City council tables offer from chocolate retailer

By Stefanie Donahue

Executives of Chewters Chocolates received a tepid response from Blaine City Council this week after offering $1.6 million to purchase approximately 7 acres of the Gateway Parcel to build a manufacturing facility outfitted for walking tours.

With no discussion in public session, councilmembers voted 5–0 on November 26 to table consideration of a letter of intent presented by Chewters Chocolates Inc. and its affiliate ChocXO Chocolatier LLC. The company currently operates out of a location in Irvine, California and another in Delta, British Columbia.

“Pending some further issues, we will table this,” said mayor Bonnie Onyon.

Chewters Chocolates CEO Richard Foley and VP of manufacturing Wade Pugh were present at the meeting. In a brief presentation, Foley said, “We’re outgrowing our factory in Irvine and we’re looking for a new location to build our new factory.”

Founded in 1984, the company specializes in manufacturing organic nut butter cups, chocolate bars, filled chocolates and more. It produces liquid chocolate at its 10,000-square-foot facility in Irvine and transports it to its 55,000-square-foot

facility in Delta for packaging.

Approximately 60 percent of the chocolate that’s manufactured and packaged at Chewters Chocolates is crafted for other brands, Pugh said. Its products are distributed to retailers in the U.S. and Canada, such as Costco, Whole Foods and other grocers.

Foley and Pugh said they would relocate their Irvine location to Blaine and invest a total $15.6 million to purchase the land, construct a manufacturing facility and install machinery. They said a total of 58 jobs would be added to the city’s workforce. The company also plans to incorporate a retail and tourism component similar to their Irvine location and the Tillamook Creamery in Oregon, for example.

“We walk you through the processing cacao beans go through before they make it to our factory, followed by an explanation of each step we take to make our fine chocolate,” Foley presented to council. “This, of course, includes samples along the way.”

In addition to tours, Foley and Pugh would aim to draw cross-border tourists by offering a snack and sandwich counter and potentially food trucks, with room for indoor and outdoor seating. They said the company plans to initially develop about half of the land, leaving room for future expansion.

Courtesy of the City of Blaine.

Blaine City Council has consistently expressed interest in seeing a hotel or retail business built at the north end of the Gateway

Parcel, which is the former site of the Blaine Municipal Airport.

“Their concern is locating a big manufacturer at that prime corner,” said city manager Michael Jones. Adding, “It’s a good offer and they don’t want to dismiss it.”

Jones said councilmembers are uneasy about a large portion of the property being left undeveloped and are concerned it wouldn’t create enough of a draw for tourists or provide enough of a service to the community.

Whether or not the proposal from Chewters Chocolate aligns with the city council’s expectations for the site, one aspect also presents a conflict.

Not all of the uses included in the proposal are described in the zoning code, according to acting community development director Alex Wenger. Because the city council cannot enter into an agreement that contradicts zoning or land use codes, the project would require a conditional use permit, which must be approved by the Blaine Planning Commission.

“I would accept a conditional use application because I believe it to be similar to the uses that are listed in the code,” Wenger said. “This would allow the planning commission an opportunity to review the proposal to ensure it is consistent with zoning and city’s comprehensive plan.”

Moving forward, Jones and city attorney Jon Sitkin will work with Chewters Chocolates to develop a more specific proposal. Jones said Blaine City Council will revisit the letter of intent at the next public meeting on December 10, but are unlikely to take action.

Since listing the approximately 40-acre Gateway Parcel, the city has sold 3.2 acres to warehousing and distribution business Mercer for use by U.S. Customs and Border Protection to inspect commercial cargo and 2.3 acres to Chuckanut Bay Foods to build an 18,500-square-foot production facility.

IK Truck Repair is in negotiations with the city to purchase 4.6 acres to build a truck and trailer repair and supplies facility as is Yorkston Oil Company, Inc., which wants to build a truck fuel stop, convenience store, restaurant and coffee shop on 6.5 acres.

The approximately 7 acres that remain have been marketed by Mike Kent and Jeff Johnson of Windermere Real Estate since February. On Monday, Kent told the council that “Bellingham increasingly is running out of industrial property. By default, we’re getting attention.”