Stepping away from their regular roles last Friday morning, more than a dozen Port of Skagit staff members donned rain gear and picked up shovels as part of a planting work party to restore some of the natural habitat along the trail system that runs through and around the Port’s SWIFT Center property.

The plantings were added to the new Winfield and Quarry Trails at the SWIFT Center.  SWIFT Center facilities staff prepped the planting sites in the weeks leading up to the event, including the removal of invasive plants to make room for native species.  Port staff from Skagit Regional Airport, La Conner Marina, SWIFT Center, and the Administrative Office planted nearly 200 trees and shrubs, ranging from Western Red Cedar and Big Leaf Maple, to Oceanspray and Red Flowering Currant, with a coordinated plan to place more flowering shrubs near benches and viewpoints for trail users to enjoy.

The planting work party was a team effort that provided additional labor to the project as well as a great team-building opportunity for Port staff.  This event also provided a head start on plantings in the high-profile areas of the new trail system before the larger scale riparian restoration work begins in 2027 with the support of a Washington State Department of Ecology grant, in partnership with Skagit County.

The Port of Skagit has a long history of environmental stewardship work, including the responsible management of wetlands and forested lands, and creating 10+ miles of nature trails, in lieu of curbs and sidewalks, during the development of Bayview Business Park in Burlington, to better complement and support the natural landscape of the forested business park.

About:  The Port of Skagit took ownership of the SWIFT Center, the former Northern State Hospital campus in Sedro-Woolley, in 2018.  Since then, the Port continues to work with partners to restore and enhance public access to the grounds as part of its overall vision of revitalizing the campus.  The vision for the SWIFT Center is to redevelop this property into a destination mixed use campus accommodating education, research and development, manufacturing, hospitality, and commercial venues, all within the historic character and great public spaces of the Center.

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This family-friendly event will be held at the SWIFT Center, the former Northern State Hospital campus, in a picturesque outdoor setting so guests can enjoy the natural beauty and rich history of the property. The event is highlighted by two amazing local musicians Benny Sidelinger and Friends for the Ghost.

It’s a goal of the Port of Skagit to create events that bring light and life to the property and invite the community to enjoy the historic campus.

“This first ever music event is an opportunity to welcome the community to this property for an evening of entertainment and reach a new audience of folks who aren’t yet familiar with this amazing place and the potential it holds,” stated District 3 Port Commissioner Mahlon Hull.  “We are excited to have the community gather here, further engage with the property, and simply enjoy this tremendous public asset.”

The Port of Skagit took over the former Northern State Hospital campus in 2018 from the State of Washington after a multi-year effort to transfer the property to local public ownership.  The Port restored public access to the campus in 2019, and great progress has been made by Skagit Trail Builders to restore and build trails in and around the property that connect to the Northern State Recreation Area (NSRA), which is owned and operated by Skagit County.

The July 26^th event will begin at 5:30pm and will take place in a grassy area on the east end of the campus off Thompson Drive.  Guests should use the Fruitdale Road entrance to the SWIFT Center campus, go to Thompson Drive and follow the signs for parking.  Admission is free. The event will feature food and drink offerings from True North Bakery as well as a beer garden area operated by the Tipsy Trailer featuring beverages from Chuckanut Brewery and Garden Path Fermentation.  The Music in the Park @ SWIFT event follows the 4^th Annual NSH Public History Day hosted by Skagit County Historical Museum earlier that same day.

To view the event video with our featured musicians, click HERE.  

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The Port was awarded $500,000 in grant funding for NWIRC’s TheLab@SWIFT, an innovation center for start-ups and entrepreneurs. The SWIFT Center, which stands for Sedro-Woolley Innovation for Tomorrow, is the former Northern State Hospital campus owned by the Port of Skagit.

NWIRC’s TheLab@SWIFT will provide prototyping workshops, advisory services, training facilities, and other resources to facilitate new innovations which can be the basis for establishing new businesses or building more resilient and competitive existing small businesses in our region.

“NWIRC is pleased to be working with the Port of Skagit, Skagit County and others to provide resources that can help innovative entrepreneurs and small businesses develop products and services to be competitive in the digital economy,” stated Diane Kamionka, Executive Director of NWIRC.  “Establishing the resource at SWIFT Center builds the foundation for a meaningful economic driver for the region.”

NWIRC has already received $750,000 in state and federal funding for architectural designs and renovation of a non-historic building on the SWIFT Center campus.

“The Port of Skagit is very excited for NWIRC to develop their new innovation lab on the SWIFT Center campus,” stated Linda Tyler, Communications Director for the Port of Skagit.  “This project complements the work NWIRC has done in neighboring counties, and it aligns with the mission of the Port by providing economic development opportunity for our local community.”

In addition to the grant for NWIRC’s project, the Port of Skagit was awarded funding for two additional economic development projects.  The Port will receive $500,000 to expand capacity and enhance functionality of The Granary, the Port’s publicly-owned grain infrastructure located at the Bayview Business Park.  The Port was also awarded $500,000 in funding for the development of Watershed Business Park off Peterson Road.  This project will increase the number of ready-to-build industrial lots in Skagit County to attract a variety of businesses looking to expand or establish themselves in our community.

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The Port’s new “Community Firewood Program” was borne out of opportunity and available resources.  The Port of Skagit owns more than 2,000 acres throughout the county, a large portion of which is forested land, creating an ample opportunity to collect fallen trees that can be repurposed into firewood for those in need.  The Port’s maintenance team began making a concentrated effort this year to save any firewood grade limbs or trees that come down across Port properties, then bringing them to the SWIFT Center log yard for processing into firewood.

The goal of the program is to take wood that would normally be an expense to haul off, or left in the forested lands to rot, and convert it into something useful for the community.

“By our dedicated staff utilizing downed wood on the various Port of Skagit properties, we’re able to help provide accessible heating source for families that may not be able to afford other heating options,”  stated Port of Skagit Commission President Steve Omdal.

The Port connected this past spring with Community Action of Skagit County, which offers heating and utility assistance as one of their many critical services.  The Robert M. Gates Vets Connect Program and Energy & Utility Assistance Program are vitally important to ensuring that community members in need have access to resources.  This particular effort will provide the fuel needed to heat homes—which in this case is firewood.  It is an ideal partnership between the Port and Community Action, which will coordinate the distribution of the firewood to its program participants.   More than 18 cords of firewood have been cut, split and stacked onto more than 36 pallets over this past summer alone.

Another noteworthy accomplishment through the program is the focus on volunteerism.  Several Port employees have processed the wood outside of their regular work hours and they will be volunteering their Veteran’s Day Holiday, which is observed this year on November 10, to help load trucks and trailers and distribute the firewood alongside Community Action workers and volunteers.

Seniors, veterans and veterans’ families interested in obtaining firewood, and those interested in volunteering for the firewood program, may contact 360-416-7585 or [email protected].

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