Southwest Washington Agricultural Business Park Groundbreaking Set for June 2
Artist rendering of Park’s first building courtesy of SCJ Alliance.
On June 2, 2020, at 3:30 p.m., The Southwest Washington Agricultural Business Park will break ground in Tenino, Washington. Due to social distancing and event restrictions, the groundbreaking ceremony is closed to the general public, but the media is invited to attend.
The Southwest Washington Agricultural Business Park will establish a value-added food manufacturing, processing, storage, and packaging facility within the City of Tenino on a 13-acre, city-owned parcel. It will also house a business center to provide regional agricultural business technical support services and become an agri-tourism destination, promoted along with other regional attractions and as part of the Thurston County Bountiful Byway. Future phases of the Park will include research and educational components.
The groundbreaking on the water and sewer extension to the park site was made possible by a Washington State Legislature capital budget appropriation of $600,000. The legislature also approved an additional $1.5 Million, which will go towards the Park’s first building. Funding was also made possible for the Park’s planning efforts by the Port of Olympia and USDA Rural Development.
The City of Tenino owns the site and is leasing it to the Thurston Economic Development Council for $10 per year. “The EDC has invested significant effort and leadership in regional agriculture development over the last 4-and-a-half years,” said Aslan Meade, Thurston EDC’s Director of Strategic Alliances and the park project manager. “One of the clearest COVID-19 lessons we are learning is how such a crisis can challenge our food supply chain. The Agricultural Park is just one of the ways we are working to build a more resilient regional food supply chain, focusing on local value-added production. We need to be growing and processing more local food for distribution to the people in our own region.”
“This wasn’t the big groundbreaking ceremony we hoped for,” said Meade, “But we know that the community is here with us today — in spirit —as we take this step forward toward a more resilient regional food supply chain.”
WHO: Thurston EDC, City of Tenino
WHAT: The media is invited to attend the Groundbreaking Ceremony for the Southwest Washington Agricultural Business Park in Tenino
WHEN: June 2, 2020, 3:30 p.m.
WHERE: Due to social distancing requirements, please RSVP by contacting Aslan Meade at [email protected] or 360-464-6054. Once confirmed, he will give additional location information.
About the Thurston Economic Development Council and Center for Business & Innovation:
The Thurston Economic Development Council has been supporting a strong economy in Thurston County since 1982 with a mission to create a dynamic and sustainable economy that supports the values of the people who live and work in Thurston County. At the foundation of the work we do are three main principles: recruit, retain, and expand.
We work to maintain the health of local businesses by offering technical assistance, and providing advocacy on their behalf. We present market opportunities to Thurston County employers, providing support for them to expand their operations. We actively attract investment and employment opportunities into our region through outreach, promotion and trade missions.
About the Southwest Washington Agricultural Business Park: The Park will establish a value-added food manufacturing, processing, storage, and packaging facility within the City of Tenino on a 13-acre, city-owned parcel. It will also house a business center to provide regional agricultural business technical support services and become an agri-tourism destination, promoted along with other regional attractions and as part of the Thurston County Bountiful Byway. Future phases of the Park will include research and educational components.
The Agricultural Park will help our region build a more resilient local food supply chain, by focusing on local value-added production and will encourage growing and processing more local food for distribution to the people in our own region.