The Lewis County Public Facilities District Board is eyeing property just off Exit 71 near Napavine as a potential location for the long-planned Southwest Washington Regional Equestrian Center.
The board voted during its regular meeting Tuesday to set Oct. 13 as a “drop dead date” for a proposal from a group of potential investors led by Toledo resident Warren W. Freece.
The negotiations come just weeks after Chehalis resident Phil Smith was indicted by a federal grand jury in Seattle for four counts of Clean Water Act violations. The indictment alleges that between August 2005 and February 2008, Smith knowingly dumped fill material into the wetlands that covered his property between Winlock and Toledo.
Smith had been the latest property owner with plans to attract the $70 million equestrian center being developed by the Lewis County Public Facilities District. The proposed 7,000-seat arena would be partially funded with $8 million in state sales tax revenue.
Though Smith and his investors are not officially out of the running, board members appeared focused on the Napavine location during their regular meeting at the Lewis County Courthouse Tuesday.
Alan Bogner, a regulatory assistant with the Office of Gov. Chris Gregoire, arrived at the meeting with a binder titled “Phil Smith Site.” Within the document were news articles and photos showing the alleged destruction of wetlands.
“It is probably one of the largest cases of disturbance, certainly in Washington State history,” Bogner told the board.
Board member Bill Jones said the controversy means the Napavine site will likely come under the same amount of scrutiny, but early analysis of the 100-acre property — which would be realigned into a 40-acre segment for the REQ Center — shows a minimal amount of hydric soils.
Bogner gave the board a crash course in “wetlands 101,” saying after the meeting that the state has resolved to continue its active role in educating on the issue since the alleged destruction of wetlands by Smith.
A licensed appraiser provided the board with information on the Napavine property during the meeting. The land is being led by WWF Group, named for the primary land owner Warren W. Freece. The group also includes former 3rd District Republican congressional candidate Tom Crowson.
The appraiser estimated the value of the property at $2.6 million as is and $6.1 million with proposed improvements that would pave the way for the construction of the actual facility.
To qualify for the state money, ground must be broken by Jan. 1, 2011.
On Tuesday, attendees — including the original sponsor of the bill that locked in the state money, Rep. Gary Alexander — discussed their short timeline and exactly what would constitute the start of construction.
Among the suggestions to meet the deadline was connection of utilities from Napavine, the surveying of the land and the construction of a concrete slab on which to build the REQ Center.
Lewis County PFD attorney Hugh Spitzer, connected to the meeting via a telephone conference, said the definition of the start of construction was up for interpretation but that the work would likely need to be somewhat substantial.
“It’s got to be more than a golden shovel and a ribbon cutting,” he said.
Eric Schwartz: (360) 807-8245
