Lewis County Approves $800,000 in ‘Distressed Counties’ Funding for Port of Chehalis Grain Project

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Lewis County commissioners have awarded $800,000 to the ambitious grain storage and transload facility project at the Port of Chehalis, a mark of serious buy in to the port’s vision of the county’s agricultural future.

“For Lewis County farmers, last year was really the first year that National Frozen Foods stopped buying product from local farmers,” said Port of Chehalis CEO Randy Mueller. “Now all the product is brought over from the east side and processed. … Now with these circumstances, the farmers have told us that they’re looking for additional opportunities. With those opportunities gone, they need to be able to grow something more profitable than hay.”

Mueller and others believe the answer to that void is grain. With a booming craft beverage market — which often works with smaller producers like those in Lewis County — as well as opportunities for buyers like artisan breadmakers, many see an opportunity for local growers to switch to grain production. 

While the potential for grain growers is there, it likely won’t amount to much without the infrastructure to get it to market. That’s where the port sees a chance to help. It’s proposing to build a grain storage facility on an 8-acre parcel, paired with a rail-to-truck transload center. 

The port is seeking three separate funding sources for the project. The first, $800,000 from Lewis County’s Distressed Counties Fund, commonly called the “.09 fund,” will pay for the rail expansion to the site. Mueller is seeking federal funding for another $900,000 in site work that will need to take place. The biggest expense, $2.5 million for construction of the grain storage facility, is being sought through the state capital budget. 

On Monday, commissioners approved the $800,000 funding request, a strong signal of their belief in the project. The commission’s policy states that Distressed Counties payouts — a .09 percent sales tax that’s set aside for rural development — will be less than $600,000, except under “extraordinary circumstances.” Commissioners decided the port project met that definition.

“If I were to list out some of the things that make this a priority, it’s that we have farmers who can grow wheat in 2020 and have it sent out,” said commissioner Edna Fund. “If we push this further along and they can’t get it done, the farmers who have lost some of their contracts — these farmers have been looking for something else for them to grow.”

Fund also noted that the new distillery being constructed by the Chehalis Tribe demonstrates the increasing demand for grain that the area should seek to capitalize on. County commissioners also agreed to look at revising the funding cap policy for the Distressed Counties Fund, as it was set by a different board in different economic times. 

Project backers thanked the county for supporting the project. According to Mueller, a pair of studies conducted by Washington State University showed the plan is economically viable. 

“We took a look at the information and said, ‘OK, this is more than somebody’s pipe dream,’” he said. “It merits further work and going ahead with the project.”



The transload center and rail spur funded by the county will be open to more than just the grain facility, and it will be operational before the rest of the project is complete. It will allow local businesses to transition items from trucks to railcars, and vice versa. Anyone wishing to transport something by train will be able to contact the port and arrange access to the facility. 

“The benefit here is we’re getting more use out of it,” Mueller said. “Once you have a transload facility, it’s available for all sorts of other things.”

Local farmer Dave Fenn, who has advocated for the project, said his push for the facility began years ago when Great Western Malting in Vancouver sought local barley — but Lewis County growers were unable to accommodate the demand.

“They depend on local storage,” Fenn said. “(Great Western Malting) just recently said they’d be willing to do contracts today for 1,000 tons in this area, but we don’t have the storage.”

Mike Peroni, project manager for Northwest Agriculture Business Center, told commissioners that local farmers are excited for the project’s vision.

“There has never been a more willing and eager set of participants from the ag community,” he said.

In response to a question from commissioner Gary Stamper, Mueller said the facility will likely provide few on-site jobs — but its impact will be measured by the farmers who will be able to stay in business even as the market for cannery crops has dwindled. Ron Averill, a board member of the Lewis County Farm Bureau and former county commissioner, echoed that sentiment.

“This is an absolutely great use of Distressed Counties Funds in order to maintain that viability,” he said. “It is keeping farmers on the land and doing the job of farming and providing food for our population.”

Averill also noted that the county funding demonstrates local support for the project, which will increase its chances of securing state and federal dollars. The transload project funded by the county, Mueller said, will start construction this summer and be completed by the end of the year.