Port of Kennewick
The prestigious Kennewick Commercial Club created a five square mile port district in 1915 to take advantage of the newly constructed Celilo Canal. This passageway allowed cargo vessels the opportunity to ship goods along the Columbia River to Portland, Oregon.

During the early years, the port concentrated its efforts on building rail and water transfer terminals in addition to barges and warehouse-type buildings for storage. A devastating flood in 1926 wiped out all the port docks and transfer facilities causing it to become stagnant.

Resurrecting itself in the 1940's with the advent of World War II, the port began purchasing real estate for industrial development. It was at that time the port hired its first full time employee to manage the daily operations, and signed its first lease with Columbia Marine Shipyards for construction of river vessels.

The 1950s and 1960s brought an era of significant growth industrially and jurisdictionally. Industrially, five significant chemical plants, several large food-processing plants, a major metallurgical plant, cold-storage facilities and boating amenities were built and became operational during this period. The port district also expanded its boundaries to 485 square miles.

The port's direction shifted towards development of basic road and other services in the 1970's. It was at that time the industry's need for rail transportation and improved roadways increased.

Constructing incubator facilities and recruiting industries to the area was the main focus in the 1980's.

By the 1990s the port gained possession of the Vista Field Airport. The port worked on building more incubator facilities and creating partnerships with affiliate organizations to improve the local economy. As a result, several partnering opportunities arose with other municipalities and Tri-Ports organization was formed tying the ports of Benton and Pasco with the Port of Kennewick.

Today, the Port of Kennewick concentrates its efforts on infrastructure and economic development in an effort to recruit entrepreneurial and diversified manufacturing operations.

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