The Port of Vancouver’s Terminal 1 Public Market is one step closer to reality after the Washington Legislature allocated $3.5 million for the removal of the port’s century-old Terminal 1 dock. The Legislature’s final capital budget for 2023 included funding for the next phase of the port’s Terminal 1 redevelopment project. The budget was signed into law by Gov. Jay Inslee on Tuesday. In a statement Thursday, Port of Vancouver CEO Julianna Marler praised local lawmakers for securing the needed funding. Marler called them “champions” in the effort to remake Terminal 1 into a “premier destination on the Columbia River.” Terminal 1’s neighbor is the private development enterprise The Waterfront Vancouver. Combined, the areas have become a hot spot for luxury multifamily housing, hotels, restaurants and retail. The port’s own AC Hotel Vancouver Waterfront opened at Terminal 1 last year. And construction is continuing on the port’s mixed-use office tower, which is set to house local technology company ZoomInfo.

“To bring that vision to completion, we need to replace our 100-year-old dock with a structure that makes the necessary ecological upgrades for the river and is fully capable of supporting the public market and river tourism in the years ahead,” Marler said. According to the port, plans are to demolish and rebuild the dock, which previously supported the old Red Lion Hotel and Quay Restaurant. Eventually, the terminal is expected to be home to a public market. The demolition will begin this fall, according to the port. It will involve the removal of 880 wood pilings, followed by the removal of the creosote-treated pilings and its deck. That’s all expected to be completed by early 2024. The in-water removal process will be timed to minimize impacts on fish, the timing of which will be determined by state and federal agencies, according to the port. The new dock, which will be held up by about 160 new steel and concrete pilings, will create a more “fish-friendly and environmentally safe structure,” according to Thursday’s statement.

Marler particularly thanked Sen. Annette Cleveland, D-Vancouver, and Rep. Kevin Waters, R-Stevenson. Cleveland said that she is excited to help the port make environmental improvements to its dock and bring about more opportunities for small businesses with its waterfront project. “Terminal 1 is such a special asset for this region,” said Waters in a statement. “By removing outdated infrastructure and making way for a safe new dock and marketplace, the Port of Vancouver is improving this public asset on the river’s edge for the benefit of our entire community.”