Whatcom’s gross domestic product dipped, but Safran, Intalco show this promise
Whatcom County businesses collectively made fewer things in 2020 while dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.
The latest report from the U.S Bureau of Economic Analysis estimates Whatcom County’s real Gross Domestic Product was around $12.9 billion in 2020, a 5.3% decrease compared to 2019.
Whatcom County followed what was both a state and national trend for 2020, according to the data. The U.S. drop in real GDP was 3.4% Nearby counties Skagit (down 5.4%) and Snohomish (down 7%) were also down. King County was able to grow its GDP by 1.3%.
The reasons for the decrease locally were plentiful in 2020. Along with the pandemic, Alcoa shut the Intalco Works aluminum smelter near Ferndale, Safran wound down its aircraft interior operations in Bellingham, the northern border remained closed most of the year and a lack of employees at many companies hindered growth.
Even with those events, Whatcom County was able to produce $12.9 billion in goods in 2020. That’s ranks sixth of the state’s 39 counties for production with a population that ranks ninth in size.
Don Goldberg, director of economic development for the Port of Bellingham, said that while there was plenty of bad news on the economic front in 2020, quite a few companies also did quite well, helping blunt the losses. He noted that there is still tremendous demand for manufacturing in this region, but it is still being stymied by a lack of available land, housing and workforce.
Whatcom County employs around 20,000 people in the manufacturing and construction industries. According to data from Western Washington University’s Center for Economic and Business Research, top manufacturing and construction employers in 2019 include Matrix Service (870 local employees in refinery support and other industrial services), BP Cherry Point oil refinery (850 employees) and Lynden Door Company (463 employees).
Safran, Intalco update
Two key manufacturing facilities that are currently empty — Intalco near Ferndale and Safran in Bellingham — appear to be moving closer to landing tenants.
The Safran facility on Woburn Street in the Barkley neighborhood is in the process of being sold, with the property sale pending. According to real estate listings, the asking price for the 251,000-square-foot facility was $30 million. While Safran has not commented on the property sale, Goldberg believes the buyer is also a manufacturer and that the deal is expected to close next month.
No new news has been announced about the Intalco facility since it was disclosed during a Port of Bellingham commissioners meeting that two companies were negotiating to take over the property. One would be to bring back aluminum production to the facility, while the other is an American-Canadian venture that would create a steel mill that focuses on using recycled material.
“Intalco reopening would have a big impact on the economy,” Goldberg said.
The negotiations for the Intalco property have caught the attention of state officials. In his climate change initiative proposed earlier this month, Gov. Jay Inslee said he wants to invest in the Clean Energy Fund that could mean extra funding for the facility. The fund would develop, demonstrate and deploy clean energy technologies. The first phase will be aimed at providing funding for clean energy technology to get it operating again but with less environmental impact.
