COMMISSION 
AGENDA MEMORANDUM                        Item No.          10a 
ACTION ITEM                            Date of Meeting    September 28, 2021 
DATE :     September 17, 2021 
TO:        Stephen P. Metruck, Executive Director 
FROM:    Pearse Edwards, Senior Director, External Relations 
Geri Poor, Senior Manager Regional Transportation 
Sabrina Bolieu, Manager Regional Government Relations 
SUBJECT:  West Seattle Bridge Memorandum of Understanding 
Amount of this request:               $9,000,000 
Total estimated project cost:          $9,000,000 
ACTION REQUESTED 
Request Commission authorization for the Executive Director to execute a Memorandum 
of Understanding (MOU) in substantially the form attached for $9 million in partnership 
with   the   City   of   Seattle   on   the   West   Seattle   Bridges   Repair   program. 
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 
Through the Port and City's joint efforts to close the funding gap for the West Seattle Bridges
Improvements, we joined with other federal and local agencies to provide funding for West
Seattle Bridges repair.  This partnership will ensure good access to the Port cargo terminals,
promote freight mobility in the harbor, and relieve the traffic impacts on West Seattle and
Duwamish Valley neighborhoods. 
JUSTIFICATION 
Execution of this MOU contributes to the Port's Century Agenda goal to position the Puget Sound
region as a premier international logistics hub. As the Puget Sound region continues to
experience unprecedented growth, the increased population has created mobility and safety
challenges within the local transportation corridors. 
The West Seattle Bridge (WSB) transportation corridor sits at a critical point in our nation's
transportation network, adjacent to the BNSF Railway Company's northernmost transcontinental
rail line, the western terminus of Interstate 90 and Interstate 5corridors connecting Seattle to
points as far south as California and east to Illinois and the eastern seaboard. In 2019, marine
terminals managed by The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA) together shipped nearly 717,000
twenty-foot-equivalent units (TEUs) of containerized cargo to and from Alaska, Hawaii and other
domestic locations, accounting for 90% of the goods consumed by Alaskans. 

Template revised January 10, 2019.

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. 10 a                                 Page 2 of 5 
Meeting Date: September 28, 2021 

The bridge failure potentially puts at grave risk the largest public investment ever made by the
combined ports of Seattle and TacomaThe Northwest Seaport Alliance's Terminal 5 (T5)
adjacent to the WSB. Beyond modernized terminals, investment in the transportation network
serving these international container terminals is vital to maintain our gateway's global
competitiveness and critical to the entire state's economic future. 
Entering into this agreement with the City will aid in the repair and rehabilitation of the West
Seattle Bridges to restore these critical pieces of regional infrastructure and maintain our region
as an international gateway for commerce and trade. 
Diversity in Contracting 
This is Port participation in a City of Seattle program, so the Port Diversity in Contracting is not
directly involved.  However, the City of Seattle has received federal authorization to utilize its
Priority Hire program to complete the repair and rehabilitation of the West Seattle Bridge. 
DETAILS 
The Port of Seattle will participate in funding the West Seattle Bridges Repair program. 
The Port, the City and the NWSA will work together to ensure the new container T5 investment
continues from construction to operations alongside the city's construction program; freight
mobility and operational issues are addressed; and shared projects continue to advance. 
To ensure smooth start-up of T5, the city commits to conditional access across the low bridge for
freight and container terminal workforce. The city will also ensure permits for T5 construction
are processed on a prioritized basis. Design and construction details of two bridge programs will
be shared with the Port and NWSA staff for review and feedback, to ensure maritime operations
are fully considered.
The city has affirmed its support for freight mobility and industrial lands vitality. A s the city
completes a future Replacement Bridge conceptual study by year-end 2021, they will note the
importance of container terminal operations and access needs in developing and evaluating the
replacement concepts. City staff will work with the Port on an improvement to access on S. 
Spokane St. near the Terminal-18 gate, as well as collaborating with drivers and Duwamish Valley
communities to reduce drayage effects on the communities. As the city designs a bicycle lane on
West Marginal Way, it will maximize safety for all users and minimize freight impacts. 
The city and the Port continue to work on other transportation corridors, such as the East
Marginal Way, to separate bicycle traffic from road vehicles and add heavy haul pavement
depths. 


Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. 10 a                                 Page 3 of 5 
Meeting Date: September 28, 2021 
Schedule 
This agreement represents a partnership investment by the Port of $9 million. Payments would
be made on a reimbursement basis as work is completed.
The City of Seattle is scheduled to complete the West Seattle High Bridge construction by mid-
2022 and will re-open the bridge to the public. The Low-Bridge improvements are anticipated to
be completed by Q4 of 2022. 
The MOU calls for three scheduled progress payments: 
1.  The first payment of $3,000,000 shall be made after the City has reopened the West
Seattle High Bridge with full access consistent with prior operations (7 lanes) and shown
progress satisfactory to the Port on other provisions of the agreement (this is expected in
mid-2022).
2.  The second payment of $3,000,000 shall be made upon Substantial Completion of the
Spokane St. Swing Bridge Repair and Improvement Projects (expected by year-end 2022)
including progress satisfactory to the Port  on other provisions of the agreement. 
3.  The final payment of $3,000,000 shall be made upon Final Acceptance of all projects (as
defined in the construction contract) and including progress satisfactory to the Port on
other provisions of the agreement. 
ALTERNATIVES AND IMPLICATIONS CONSIDERED 
Alternative 1  Do nothing. 
Cost Implications: Zero. 
Pros: 
(1)   No impacts on the Port's budget. 
(2)   No impact on staff time with respect to implementation. 
Cons: 
(1)   Negative implication on our relationships with other governments. 
(2)   Negative timeline impacts to Port priority projects. 
This is not the recommended alternative. 
Alternative 2  Authorize to execute a different agreement. 
Cost Implications: It would depend. 
Pros: 
(1)   If it included fewer dollars, there would be less of an impact on the Port's budget. 
Cons: 
(1)   The agreement would not likely move forward, and the Port would lose leverage on
critical negotiation pieces in the MOU. 

Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. 10 a                                 Page 4 of 5 
Meeting Date: September 28, 2021 

This is not the recommended alternative. 
Alternative 3  Authorize to execute this agreement. 
Cost Implications: $9,000,000 
Pros: 
(1)   Provides the Port a seat at the table to collaborate on West Seattle Bridge rehabilitation
and construction. 
(2)   Provides benefits for freight mobility and container terminal operations. 
(3)   Strengthens relationships with local governments. 
Cons: 
(1)   Impact to the Port's budget. 
This is the recommended alternative. 
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS 
This agreement represents a partnership investment by the Port of $9M. Payments would be
made on a reimbursement basis as work is completed.
Cost Estimate/Authorization Summary                     Capital         Expense            Total 
COST ESTIMATE 
Original estimate                                         $9,000,000                $0       $9,000,000 
AUTHORIZATION 
Previous authorizations                                            0                  0                  0 
Current request for authorization                        $9,000,000                 0       $9,000,000 
Total authorizations, including this request                $9,000,000                  0        $9,000,000 
Annual Budget Status and Source of Funds 
This agreement represents a partnership investment of $9,000,000.
The Port's Transportation and Infrastructure Fund includes tax levy receipts set aside for existing
commitments to regional transportation investments including the Port's commitment to Safe
and Swift. The actual Port costs for that initiative have been reduced by $5 million and the Port
can use that funding to support the West Seattle Bridge. Any amount above $5 million would be
funded with the Port's tax levy and accommodated by spending deferrals on other investments
or programs. The Port typically experiences slower than planned spending from the tax levy and
up to five million will likely be accommodated without any explicit change to other tax levy uses. 
The current project timeline has construction starting in the 4th quarter of this year ending yearend
2022. The project timeline will be updated once the design is at 60% completion. 


Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. 10 a                                 Page 5 of 5 
Meeting Date: September 28, 2021 
ATTACHMENTS TO THIS REQUEST 
(1)   Presentation slides 
(2)   Draft memorandum of understanding 
PREVIOUS COMMISSION ACTIONS OR BRIEFINGS 
July 2, 2020  The NWSA Managing Members were updated on the status of the West Seattle
Bridge. 
May 12, 2020  The Port of Seattle Commission was briefed on the current status of the
ongoing interagency response in which the port and the NWSA staff participated related 
to the closure of the West Seattle Bridge. Port staff outlined our internal next steps in
coordination with the NWSA, to respond to the issue on multiple fronts. 













Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).