Let's make a deal: Boeing Field for trails
Call it the local land swap of the century -- maybe.
Under a deal many months in the making, the Port of Seattle would acquire Boeing Field from King County and in exchange would give the county a 47-mile Eastside rail corridor for recreational use.
It's still just a concept.
It faces many hurdles: regulatory, financial, business and political.
But King County Executive Ron Sims and Port of Seattle Chief Executive Mic Dinsmore presented it as a vital transaction at a news conference Wednesday that even surprised one of the county's biggest private employers — Boeing, whose operations in both Renton and Boeing Field could feel the impact.
"This is by far the most ambitious initiative taken in a generation," Sims said, putting the value of the land transfer at hundreds of millions of dollars.
There are several key pieces to the deal:
The Port would take over management of King County International Airport, a general- aviation hub also known as Boeing Field. The Port already owns and operates Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
In return, the Port would buy a key Renton-to-Everett line owned by BNSF Railway, and give it to the county, paying for creation of a recreational trail. That would create the largest greenway since the Mountains to Sound Greenway was set up in 1991 to protect forest views along Interstate 90, Sims said. But he said it's not certain whether trains might still run on part of the corridor.
The Port also would gain some waterfront land where it could build a new rail yard, helping it become a stronger competitor to other West Coast ports that have been taking business from Seattle this year. The Port also would benefit from rail improvements to let double-stacked trains cross Stampede Pass in the Cascades on a track owned by BNSF between Seattle and Ellensburg, for which Gov. Christine Gregoire pledged $25 million in state funds.
The complex deal offers something for both the Port and county. Boeing Field is barely in the black after several money-losing years, so Sims may welcome the opportunity to swap it for a popular amenity. For the Port, the deal provides control of a potentially competing airport, and also results in long-sought rail improvements.
Sims and Dinsmore said they broached the swap idea last year, a month after another proposal to reshape Boeing Field was rejected. Southwest Airlines had proposed moving to Boeing Field to avoid high fees at Sea-Tac; the Port fought that idea vigorously.
In outlining the plan Wednesday, Dinsmore stressed its complexity and many obstacles.
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Let's make a deal: Boeing Field for trails
