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Defense-community grants and Everett firefighting facility: advocates ask legislature to follow Commerce priorities
Summary
South Sound and city officials asked the committee to fund Defense Community Compatibility Account projects in the order Commerce prioritized; Everett and partners requested $7 million for a joint firefighting training facility that Commerce ranked highly but is not included in the governor’s draft.
Representatives of military-community partnerships and the City of Everett asked the Capital Budget Committee to honor the Department of Commerce’s prioritized list for the Defense Community Compatibility Account (DCCA) and to fund a joint firefighting training facility that Commerce ranked as the top project.
Bill Adamson, director of the South Sound Military and Communities Partnership, said the governor’s budget allocates $10.7 million to DCCA but covers only four projects and “does not do so in the order prioritized by Commerce's ranking process.” Adamson warned that picking and choosing projects outside the Commerce list “sets a bad precedent” and asked the Legislature to fund projects as prioritized.
David DeMarco, Everett fire chief, described a proposed joint firefighting training facility adjacent to Naval Station Everett and said the project—ranked number one by Commerce—was not included in the governor’s proposed budget. DeMarco said the facility would train municipal and federal firefighters and Navy sailors on large-vessel fire simulations, and that construction depends on state DCCA funding. City Councilor Paula Rhine said Everett has committed $600,000 in local funds and that without state support the project would be delayed or reduced in scope.
Ending: Advocates asked the committee to follow Commerce’s ranked list for DCCA awards and to restore funding for Everett’s training facility so construction can proceed as planned.
