PORT TOWNSEND – After a nearly eight-month suspension of a ferry terminal expansion project, Washington State Ferries officials are ready to resume planning work, the agencies top administrator says.
And in those plans are new smaller ferries than ones planned to hold up to 144 cars.
In a letter to Port Townsend Mayor Mark Welch and Coupeville Mayor Nancy Conard, W. Michael Anderson says a partnership with elected officials, Ferries staff, advisory committee members and leaders from both Port Townsend and Coupeville has changed the picture.
“It is my hope and expectation that all our future work will be conducted in partnership with your communities as well as all the other ferry communities around the Sound,” states Anderson.
This marks the start of a joint Port Townsend-Keystone ferry route planning effort, which was put on hold in October after Port Townsend city leaders balked at Ferries’ plans to extend the Port Townsend terminal into Port Townsend Bay and increase ferry size to handle more vehicles.
Port Townsend officials said they are worried about additional traffic around the ferry landing that would block the downtown area.
