IMG_5772 On Wednesday (Aug. 31), a ground breaking ceremony was held for a brand new, 241,140 square foot Cold Storage Warehouse Facility in the Northeast Redevelopment Area (NERA) of Burien. Speakers at the event included Burien Mayor Lucy Krakowiak, Port of Seattle Commission President John Creighton, Rob Adams from Tippmann Innovation, and Western Distribution Services President John Naylor. Dan Mathews, Chair-Elect of the Seattle Southside Chamber of Commerce, served as Master of Ceremonies. Western Distribution Services, LLC, a Renton-based logistics and cold storage warehouse provider, addressed their belief that the site’s proximity to the Seattle and Tacoma seaports and Sea-Tac Airport was essential to their interest in Burien. “We believe that the opportunity is great here [in Burien]. The Port Alliance between Seattle and Tacoma made me feel comfortable bringing a business here,” said Western Distributor Services President John Naylor. “We are right smack in the middle of a great spot. The improvements on both 518 and 509 will lead right into the airport and the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma. It’s really a great thing.” Naylor is happy to call Burien “home.” He said, “It feels good, like this was just meant to be. I have wanted to do something like this since the 1980s. Working with Burien has been great.” In her speech, Mayor Krakowiak addressed three key points as to what has been accomplished by NERA’s first industrial construction:

  1. Bringing new jobs to Burien;
  2. Increasing and diversifying Burien’s revenue base;
  3. Proactively Managing transportation and storm-water infrastructures.
“This project is a milestone in development for the Northeast Redevelopment Area (NERA), boosting the economy and creating new jobs in Burien,” Krakowiak said. Attendees included Burien City Councilmembers Nancy Tosta, Debi Wagner, Bob Edgar and Austin Bell, past Councilmembers Rose Clark and Gordon Shaw, members of the city’s Business and Economic Development Partnership and Planning Commission; Seattle Southside Chamber of Commerce Board members and staff; the construction, development, and planning teams for the project; and Port of Seattle and City of Burien staff. Bridge Development Partners, LLC a Chicago-based industrial and office developer purchased the land in May, 2016 for $4.5 million, marking the first milestone in private-sector investment in NERA. Plans for the Airport Industrial-zoned segment of land adjacent to the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, NERA, were launched in late 2007 through the adaption of the City of Burien Comprehensive Plan. The City partnered with the Port of Seattle – a major land owner of the site – and produced a NERA Redevelopment Plan and Implementation Strategy which guides new development in NERA. “This industry is naturally strong,” said Rob Adams, of Tippmann Innovation. “We look forward to the opening ceremony in the spring of 2017.” IMG_5798]]>

Since 2007, The B-Town Blog is Burien’s multiple award-winning hyperlocal news/events website dedicated to independent journalism.

17 replies on “Ground broken on new 241,140 square foot cold storage facility in Burien”

    1. What’s interesting is how someone can disagree with using E-Verify and have the opinion that not following the law is OK. How is that corporation going to be a good neighbor if they condone and support the violation of employment law regulations by not hiring legally entitled local residents.

      1. Notice no one is talking what the pay scale is for these jobs, or even how many jobs. If you want to push something through, just say ‘jobs’ and the public will buy it. They rarely see what the loss is, until it is too late.
        That once very friendly neighborhood full of families with children, many well paid Boeing workers among other employers, in relatively new homes with a new Grade School, a new Jr. High School and a new High School, as well as local markets and restaurants, barber shop, bowling alley, plant nursery and gas stations, to say nothing of great local wildlife of both flora and fauna, have all been given away in order to accommodate ‘light industry’ and airport sprawl.

        1. That’s my point, why have those jobs go to non legal residents regardless of the rate of pay. You break the law and now you want a local job with your fake Social Security number as a reward. It’s all gone, but hopefully not the responsibly of employers who move into the destruction or anywhere in Burien. That nursery was beautiful with the koi ponds and the bowling alley poured a stiff drink as well.

          1. Q, The basis of your “rants” sound racist to me and many others…please give it a rest! It’s simply grandstanding and creepy….we are simply a nation of immigrants, most of whom came to this great country without “E-Verify”. Your argument is “crabs in the barrel”. Time for someone to tell you, get over it and move on! Thanks. Move on…

          2. I am the descendant of immigrants, my Grandparents. They followed the laws established for legally entering this nation and subsequently became legal citizens. E-Verify is not an border entry program, it is a employer based verification system to insure Social Security numbers actually belong to the person applying for the job. My opinion is free to be shared on this or any forum as is yours, just get your facts straight first and stop calling me a racist, I actually love all sorts of ethnic food.

          3. No, I did not stay at a Holiday Inn last night but I did shop at Costco last week! Like I said “give it a rest”. You got the message,

          4. I really enjoy your absolutely irrelevant commentary about hotels and shopping as an explanation of my opinions, and how you represent “many others” is intriguing as well. I speak for myself and drag no unsubstantiated commentary and opinions into the matter. Sincerely, QA

        2. Well from doing a little google searching I found they have 5 warehouse locations in Washington so far not including this one in burien. There manta page says they have 35 employees I guess that per location. Pay it’s warehouse work so what ever is average for warehouse work minium wage and up. I will take a guess at $12 and up.
          As for the land it was a run down old school building that house navos mental health that moved do to loud air planes and clients with pstd don’t mix well.
          wild life there is a big open field right across the street plus there is north sea-tac park about half block to the east plus the other open land in between.
          There also plenty of gas stations,schools and restaurants in the area. We had a bowling ally years ago it closed downed and was a place of alcoholics and gamblers don’t forget the chain smokers smoking pack after pack of cigarettes playing pull tabs.

          1. Thanks for your ‘best guess’ Jimmy on how many jobs and rate of pay. My guess is, if that is true, it goes to show why they are not speaking of the number of jobs and rate of pay. But also speaks to why they want to put the plant in Burien where they have a good source of people who will work for minimum wage. This is to say nothing of their taking advantage of transients.
            As to your statement that the location used to house an ‘old school’, I went to that school when it was first opened in the mid 50’s. Sunny Terrace, Sunset Junior High and Glacier High School were all built in the mid fifties and all were closed less than 25 years later. I find that a very poor use of our taxes.
            As to the ‘open field you refer to across the street from where Sunny Terrace was, that was filled with many homes built around the same time. The homes and their families were part of the reason that the schools were built. They were also where some of that tax money came from.
            And the wildlife, is hard for anyone to now imagine. Directly behind where the cold storage plant is being built was a field and wet lands with a creek and springs that stretched all the way to 140th. (Where the massive airport parking lot has been placed.)In the spring it was filled with croaking frogs and masses of daffodils that had gone wild from a homesteaders attempt to raise bulbs, among many types of birds including Gold Finch, quail, several species of hawks and wood peckers and of course eagles. There were also ring neck pheasant and smaller game birds brought in for ‘sport hunters’. The vegetation was a complete mix of our native plants. Everything from Oregon Grape and our native wild roses to Ocean Spray and butterfly bushes and lilacs, again gone wild from original homesteads. There were several types of butterflies to be seen and mourning doves and owls to be heard.
            The passage of time is a ‘wonderwall’ of sorts. Very hard for any two people to look at and see the same thing. For me, it seems that the loss of all these treasures in one person’s life time, is not only a very sad thing but also a great loss in value. We have been robbed.

  1. This property should have been bought out by the Port of Seattle just like the flight path properties for the first and 2nd runways.

  2. I’d like to hear about the proposed traffic routes in and out of this area. I don’t think people living on 146th and 8th SW want to listen to semi’s roaring up and down their streets at all hours of the day 7 days a week.
    But I’m sure the city and the council thought about.

    1. I would have to take a guess they would use 146th to des moines memorial then to 518 just like the shipping company with semi’s across 146th on the other side of des moines memorial have been doing for years.
      Also since 8th has a few big hills it would not be the best way to go.

  3. These poor homeowners, living in this area, should have all been bought out by the Port years ago.
    Shame on the Port for destroying the neighborhood as cheaply and slowly as possible!

  4. Remember this news from last fall about the new 518 to Des Moines Memorial Highway off ramp.
    http://jonlehman.synology.me:8666/BtownBlog/2015/09/04/buriens-new-sr-518-interchange-to-be-paid-for-by-higher-gas-taxes/
    Says it will be done by 2017. Notice it is only an off ramp, no return trips using that interchange which appears to bring traffic in from 1st Ave.
    There are already many semis using 8th Ave. and 146th for that matter.Too many for a neighbor hood with kids and pets and no true sidewalks. There are also weight restriction issues with using 146th in the winter during freezing weather. This is to say little about the street parking only situation for Mathison Park at the top of the hill.
    So it goes with the planning in Burien. Remember the big Branding whoopty-doo!. Just collect and spend the money and keep moving!

  5. One other thing, notice all those new shovels?? Who pays for those? Do they rent them? Do they store them for their next ground breaking event? Would we mind if they were used shovels.. like someone actually did some work with them?

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