Richland caps RAISE by dedicating Logan Road at Horn Rapids

A new road in Richland’s Horn Rapids Industrial Park will ease traffic and create a friendly neighborhood for future manufacturers, food processors and other employers.

Logan Road is also the last project funded through by a state program that revitalized both north Richland and Kennewick’s Southgate area, the currently-inactive Local Revitalization Financing program.

Richland officials will dedicate the new 7,000-foot stretch of pavement and associated utilities at 2 p.m. Monday, at the intersection of Logan Road and Poplar Way.

Logan Road, which links to Highway 240 by way of Robertson/Hagen Road, will offer a better route for trucks serving the massive Preferred Freezer facility, said Zach Ratkai, the city’s economic development manager. The new corridor opens up about 250 acres for future industrial development, he said.

The $3.3 million road is funded by an $11 million bond issued under the state LRF program that also supported Kennewick’s investments in developing the Southridge area.

Richland was one of five municipalities to receive awards in 2009. It pitched a package of north Richland investments it called the “Revitalization Area for Industry, Science and Education,” or RAISE effort. RAISE was only effort focused on industrial and research facilities rather than commercial and residential development.

The Washington Economic Development Association named it the Recruitment Project of the Year for 2014.

Richland, in partnership with the Port of Benton, invested LRF money to extend First Street from Kingsgate to Logston boulevards, and to extend Logston from the Horn Rapids Business Center to Battelle Boulevard. Several lesser extensions provided access to 43 acres of port-owned property near the softball fields.

RAISE has induced an estimated $250 million in private investment in Horn Rapids, Ratkai said. Henningsen Cold Storage, Preferred Freezer, Central Washington Corn Processors and an expansion of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory are all attributed in part to the infrastructure investments through the LRF program.

A University of Washington study concluded the net tax revenue to Washington would exceed the public funds invested.

The road and related utilities bring much of Horn Rapids to near “shovel-ready” condition. Ratkai said the city has now exhausted its LRF funds but is hopeful the state Legislature will re-capitalize the program. Sen. Sharon Brown, R-Kenn., championed a bill to renew the program in 2016.

At Horn Rapids, land can be divided in sites ranging from 1 to 50 acres.

Target industries include advanced manufacturing and technology. Ratkai said the city has fielded inquiries about siting a commercial fueling operation at Horn Rapids and from warehouse operators interested in the area. Preferred Freezer is expected to expand its massive freezer and has an option to purchase land in the area.

The Washington Department of Transportation is expected to activate a new traffic signal at Hagen/Robertson Road on Monday in time for the dedication program.

This story was originally published November 11, 2017 at 2:09 PM with the headline "Richland caps RAISE by dedicating Logan Road at Horn Rapids."