Waterfront Wednesday Dec 10, 2025
Waterfront Wednesday News
December 10, 2025
Snow & Co shipyard. Photo: Seattle Times
Seattle shipyard tracks growth
in uncertain era
Even as shipbuilding in the US struggles to grow, one Seattle shipyard is tracking a busy year, with hiring and projects on an upward trend.
Snow & Co in Seattle is one of the companies at the forefront of the next era in shipbuilding as they work actively to invest in the community, workforce development, and their employees.
Read about how they're doing it via the Seattle Times below:
Maritime Library
to
begins new chapter
The Bellingham Maritime Library Opens January 8th
We’re thrilled to announce the upcoming opening of the Bellingham Maritime Library, located at the Working Waterfront Coalition offices, 708 Coho Way in Squalicum Harbor—just steps from the harbor master’s office.
Beginning January 8th this new community library will welcome everyone with a passion for the sea and the maritime industry— sailors, boat builders, fishermen, readers, and dreamers alike.
Come explore a rich and growing collection of maritime books, both fiction and nonfiction, covering topics such as:
•Wildlife •Adventure at Sea •Exploration •Navigation •Sailing •Powerboats •Human-Powered Vessels •Fishing •Boat Design •Construction & Maintenance — and much more!
The library will be open during regular Coalition office hours. You’
Share Your Love of the Sea — Donate Your Books!
Help us build this community treasure by contributing your used maritime books. It’s the perfect way to make room on your shelves and share the spirit of the sea with others.
Please bring boxed donations to the Foundation offices. Include a note with your name so we can honor your gift with a donor label inside each book.
We invite you to celebrate the opening of the library with us at an OPEN HOUSE on January 8th from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Working Waterfront Offices, 708 Coho Way, Squalicum Harbor
The library starts to take shape at 708 Coho Way. Photo: Dan Tucker
NOAA Fisheries hosts
open listening session
On August 27, 2025, National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) published a Federal Register request for comment on suggestions to improve fisheries management and science within the requirements of applicable laws, as required in the Executive Order titled “Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness”.
The request for comment provided a 45-day comment period, which closed on October 14, 2025. Due to the lapse in appropriations that occurred during the comment period, NMFS has reopened the comment period until December 15, 2025 to allow interested parties additional time to prepare and submit comments.
DATES:
The comment period is reopened from December 1, 2025 to December 15, 2025. Comments must be received by 11:59 p.m. EDT on December 15, 2025.
New Port commissioner and expansion changes for 2026
New Port Commissioner-elect Carly James is set to take her seat on the Port of Bellingham Commission in January of 2026 as the Port also navigates expansion to five districts.
Yesterday, the Port Commission convened a public hearing on the redistricting plan. During the hearing, the Commissioners offered staff comments on the plan to use the existing County district lines. The County lines have been verified per requirement, and the new plan, to be voted on December 16th, will see 5 districts matching the County borders - but with the caveat that the numbering will be slightly different.
Due to a state requirement that Commissioners reside physically within their districts, County Council District 5 will become Port District 3, and vice-versa. This is to accommodate Mr. Briscoe being elected to District 3, but residing in County district 5.
Both Ken Bell and Michael Shepard will reside in the same district after the map is redrawn. State statute also provides for a coin toss to determine which Commissioner will represent the district they reside in, and which will represent the remaining district. Upon completion of their term, the district would need to run candidates in the primary residing in that district.
Due to recent news of Mr. Shepard's run for state office, should a commissioner resign early from their term, the Port Commission would receive nominations from the vacant district, as well as can nominate their own candidates, and then appoint one to fill the remaining term. Should the Commission be unable to agree on an appointment, the County Council will determine it.
The Salish Current explores the changes upcoming in a recent article, and you can read more about them below:
*Note - in this article, the writer discusses Birchwood neighborhood and industrial property, and it should be noted that the industrial zoning around that discussion was not part of Port property, but governed by the County. The Port has no jurisdiction in the disputed plot.
The downtown waterfront is open to visioning once again, and new commissioners will play a big part in the conversation. Photo: Port of Bellingham
The maritime industry directly & indirectly supports over 6,400 jobs, up from previous years' studies done in 2016. Photo: Drayton Harbor Oyster Co.
Whatcom has opportunity
to lead in maritime
Whatcom county has an opportunity to lead in maritime industry state-wide and nationally, provided we take advantage of the resources we have and the talent that we develop here in the County.
Mauri Ingram from the Whatcom Community Foundation outlines the vision in an op-ed to the Northern Light that you can read below:
Good Neighbor Night
celebrates working waterfronts
Join the Working Waterfront Coalition and friends as we ring in the new year with our friends at Stone's Throw Brewing in Fairhaven.
Their Monday evening "Good Neighbor Night" for December will benefit the Coalition and our mission to promote the economic vitality and benefits of our working waterfronts.
We'll be hosting our last Blue Drinks of the year that evening in collaboration with Stone's Throw. Please join us as we send cheers
to all the work that gets done by our waters' edge and help us toast
to a successful 2025. We hope to see you there!
Stone's Throw 'Good Neighbor Night'
Monday, December 29th, 5 - 9 p.m.
Stone's Throw Brewing, Fairhaven
Waterfront Wednesdays
Schedule Change
From the editor:
Dear readers of Waterfront Wednesday,
I'd like to thank you all for helping us make our Waterfront Wednesdays a success. What started out as a small idea to help tell the stories of our waterfronts has grown to a large audience, and we appreciate you sharing our stories, sharing your stories with us, and the conversations that it sparks.
Beginning in January, we'll be move our regular Waterfront Wednesday schedule to once a month, rather than every other week. We value the work that has been put into our newsletters and those who read the eNewsletter. We hope that by balancing the workload on our staff, we can provide even more meaningful issues of the letter while allowing our work in other areas to continue to grow.
We still want to hear from you, and have your stories, news, and events included in our newsletters. We'll be aiming to distribute our eNewsletters the first Wednesday of each month going forward.
As the next newsletter date would fall on the holiday - this will be our last Waterfront Wednesday for 2025. We hope that you have a lovely holiday with friends and family, eat a lot of delicious seafood, and that you share your favorite recipes with us so we can enjoy them too!
Happy holidays from all of us at the Working Waterfront offices and thank you for your support of Waterfront Wednesdays. We look forward to making them even more informative in the coming year.
Port Commission Meetings
Port Commissioners Open Meetings are held at the Port Admin Offices and are open to the public. Check the Agenda Center (Linked on each meeting time below) for posted agendas. Agendas typically get posted a week in advance of the scheduled meeting. Two periods of public comment occur each meeting before and after the agenda items, as well as special public hearings as designated on the agendas.
Location: Port Admin Offices, 1801 Roeder Ave, Bellingham
Port of Bellingham Agenda Center (check here for updated agendas)
Upcoming Meetings:
Dec 16th - Board of Commissioners Open Public Meeting
Past Meeting Information
YouTube Link:
Nov 18 - Board of Commissioner's Open Public Meeting
Recent Minutes Posted:
Nov 4 - Board of Commissioner's Minutes
Want to get the highlights from each meeting on our maritime trades and marine-related topics? Join the Coalition as a member to get access to Commissioner meeting briefs, available on the member page of our website! Join us and add your voice to the waterfront discussion HERE.
Upcoming Waterfront & Coalition Events
Waterfront Events:
Coalition Events:
Are You Hiring? Use the Coalition Job Board
The Coalition's
Job Board is free, contactless, and easy! We designed this board for our commercial fishermen, marine trades industries and other waterfront jobs in mind, to act as a digital bulletin board for crew positions, contract hires, or regular employee spots that you want to have a digital space for.
If you have any questions on using it, reach out to our staff, info@whatcomworkingwaterfront.org. To submit a job posting, use the link below:
Affordable Health Benefits
for Statewide Maritime Companies
The Working Waterfront Health Trust provides affordable pooled insurance health plans for qualifying marine-trades businesses -
state-wide. The Trust launched two years ago, has grown steadily each year and provides a range of health plans to consider through Premera Blue Cross.
If you'd like to know more about the Health Trust, contact your insurance broker today and ask them about the Working Waterfront Health Trust. Fall is the peak time to meet with your broker to discuss options for your employees for 2025.
This newsletter sponsored by:
Alta-Gas
Premera
Copyright 2025 Waterfront Wednesdays by Whatcom Working Waterfront Coalition
Waterfront Wednesday is a publication
of the Whatcom Working Waterfront Coalition.
www.whatcomworkingwaterfront.org
Do you have news about our waterfront?
Drop us a line and tell us about it.
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