Canadian companies are showing interest in Whatcom County. Will it mean new jobs?
While much of Whatcom’s economy has been hit hard by the current pandemic, there is the potential of new manufacturing jobs coming to the area next year.
In recent months Whatcom County has received a significant uptick in inquiries from Canadian manufacturers interested in moving or expanding in this area, said Don Goldberg, director of economic development at the Port of Bellingham. At a recent Port of Bellingham commissioners meeting, he noted they have received more inquiries in the past three months than they had in the previous three years.
Goldberg didn’t name specific Canadian companies that were expressing interest in this area but said many are of the manufacturing variety that either want to move their headquarters or expand into the U.S. Being near the border, Whatcom County is looking like a good spot because of the short distance to their other operations.
The inquiries are serious enough from several companies that Goldberg said he’s hopeful that there will be relocation/expansion announcements coming in the next few months.
Why the sudden interest?
In a phone interview, Goldberg said these Canadian companies have listed several factors on why they are interested in building facilities in the U.S. and possibly Whatcom County:
▪ Current U.S. policy: It’s now become harder to manufacture products overseas and ship into the U.S.
▪ Land prices: While Whatcom County residents might feel a bit of sticker shock when buying local property or buildings, prices are still substantially lower than the going rate in Canada, particularly British Columbia.
▪ U.S. market: Company officials are increasingly saying the U.S. is the biggest customer market for them. Goldberg noted that rule changes on projects requiring a U.S. presence to bid on projects are being brought up as well.
▪ Opportunity: While many companies and industries are suffering during the COVID-19 pandemic, Goldberg said there are others that are doing very well. With sales going well, these companies are in better financial shape to expand and/or relocate.
Something that hasn’t been mentioned to Goldberg’s team but could be in the back of the minds of company CEOs is the border. While non-essential travel between the U.S. and Canada has been banned since March 21, commercial trade continues to flow freely through the border. However the pandemic has shown that there is a possibility of future disruption for goods and worker travel that could be reduced by having a U.S. presence.
State of manufacturing in Whatcom
Despite the pandemic and the curtailment of the Alcoa Intalco Works aluminum smelter near Ferndale this summer, manufacturing jobs have been relatively stable in Whatcom County.
The state Employment Security Department estimated Whatcom County had 10,400 manufacturing jobs in September, down 300 jobs compared to a year earlier. That 3% drop in manufacturing jobs is lower than the state’s 9% decline between January and September this year, according to the Washington State Department of Commerce.
Challenges of attracting companies
While Whatcom County is receiving interest from Canadian manufacturers, getting them to commit could be challenging because of a few factors this area is lacking, Goldberg said: Available buildings, housing and child care.
There is a lack of available manufacturing buildings because Whatcom is running out of easy places to build them. Much of the remaining undeveloped land in industrial zone areas have issues like wetlands or a lack of infrastructure that make the permitting process difficult, he said.
The industrial land and buildings that are available are mostly in the north part of the county, including Lynden, Blaine and Ferndale.
Available housing is one of the first questions asked by company officials, and that news is discouraging.
There was less than one month of inventory available throughout this area at the end of October, according to data from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service. That means if no other homes came on the market, the existing supply would be gone in under 30 days.
In Bellingham there were 60 houses available in Bellingham on Friday, Nov. 6, according to Troy Muljat of Muljat Group Commercial. After throwing out one very large property listing that would skew the numbers, the median list price for the rest of the available houses was still $699,000.
Goldberg said the one trend that companies might like is that hundreds of apartment units being built, mostly in Bellingham. However, given the living wages that come with manufacturing jobs, there will be more demand for houses or condominiums to buy.
Childcare was an issue in Whatcom County before the pandemic and the disruption that followed hasn’t improved that situation.
Despite the challenges, Goldberg is optimistic because of the recent interest as well as progress being made in code and zoning amendments for the Cherry Point industrial area that Whatcom County Council might approve next year.
