QUILCENE — The Navy says it’s trying to accommodate boaters as it works to change its torpedo testing range on Hood Canal, officials say.
But at least one Jefferson County elected official is still worried that changes to the Navy’s Dabob Bay Complex undersea range will have a serious negative effect on the south county’s economy.
Port of Port Townsend Commissioner Herb Beck attended a Wednesday night open house at Quilcene School to learn more about the Navy proposal and register his concerns.
The Navy is collecting comments as it prepares a document outlining impacts of extending the range near Quilcene and two others like it in the region.
Of three alternatives being considered, one would expand the Dabob Range north and south.
As it stands now, the range stretches from Brinnon north almost to the Hood Canal Bridge.
The expansion proposal would push the range’s southern tip nearly to Belfair.
Most residents wouldn’t notice a thing, Naval Undersea Warfare Center Keyport spokeswoman Diane Jennings said.
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