Tri-Cities won't get to improve its shorelines this year

The Tri-Cities' dreams of a Columbia River shoreline revival are dashed, but not dead.

Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Sunnyside, tried to add language to the National Defense Authorization Act, which passed Thursday in the House on a 351-66 vote.

The language would have put 34 miles of local shoreline under Tri-City control, giving cities the ability to improve or develop them.

Tri-Cities backers said the Congressional Budget Office flagged the measure for further review, saying it needed more information about the financial effect of the move.

Carl Adrian, president of the Tri-City Development Council, and David Reeploeg, its governmental affairs director, said they're disappointed, but not surprised.

"The reality is passing legislation is difficult," Reeploeg said.

They don't expect another chance to come up until Congress takes up the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act in 2019.

But Adrian said it's an election year, so it could be added to one of the must-pass bills before the November general election.

"It's not a dead end," he said.

The NDAA has been a natural outlet for addressing the shoreline plan because the property is under Army Corps control.

Newhouse's language directing the military to account for how it acquired the riverfront in the 1940s and 1950s, partly as a result of flooding and partly to accommodate the new McNary Dam.

The Department of Defense eventually released reams of documents indicating the government paid most landowners at the time.

Former U.S. Rep Doc Hastings, former Kennewick Mayor Brad Fisher and Gary Petersen, a retired TRIDEC executive, have pushed the government to restore local control over the waterfront.

The river could be the region's focus for future economic development, recreation and other initiatives.

The shoreline is under Army Corps control but leased in long stretches to the local cities. Richland and Kennewick jointly spend about $2 million annually to maintain their waterfronts. Kennewick in particular says it is difficult to plan improvements or even repairs under the current arrangements.

The TRIDEC team praised Newhouse's efforts.

In an exchange with Rep. Mac Thornberry, the chairman of the House Armed Forces Committee, Newhouse recounted the importance of the move to the district and asked for his commitment to keep working with him in the future.

The Texas Republican asked about who would get the land, potential legal conflicts and what — if any — use the Army Corps might have in mind.

TRIDEC said backers will work get those questions answered.

Nevertheless, Thornberry said he would be "happy" to work with Newhouse, according to a transcript of the exchange..

The shoreline plan enjoys broad political support in the Mid-Columbia despite concerns it could lead to high-end development that squeezes out ordinary visitors.

In April, the chairmen of the Benton and Franklin county commissions, and the mayors of Kennewick, Pasco, Richland and West Richland signed a joint letter to Newhouse and the state's two Democratic senators encouraging them to support congressional legislation to restore local control.

This story was originally published May 24, 2018 at 6:24 PM with the headline "Tri-Cities won't get to improve its shorelines this year."