It wasn’t included on the Hoquiam City Council agenda for Monday night’s meeting, but the two crude-by-rail terminal projects proposed for construction in the city took up most of the meeting and caused tension between city officials and some of the opponents of the projects.
Hoquiam Mayor Jasmine Dickhoff became upset with some of the opponents who were making comments from the audience about the initial permitting process for Westway Terminal Co. LLC and Renewable Energy Group, Inc., formerly Imperium Terminal Services, to construct the terminals.
She said defending the system works well when it benefits you, but criticizing it when it results in an unfavorable outcome is “hypocritical.”
The negative comments from the audience in response to that statement became louder and she looked out to a specific section and told one person, “I’m not getting in a debate with you.”
She defended City Administrator Brian Shay regarding criticism about his demeanor, specifically his appearing not to make eye contact when the subject comes up during public meetings.
Shay has been working for the past two years with the Department of Ecology to find a solution and he “is making detailed notes, not looking away,” Dickhoff said.
Opponents collected more than 8,500 signatures on a petition addressed to Dickhoff, Shay and the Washington State Department of Ecology stating their concerns about the projects’ impact on the region and its residents and presented them to the council Monday night.
When another opponent asked the council to make its feelings about the project known, council members Richard Pennent and Dave Wilson said they were against the project.
Pennant said he’d prefer the city be sued by the corporations than the Quinaults and “other friends,” so that it would be best to deny the permits.
Dickhoff has expressed opposition to it in the past as well.
The final Environmental Impact Statement is expected to be made public Friday, and the city will decide what to do in the coming weeks and months, Shay said.
Consolidation of services
The cities of Hoquiam, Aberdeen and Cosmopolis intend to explore consolidation of services by establishing working groups of “appropriate representatives from our three municipalities,” according to a letter explaining what comes next signed by Dickhoff and the mayors of Aberdeen and Cosmopolis — Erik Larson and Frank Chestnut, respectively.
That would be regular reports about the potential for “increased efficiencies, improved services to citizens and improvements to our collective security.”
Cited as possible joint efforts were regional branding, increased collaboration for job creation and economic development, and streamlining and bringing consistency to the cities’ municipal codes, zoning and permitting processes.
“Ego is why these efforts have failed in the past,” Dickhoff said. She added that this time around the amount of ego factoring into the process would be “none.”
Hoquiam council members approved the letter. The Aberdeen City Council will consider the matter Wednesday and Cosmopolis council members meet next week.
