PORT TOWNSEND — Port of Port Townsend commissioners heard overwhelming support Wednesday for the port’s proposal to provide round-trip passenger ferry service from Port Townsend to Seattle.
“I think it’s an outstanding idea,” said Diane Schostak, Olympic Peninsula Visitor Bureau executive director, as one of nearly 50 people who jammed into the commissioners’ chambers at the port’s Point Hudson offices.
Calling such a new transportation alternative to Seattle a plus for Port Townsend’s “wonderful customer recognition,” Schostak presented a letter of support to the commissioners.
Christina Pivarnik, marketing director for the city of Port Townsend, and Susan Windle, Port Townsend Main Street president, also supported the proposal.
So did John MacElwee, executive director of Centrum at Fort Worden State Park; Tim Caldwell, Jefferson County Ferry Advisory Committee chairman; Shelby Smith, an associate with Team Jefferson, the county’s economic development agency; and Peter Quinn, representing the Northwest Maritime Center.
Puget Sound hub
Port Townsend resident Forest Shomer, who is active in local transportation issues, said he envisioned a future with Port Townsend as the Puget Sound hub of passenger ferry service, being midway between Bellingham and Seattle in Puget Sound.
“We could be one of the main centers for travel on the water,” he said, saying it would be an option for safe passage in the aftermath of a destructive earthquake.
Establishing a passenger ferry route between Port Townsend and Seattle hinges on a $1 million congressional appropriation the port hopes to obtain.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Freeland, is sponsoring the appropriation request before the Senate Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee, which Port Executive Director Larry Crockett called a major hurdle.
Crockett hopes to hear news about funding in September. Port Deputy Director Jim Pivarnik said that if all goes as planned, ferry service could be launched as early as spring of next year.
Downtown Seattle dock
The port is looking for a vessel to carry between 60 and 70 passengers between Point Hudson and the downtown Seattle dock, about two blocks away from light rail to the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
The port deputy director said that, while the port was looking into the possibility of buying the Chilkat Express, a hydrofoil-assisted jet catamaran owned by a tourist business in Alaska, it also is considering other boats.
Some in the audience said they looked forward to a faster transportation alternative to the airport but and to downtown Seattle hospitals, without the hassle of driving in heavy traffic.
Bedroom community
While support dominated the talk, Port Townsend residents such as David Langdon and Ray Schroff worried about a commuter ferry suburbanizing Port Townsend as a bedroom community such as Bainbridge Island.
“Port Townsend is a beautiful place because it is hard to get to,” Schroff said.
“To a lot of us who live here in Port Townsend that’s an advantage because that means it’s going to remain a beautiful place.”
He said he feared “we going to turn it into a commuter town.”
Andrew Reding, city of Port Townsend Non-Motorized Transportation Committee chairman, said he too thought the city needed to be careful that did not happen.
Reding also expressed concern about the “rather ferocious” fuel consumption of a passenger ferry. The Chilkat Express, for example, consumes 120 gallons of fuel an hour.
Proposed is a round-trip fair of $30 and four round trips a day, seven days a week to serve both visitors and commuters.
The trip would take between 40 and 50 minutes to and from Seattle, depending on weather.
Point Hudson parking
Port-owned acreage at Point Hudson would be used for parking, port officials said.
Pete Hanke, owner of P.S. Express in Port Townsend who is acting as a volunteer consultant for the port, and Jack Harmon, owner of Victoria Express in Port Angeles are expected to bid on the job of operating the boat.
Hanke’s father, Pete Hanke Sr., said he has test driven the Chilkat Express between Port Townsend and Seattle, and found it could easily handle winter water conditions, avoiding trip cancellations.
To make the idea a successful year-round operation, port Commissioner John Collins said, “We’re going to have to market this very aggressively.”
Kris Nelson, Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce board president, said the chamber representing Port Townsend, the Tri-Area and Port Ludlow highly supports the proposal.
“We do view this as a vital transportation link” and “an economic development shot in the arm,” Nelson said.
The $1million appropriation would cover the expense of the boat and operations for two years, port officials said. At that time, the port could reassess the success or failure of the proposal, continue or end it, they said.
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Port Townsend-Jefferson County Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at jeff.chew@peninsuladailynews.com.
