New business park coming to Smokey Point

NorthPoint Development is a 426 acre development that is expected to bring about 4,000 jobs to the area

NorthPoint Development plans to bring a 426 acre business park to the Smokey Point area which could create thousands of new manufacturing jobs.

The Kansas City based company reached an agreement with the Marysville City Council on May 10 to move forward with the development.

The property runs east of 51st Avenue near the north of Marysville city limits near 152nd Street.

About 75 percent of the property is in Marysville while the remainder is in Arlington.

“It’s a huge project,” said Haylie Miller, community development director with the city of Marysville. “One of the biggest projects that we’ve worked on as a city."

“The project will be phased in over the next 10 years,” said Miller.

NorthPoint Development plans to finish construction of the buildings as they find tenants.

“It will consist of commercial and light industrial uses,” said Miller.

With the area’s ‘Light Industrial’ zoning, many uses are permitted such as warehouses, breweries, textile mills, fabricating metal products and other potential businesses.

“That could be a logistics center or manufacturing uses that assemble products,” said Miller.

If the property is fully developed, Marysville’s estimates predict an additional 3,100 to 4,800 jobs for the city.

Tax revenue increases for the cities are estimated at around $212,000 for Arlington and $396,000 for Marysville, with additional tax revenues also going to local school districts and emergency services as well.

The fully developed property is estimated to provide just over $5 million to those local entities, the county and the state in total.

The business park would be one of the largest developments in the Cascade Industrial Center in Smokey Point, which local officials hope can bring more jobs close to people’s home.

“This will make it so people can live and work in their own hometown,” said Barbara Tolbert, mayor of Arlington.

Marysville had a population of about 69,000 in 2020, but has space for additional housing to accommodate that workforce.

“We have the capacity for about 19,000 more residents, less the growth that occurred last year,” said Miller. “It’s expected that we have enough housing to accommodate this project and the other projects coming to the Smokey Point area."

The city is required to plan and make space for that kind of growth as part of the Washington State Growth Management Act.

Efforts to mitigate the increased traffic are being planned as part of the development.

“They are required to alleviate the traffic that will result from their project,” said Miller.

That must be done through fee payments or by directly constructing traffic projects.

“There will be several improvements to the road frontage as well as completion of some public roads within the development,” said Miller.

Edgecomb Creek is also a part of the development area.

“The site contains wetlands and a creek known as Edgecomb Creek that zigzags through the site,” said Miller.

“They are really taking an innovative approach,” to reduce the environmental impact, she said.

A new creek corridor will be created that will be 300 feet wide and run parallel to the train tracks and include a trail.

“There will be a 12-foot-wide public trail as part of that project, which will just add another diverse recreation amenity for the city,” said Miller.

The portions of the business park in Marysville are likely to be constructed first.

“It’s a ways off before they will begin with the Arlington portion,” said Tolbert.

The Cascade Industrial Center in Smokey Point has long been a target for manufacturing jobs for Marysville and Arlington.

The cities worked toward bringing official designations and other support to the area over the last decade.

“I think the Cascade Industrial Center is proving to be a success,” said Tolbert. “I’m excited by the different types of industry coming in."

The new development “definitely plays to the vision for the overall area,” said Miller.

Amazon announced a distribution center planned for the area last month as well, and other technology companies have shown interest in coming to the area.

“I’m pleased to see the diversity of jobs coming in,” said Tolbert. “That means lots of new businesses engaging in the community."

There was a good deal of supply disruption because of the coronavirus pandemic and Tolbert said businesses are looking to build stronger systems.

“I think we’re seeing a resurgence of industries who want to make sure they’re resilient and have their supply chain close to home,” she said.