Sam Taylor has the story in the Bellingham Herald. The photo is by Philip A. Dwyer.
Bellingham will not be the new home of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Marine Operations Center-Pacific, officials announced Tuesday, Aug. 4.
After a lengthy, much-anticipated process, federal officials determined that the Port of Newport, Ore., was the best fit for the facility. It is expected to bring the coastal Oregon community an estimated 175 shore-side employees, researchers and on-board crew members assigned to four vessels and two itinerant vessels, which would be at sea much of the year.
The 20-year lease will take effect in 2011. The center is currently in Seattle, at Lake Union.
The decision was met with both disappointment and harsh criticism from Washington officials at the local and federal level.
U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Washington, chairs the Senate subcommittee that oversees NOAA, and vowed to fight the decision.
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Bummer for Seattle, the center on Lake union was nice. Good luck to the new hosts.