economic development

Two of three commissioner positions for the Port of Bellingham — the county’s economic engine — are up for election on the Nov. 2 ballot. Along with speaking to the issues, candidates have found they need to explain the job’s impact whenever they knock on voters’ doors.

A month into the 2021 state legislative session, it’s time to review the legislation introduced by our elected representatives as of this week.

After more than a decade of discussion, planning and cleanup of an industrial waste site on Bellingham Bay, the city’s partnership with the port and a contract with a Dublin-based company are putting the waterfront’s future on the ground.

An effort to steer future development at Whatcom County’s primary industrial center away from fossil fuels while providing regulatory certainty is inching closer to completion with the help of an unlikely partnership between environment and industry interests.