A citizen group claims a proposed site for a new airport in Thurston County violates state law because it overlaps with land controlled by Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
The group Stop The Airport filed a request for action with the Washington Office of the Attorney General on Monday, according to a news release. The request calls for the Thurston County site to be removed from consideration.
A state commission tasked with locating a site for a new commercial airport decided to keep the so-called "Thurston County Central" site on a short list of options in September. Scores of public officials and citizens have since organized against the proposal, The Olympian previously reported.
Senate Bill 5370, which was passed in 2019, includes two restrictions the Commercial Aviation Coordinating Commission )CACC) must abide by when selecting a site.
This state law forbids "sitting a facility on or in the vicinity of a military installation that would be incompatible with the installation's ability to carry out its mission requirements."
It also excludes locations in a county with a population of two million or more, which effectively rules out King County, which is already home to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
Stop The Airport's request hinges on its interpretation of the military restriction. They argue "an encroachment of thousands of acres on the federal military facility creates a facial incompatibility."
The request also calls on the CACC to demonstrate this incompatibility can be overcome prior to proposing the site to the state. It adds the public, the legislature or the Department of Defense should not be burdened with proving that after the fact.
Lacey resident Bennett (Mike) Butters signed onto the request for action along with Dawn Sonntag, president of Stop The Airport. In the release, Butters said members of CACC ignored this "significant" limitation.
"There needs to be consequences for their actions, for the incredible stress and sleepless nights they have created for thousands of people who recently learned about this disastrous idea, and who, along with every local official here, are united in their opposition to losing their homes and the natural environment that is unique to this county," Butters said.
The request also alleges CACC omitted information about its restrictions in its statements and materials shared with the public until recently. This has contributed to a perception among some that CACC has bungled its public outreach.
"Very few of us knew the state was considering Thurston County for a major new airport, and a lot of people here still don't know," Sonntag said. "This work has been undertaken outside of meaningful public input and scrutiny for years, and we are confident Attorney General Ferguson will uphold the law and stop it."
Warren Hendrickson of CACC acknowledged the restriction in a presentation to state lawmakers on Monday, The Olympian previously reported.
Hendrickson, who's also Airport Senior Manager for the Olympia Regional Airport, said the Thurston County site probably ranked the lowest of the remaining options because of its low capacity and the military restriction.
He made similar comments at a Dec. 14 presentation to the Orting City Council. During that meeting, he briefly expanded on the commission's reasoning for keeping the Thurston County site in play despite the restriction.
"The commission knew that but elected to go ahead and take a look at it anyhow, just to see what questions would come up," Hendrickson said. "Would this site be eliminated down the road because of its overlapping with JBLM? Quite possibly."
Speaking for himself, Hendrickson said he believed the commission was "coming to a viewpoint" that the state must engage JBLM about a potential new airport.
"In the long term, we're going to need to include JBLM in the conversation." Hendrickson said. "Can you help us solve this? Is there some way that we can incorporate your land, your airspace into a decision that ultimately benefits the entire region? To be determined."
CACC says it will focus on community engagement and additional technical analysis to further narrow down its options. A consultant for the Washington Aviation System Plan has been conducting the technical analysis separately from the CACC, according to its website.
This effort will analyze airspace, air cargo, additional environmental factors, transportation access and infrastructure. It will also determine rough order of magnitude cost estimates for developing a new airport.
On Monday, Hendrickson said CACC will meet again on March 2 to review the findings of the ongoing technical analysis. It will issue its recommendation by a June 15 deadline, but the legislature has ultimate authority on whether to accept or reject it.
