Mass vaccination site opens at Boom City

The county’s sixth mass vaccine site has opened up at the Tulalip Tribes' Boom City location and began taking appointments on April 6.

The site is the second location north of Everett with the other vaccine site at the Arlington Municipal Airport.

The other four sites run by the Snohomish County Vaccine Task Force are in Edmonds, Monroe, Everett and at the Boeing Everett Activity Center.

Boom City is the name many locals call the Tulalip property at 10274 27th Ave. NE which hosts "Boom City Fireworks" each summer.

The Task Force planned many of the vaccine sites months ago.

“There are a few things we take into consideration when choosing where to put these vaccine sites at,” said Kari Bray, communications coordinator with the Snohomish Health District.

Those factors include accessibility, the ability of the location to move a large number of people through it and if the location is reaching vulnerable populations.

“As well as the site just making sense logistically,” said Bray. “We looked at all of those things when we were planning each of the sites early on."

The county’s vaccine task force worked with the Tulalip Tribes on opening the Boom City site.

“Boom City has a nice big open space and that will allow a lot of people to move through it,” said Bray. “It’s convenient, located just off of I-5 and the site also has a lot of name recognition. When you say 'Boom City’ people know where that is."

There are also many businesses located nearby so it is a convenient location for many workers, she said.

The site provided 1,000 to 1,200 appointments in its first couple of days it was open and Bray said it is anticipated the site could handle up to 2,000 appointments per day.

“As we get more vaccine supply, we will be able to expand the number of appointments there,” she said.

The mass vaccine site has been ready to go for a while now, however the county was not receiving enough vaccine supply to justify opening an additional site.

“It’s been at least several weeks since we’ve been ready with this site,” said Bray.

A third vaccine manufacturer, Johnson & Johnson, is now providing supply so the county has had increased doses available.

Bray added that sites remaining open is contingent on incoming vaccine doses.

“There have been times when we’ve had to close sites temporarily,” she said. “We are told that the supply should be increasing."

The Boom City vaccine site, like all others operated by the county, is by appointment only. The site is also a drive-thru location.

In Washington state all individuals over the age of 16 will be eligible to received the vaccine beginning on April 15.

They can find the online sign-up at bit.ly/snocovaccine or they can call 425-339-5278 to register for an appointment over the phone.

“There are folks, such as seniors, who have been eligible for a while, but still have not been able to get an appointment,” said Bray.

With the newly eligible adults coming in for vaccines, that could make appointments scarce.

“We know that with the incoming rush that could make it even harder for them,” said Bray. “We don’t want them to give up."

She encourages seniors and other vulnerable populations who have not been able to schedule an appointment to call the help-line at 425-339-5278.

During the vaccination effort, local demand for the vaccine has usually outpaced the number of doses the county receives.

At multiple times the population eligible for a vaccine appointment has been more than 10 times the available doses for the vaccine in the county.

Bray expects demand will outpace supply again after April 15.

“We are expecting with the new wave of people there will be a rush of new appointments,” she said. “For a period of time there will be a new crowd.”

She encourages locals to be persistent in trying to find an appointment and to be patient as it will likely not happen quickly.

“Don’t get discouraged if you aren’t able to get in right away,” she said.