Seattle Press on Line - Fishermen's Terminal Crane Back in Business--Sort of

Fishermen's Terminal Crane Back in Business--Sort of

By Jo Bailey and Carl Nyberg

Jan 31, 2002 -- The one-ton crane on Dock 7 at Fisherman's Terminal is back in service after being unusable for the past year. The crane has been used by fishers for to off-load their vessels, engine repairs and other purposes.

However, there is restricted access to the dock, which means the crane is not very useful. No vehicles can reach it because of needed repairs to the South Wall, which must be crossed to access the dock.

"Those repairs to the South Wall will take about a year," said terminal general manager Jim Serrill. "There is another crane on the West Wall, a five-ton crane, which will work."

Fishers asked the Port of Seattle to repair the crane for about a year. Many pointed out that the Port of Seattle has not properly maintained facilities at the terminal over the years.

Although they're glad the crane is workable, they say the rotten pilings under the South Wall is another indication of the Port's poor maintenance of the terminal.

In other terminal news, Jim Serrill, general manager, said he is currently working on a plan to introduce recreational boats into Fisherman's Terminal and waiting for a study of terminal uplands.

Yachts would be moored in slips vacated by fishboats, hopefully by Memorial Day, he said. Seattle Port commissioners voted unanimously in early January to allow recreational boats to co-mingle with fish boats at the historic working terminal.

Some yachters may find mooring at the terminal is not as easy as mooring in a typical marina as there are no finger floats at the docks. Fish boats moor with bow or stern at the dock, and tie to pilings about 30 feet out in the water. Broken mooring pilings have recently been replaced.

Serrill said he envisions monthly moorage rates for recreational boats this summer would be about $6.75 per foot per month. Overnight moorage would be "typical of the rates in Lake Union," he added.

The manager said that when new docks with floats are built, moorages would be at "market rate."

"We get calls from people looking for moorage. We don't have a waiting list, but a call back list," he said.

The port maintains that fishboats will always be given priority moorage at the terminal.

The potential of uplands development at Fisherman's Terminal is presently being studied by Heartland Limited Liability Corporation. "We don't have any plans for upland development, but we should get their study soon," Serrill said.

Port Commissioners have repeatedly said there would be no condominium development at the terminal, although they have not ruled out retail or industrial development.

Jim Serrill will leave the position of Fishermen's Terminal general manager, which he has held since 1998, to become the Port's new head of Seaport Security in the next few weeks. The Seaport Security post will be comparable to the corresponding head of Airport Security. At press time, his replacement has not been named.

Jo Bailey & Carl Nyberg are freelance writers, authors of the Gunkholing series of cruising guides and are members of Northwest Outdoors Writers Association.

Reader Comments

Discuss this article in the forums!


tyler mahan	Aug 21, 2003	bellevue, WA, 98006
spell check next time, huh?