Quincy port enters land agreement with Microsoft

Commissioner says purchase provides 'more diversity'

QUINCY — The Port of Quincy has entered into a purchase sales agreement with Microsoft MSN.

Port commissioner Pat Connelly and public affairs consultant Pat Boss said the agreement is for 74 acres of land, subject to a 90-day discovery period.

The port district was expecting a press release from Microsoft at any time regarding the Internet provider's intentions for the land.

"The key here, and a reason Microsoft is very keen on the Port of Quincy, is because of electrical power, fiber optics, availability of land and transportation options," Boss said, referring to Quincy's close proximity to Interstate 90 and rail tracks.

"It's more diversity," Connelly said. "It gets us into something different. Any time you can bring a company like Microsoft in, it'd be good for the area."

Boss said Microsoft MSN has plans for a facility, but he was unable to comment on what that is, and plans are still in negotiations. Information will be forthcoming in the coming weeks, but things are still "very preliminary," he said.

"They are definitely planning to use that land for some activities," he said.

"If it goes on through, it's an economic development opportunity for Quincy, which I'm very pleased to hear about," said Larry Peterson, commissioner with the Port of Moses Lake. While not directly connected to the Microsoft agreement, he said the Moses Lake port district and the Port of Quincy have a good working relationship and "certainly support each other in anything of benefit to Grant County."

Peterson said he could not speculate on what the agreement might mean for the county without knowing specifics of the project.

Microsoft spokesperson Colleen Lacter said there are not a whole lot of details available, as it is still very early in the project.

"Microsoft is always looking for ways to increase infrastructure capacity to service the needs of a growing number of customers around the world for Microsoft services," Lacter said. "At the end of the day, this is really about smart planning for the future."

Connelly said negotiations with Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad regarding the use of rail at the port district's intermodal site are still under way.

"We'll get there sooner or later," he said.