PORT TOWNSEND — Pile driving will resound on and off — and at times it will be loud, very loud. There will be dredging, and some eelgrass and clams will die. A roundabout at the Sims Way-Kearney Street intersection may be needed.
Those were some of the findings presented Monday night during a Washington State Ferries work session with the Port Townsend City Council over the proposed $36 million expansion of the Port Townsend ferry dock.
Work is scheduled to begin in fall 2008.
Ferries officials and representatives of CH2M Hill consulting engineers gave their latest report on the project that would extend the dock 180 feet to increase parking by 70 additional holding spaces.
What size vessels?
One significant uncertainty is what size ferry will be built for the Port Townsend-Keystone run — the options being studied are for new ferries carrying 65 cars, 100 cars or 124 to 144 cars.
“Any one of these three vehicles sizes could come into Port Townsend by 2010,” said Charlie Torres, Washington State Ferries project manager.
Also proposed: Rotary Park, next to the U.S. Bank building on Water Street, would be moved to the south side of the dock.
The bank’s loss of parking would require restriping of the Port Townsend Plaza parking lot.
A remote holding area would also be added on Sims Way near the entrance to the Port Townsend Boat Haven to offset the off-dock holding space lost to commercial development.
The new ferries would replace 79-year-old Steel Electric vessels on the Port Townsend-Keystone run.
They are the oldest ferries in the state ferry system and carrying a maximum of 59 vehicles.
Ridership on the Keystone-Port Townsend route was nearly 800,000 in 2004, ferry officials said.
Officials are planning for 67 percent growth in total projected long-range ferry ridership to Port Townsend from Keystone during afternoons.