The AGP groundbreaking at the Port of Grays Harbor included ILWU Local 24 officials.
At its low point, traffic to the port amounted to just eight ship calls for the year, recalled Gary Nelson, the port’s executive director.
“We gave some serious thought about just closing down,” he said. “It was expensive to maintain the facilities, and we just weren’t getting business.”
But port commissioners decided to persevere. And the port focused its efforts on rail-dependent export trade.
This year, the Port of Grays Harbor expects to host as nearly as many ships in a month than it once saw in a year.
The Longshore Union local increased its ranks 35 percent, and the port has seen private companies invest some $200 million in new infrastructure, said the port.