Update on 2018 Plan to replace Chief, Gooseberry Dock

More on the upcoming recommendations on Whatcom County’s planning to replace the Gooseberry Pt Dock and Whatcom Chief. Important stuff. If you want to have input, the next 3 months are crucial. Stu Rich, President of Protect Lummi Island Community, just sent out this summary.
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From:
Date: Sat, Mar 17, 2018 at 12:23 PM
Subject: PLIC – Stuart Rich- President letter on 3/14/18 Ferry Meeting
To: PLICEBlast

PLIC- Stuart Rich-President

The ferry consultant, KPFF Consulting, and Whatcom County Public Works have laid out their options for a ferry replacement boat (20, 28 or 34 car capacity vessel) and the future Gooseberry ferry terminal location (1.the present location, 2. move north to convenience store location, or 3. purchase up to 8 private homes). Now it’s up to us to decide what is in the best interest of Lummi Island and chose a ferry replacement system that will serve our future needs through the year 2060.

Let’s start with a priority decision- location of the Gooseberry terminal. Staying at the present location is not viable. Lummi Nation has served us due notice that there will be no renewal of the present-day lease. The second option of the convenience store location would mean the continuation of expensive upland and tideland leases with the Lummi Nation which would continue to impact operational costs and fares. The third option of purchasing private homes coupled with a tradeoff – changing the county- right-of- way to accommodate the proposed Lummi Nation marina in exchange for the Nation’s support for a federal right-of-way over the tidal water dock area – would forever eliminate the need for lease payments to the Lummi Nation. This option is cost effective and provides a permanent solution
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Choosing a long-term replacement boat is a complex process which is directly tied to the level of service (LOS), operational costs and fares, as well as the future growth of Lummi Island. How big of a boat do we need? After examining several studies, KPFF has pegged Lummi Island’s annual growth rate for pedestrian/passenger ridership at 1.54% and vehicle ridership at 0.76 percent through the year 2040. After factoring in current peak ferry usage, the consultants have projected a low- middle- and high range for the required boat capacity through the year 2060.