Gateway parcel deal to close in early July

A deal for part of Blaine’s Gateway parcel is expected to close in early July.

IK Truck Repair, owned by Ivan and Marina Kovtun, will be acquiring about four acres on the south end of the city-owned Gateway parcel, in order to expand their business. Their new property will be located on the southwest side of the Boblett Court cul-de-sac.

The sale price was $613,218 according to city manager Michael Jones. “Overall the property is selling for about four dollars a square foot,” he said. The deal is expected to close during the first week of July.

The new space will allow the company to offer secure trailer storage services to its customers. “We’re going to allow people to rent a spot to leave their truck and trailer,” said Rachel Wydur, office manager of IK Truck Repair. “We will offer a secure storage facility for when they go out of the country, or away for a weekend.”

IK Truck Repair will retain their current facility at 2490 Bell Road in Blaine, where they will continue to perform heavy mechanical work. The business is a full-service truck and trailer maintenance and repair shop, which employs nine individuals plus the two owners. “We repair trucks and trailers from top to bottom,” said Wydur.

The deal has been in the works for quite some time. According to Jones, there was an extended “feasibility period” because the city of Blaine needed to design a regional stormwater pond in the area before the sale could proceed. “It is a pond that mitigates runoff from development areas, primarily the redeveloping of the airport property,” he said.

The Gateway parcel was formerly the site of the Blaine Municipal Airport. It is owned by the city of Blaine and consists of approximately 28 acres of fully serviced, flat, prime commercial, industrial, manufacturing and warehouse property within Blaine city limits. The Gateway parcel is situated in an ideal location with easy access to I-5, and has been sought after by many potential buyers.

Since listing the approximately 28-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.

Meanwhile, city council voted to decline an offer from an investment firm to purchase six acres on the north end of the parcel to build a truck fuel stop, a coffee shop, a fast-food restaurant and a 20,000-square-foot grocery store.

There are about 7.1 acres of the Gateway parcel that remain unsold, located at the north end of the old airport. According to Jones, discussions are ongoing with Family Care Network and Chewters Chocolates. Family Care Network is interested in potentially opening a healthcare facility in Blaine, and recently signed a non-binding letter of intent to purchase 2.5 acres of the Gateway parcel.

In January, Blaine City Council declined a $1.6 million offer from Chewters Chocolates to purchase seven acres of the Gateway parcel bordering H Street and recommended the company propose an alternative plan on five acres. Following city council’s decision, “there was a period of time when we didn’t hear much from them” but discussions have resumed in recent weeks, said Jones. “They have renewed interest,” he said.