Daud tabbed for port project

Pullman engineering firm Munir Daud and Associates has been contracted by the Port of Whitman County to plan an extension of utilities to the port’s new industrial park in Pullman.

Port commissioners, at their regular meeting Nov. 3, signed a $175,000 contract with Daud who will plan extension of Pullman city water and sewer services along State Route 27 to the new site which is located at the intersection of Highway 27 and the Albion Road.

The site was annexed into the Pullman City Limits last year along with the Mader housing sites located southwest of the port site.

Debbie Snell, port properties and development manager, said they hope to begin laying pipe next year. Total estimated cost of the utility extension is $1.2 million, with $1 million coming from an interest-free loan from the state Community Economic Revitalization Board.

The port purchased the 35 acres for the new industrial park as part of the $1 million innovation partnership zone grant the agency received from the state Department of Commerce in 2007.

One-third of the grant was used to purchase the land, which is intended to be used as industrial lots for new businesses in Pullman. The port’s existing industrial park in Pullman off Terre View on the east side of Highway 27 is nearing capacity.