Tire company considers Ephrata

Port of Ephrata waiting on site plan

MOSES LAKE - The Port of Ephrata is waiting to receive a site plan from a California-based tire company that recently signed a purchase and sale agreement for 96 acres of port land.

The agreement means American Tire Corporation, which will do business as Washington Tire Corporation, has 60 days to change its mind, said Mike Wren, the port's manager, this week.

If the company wants to back out of the agreement after 60 days, it will lose the $40,000 in earnest money it paid the port, he said.

The company makes tires for large mining equipment, Wren said. In Ephrata, the company will make tires and ship them out 60 times a day.

The company is projecting a capital investment of $500 million into the project and the creation of 300 jobs, he said.

The total purchase price of the property is $960,000, Wren said. The land is mainly undeveloped sagebrush off Railroad Avenue near Ephrata.

There is water available, but some of the water and sewer requirements will be determined by the company's business plans, he said.

It's not yet clear how large the building will be or how the site will be laid out, Wren said.

For a land release to occur, the port must complete state and FAA requirements, he said. A National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) report must be competed to be given to the FAA and will take 120 days to finish the process. The NEPA cannot be done until the site plan is submitted to the port, Wren noted.

The time spent completing requirements give the port a chance to apply for grants to extend water and sewer services if needed, he said.

The company wants rail access and plans to attach to rail to deliver product, Wren said.

Abraham Hengyucius, a company contact, declined to comment about the project as it hasn't reached full production.

The company's Web site claims American Tire Corporation is the number one U.S. manufacturer of 63-inch tires.