Port of Tacoma Commissioners approved an agreement between the Puyallup Tribe of Indians and the Port to cut back a portion of Tribal property along the Blair Waterway to create a wider passageway for ships and facilitate development of a new terminal. 

The Commission action March 17 followed the Puyallup Tribal Council’s approval of the agreement a few weeks earlier. The Port plans to use clean dredge material to build the East Commencement Habitat Opportunity (ECHO) project, which will create a mudflat and estuarine marsh to support juvenile salmon and Dungeness crab habitat in nearshore areas along Marine View Drive. The Corps plans to reuse clean sediment from the navigation channel to construct additional habitat offshore. 

“While economic development is important, protection of our environment is always a top concern of ours,” said the Puyallup Tribal Council, the Tribe’s elected governing body. “We asked our staff to evaluate this project and ensure maximum environmental protections are in place. Our Fisheries Department has been fully engaged and assures us that fish and shellfish habitat will be improved and the need for shoreline armoring along SR-509 will be lessened.” 

The Blair Cutback Implementation Agreement outlines project details and builds on a 2008 agreement between the Port and the Tribe for a shoreline cutback. That work was paused at the time after international shipping declined in the recession, but current demand in the shipping industry now makes the project possible. 

Negotiations resumed as the Puyallup Tribe and The Northwest Seaport Alliance, the marine cargo operator for the Port of Tacoma and the Port of Seattle, began planning joint development of a new terminal, which was announced in March 2025. 

“After signing a historic memorandum of understanding last year, we are excited to reach this new milestone toward expanding cargo capacity on the Blair Waterway,” said Dick Marzano, Port of Tacoma Commission President and NWSA Co-Chair. “This project will bring economic benefits to all of Pierce County and improve navigation in our busiest waterway.” 

“This wider passageway will create more business opportunities for the Tribe, the Port and The Northwest Seaport Alliance,” the Puyallup Tribal Council said. “These opportunities are why the Tribe and Port partnered on this project.” 

The cutback agreement will widen the Blair Waterway to provide 850 feet of fender-to-fender distance between the planned facility, tentatively named the Puyallup Tribal Terminal, and the Washington United Terminals berth area on the west side of the waterway. 

By aligning the Tribal property shoreline with the existing East Blair One Terminal, the cutback will open approximately 2,500 linear feet for the new terminal and reduce navigational constraints for container ships accessing Pierce County Terminal at the end of the waterway. 

“This project reflects years of work between the Tribe and the Port to improve access in the Blair Waterway while supporting economic opportunity for the Tribe, our neighbors, and the entire region,” the Puyallup Tribal Council said. 

Under the cutback agreement, the Tribe will manage project design and permitting, while working in partnership with the Port of Tacoma on construction and implementation of the project. 

“The cutback agreement highlights our shared commitment and partnership with the Puyallup Tribe of Indians on this project,” said Port of Tacoma Executive Director Eric Johnson. “It comes at a time when we are also deepening the Blair Waterway to help ensure the Port remains competitive in the global cargo market.” 

Separately, the Port and NWSA are coordinating with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to deepen the Blair Waterway navigation channel and berth areas by 6 feet to accommodate larger container ships. 

Blair cutback construction is anticipated to begin in late 2027 and conclude in 2029.