek area that is a focal point within
the heart ofSequim for an innovative, integnted, multi-use development that combines residential,
retail and commercial development that integrates the existing community with ideas for new
development. In addition to this top priority competitive LIC, we support the other LICs nominated
for consideration in your competitive rcview process. The priorilized lisl we support is as follows:
53009002100
53009000800
53009001 500
53009000200
This is a first for our region and involved the quick creation ofa strong, cohesive proposal that will
become the center ofa 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,
s;^* 'lP E*J
Sissi Bruch
Mayor
CC City Council
City Manager
Director of Community and Economic Development