City Council Standardizes Waterfront Rents
Tacoma sets a uniform $40 monthly rent for municipal land on the Middle Waterway, prioritizing new industrial development.
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Who wants to rent a waterfront lot for $40 a month? Tacoma has five of them recently acquired from the Northern Pacific on the Middle Waterway. Up to date, eight concerns have applied for the lots and offers have ranged from $10 up to $40 a month. The council last night fixed a price of $40 a lot per month and will receive applications. Persons desiring to start factories will get the preference. This action was taken after the council had agreed to rent one lot to C. A. Hellen for a gas engine factory for $10 a month. Some councilmen thought the city ought to stick to its bargain, but the council voted to compel all to pay $40 a month.
“Persons desiring to start factories will get the preference.”
The management of public waterfront property has been a point of contention for over a century. Tacoma’s decision to standardize rents to spur industrial growth highlights the ongoing struggle to balance municipal revenue with economic development incentives.
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