The Puyallup Tribe of Indians received a land settlement of about 140-acres along the Port of Tacoma’s East Blair Waterway in 1990. For over 35 years, this traditional homeland laid dormant, until now.
As the ink dries on a freshly signed memorandum of understanding between the Tribe and the Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA), an innovative economic development opportunity comes ashore in very region the Puyallup’s story began.
Native to Puget Sound, the nation’s second largest estuarine system, well before Washington’s establishment as a U.S. state, the Puyallup Tribe are known in the Lushootseed language as the puyaləpabš. Translating to “people from the bend at the bottom of the river,” the tribe of over 6,000 members will now build upon its rich maritime heritage by breaking into the commercial maritime industry.
“It’s about creating sustainable revenue diversification for generations to come. To leading by example and hopefully giving other tribes and example that they can follow,” says Puyallup Tribal Enterprises CEO Matt Wadhwani. “It’s really about just activating the assets we have.”
The Puyallup Tribe Terminal will be located adjacent to East Blair Terminal 1.
Photo courtesy of the Puyallup Tribe
A Lasting Legacy
For more than three years, the Puyallup Tribal Council and its economic development team have been cultivating a partnership with the NWSA and the Port of Tacoma to explore developing its own pier on a portion of the 140-acre site.
This partnership was a pivotal factor in the Tribe’s ability to execute the project. Wadhwani notes, “I know what I know, and I know what I don’t know,” so breaking into the maritime industry required seasoned expertise. Albeit the Tribe wasn’t going to pursue this initiative blindly. In 2023, the Tribe launched its own international logistics company, Tahoma Global Logistics, to operationalize the property and get infrastructure in place, while developing jobs and training, so when the partnership did arrive the team was prepared to contribute.
The planned 22-acre Puyallup Tribe Terminal will be positioned directly beside the NWSA’s 19-acre East Blair Terminal 1 (EB1). The project will increase current pier capacity at the nation’s ninth largest container port, opening potential to gain market share and boost economic activity. Much like EB1, the Puyallup Tribe Terminal will take in breakbulk and roll-on, roll-off cargo such as heavy machinery, construction equipment and automobiles. Wadhwani shares that one day the Tribe will have the ability to expand into containers, while exploring the potential to export their own travel goods as they get into inter-tribal trade down the line.
The Port of Tacoma has contributed to the pier’s conceptual design work, waterway depth analysis and ship simulations, bolstered by support from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Estimated total project cost for the Tribe will land in the ballpark of $200 million, once complete the NWSA will step in to offer technical assistance to ensure consistency and efficiency between EB1 and the Puyallup Tribe Terminal’s operations.
A non-negotiable aspect of this partnership with NSWA included a Tribal Employment and Development Program, which will teach members the essential skills needed in a successful maritime environment.
“As part of this deal, NWSA has agreed to set up a program to start training tribal members and not just get them on the docks, but into upper management positions,” says Wadhwani. “When we do any kind of economic development we want to generate revenue, but we also want to create jobs. We want to create jobs for not just Tribal members, but the entire community.”
The project is expected to create 150 construction jobs and another 100 to 200 jobs as operations ramp up. Through this development, the Puyallup Tribe becomes the first tribal nation to directly enter the industry at this scale.
Arrival of the Puyallup Tribe Terminal joins a wave of economic development initiatives coming to life on the Tribe’s homeland. The tribe currently operates a marina, a golf course, gas stations, cannabis stores and two Emerald Queen Casino locations in Fife and Tacoma but began tapping into new industries following impacts of the pandemic.
“We really stepped it up in 2021,” says Wadhwani. “After COVID hit, we realized that you can’t have all your revenue coming from one source with our casino, so we amplified our economic development efforts.”
Map shows positioning of the new 22-acre terminal.
Map courtesy of the Puyallup Tribe
In addition to the launch of Tacoma Global Logistics, the Tribe’s economic development activity includes acquiring candy company Ames International; establishing a seaplane dock with Kenmore Air on Ruston Way; partnering with Amazon to open a 520,000-sq.-ft. sorting center in Fife; opening its own construction company Tahoma Construction Services; and investing in and partnering with Oregon-based battery storage company Skip Technology.
The Puyallup Tribe’s economic development team is currently working on development plans for a new entertainment complex on a vacant 18-acre site to compliment offerings at its Tacoma Emerald Queen Casino location. Noting the importance of his team and outside expertise that has supported the Tribe’s diverse range economic development projects, Wadhwani shares that everyone is excited to be apart of the legacy the Puyallup Tribe is building upon.
“We’re really excited,” he says. “The Tribe always likes to be a good partner and make sure that it’s not only a win for the tribe, but also a win for our local jurisdictions and community.”
