Port commits to buying Eastside rail line

The Seattle Port Commission today committed itself to buying BNSF Railway's Eastside rail line for possible future use as a recreational trail and a passenger rail line.

The commission's unanimous vote authorizes Port CEO Tay Yoshitani to sign final documents to buy the 42-mile, Renton-to-Snohomish rail corridor for $103 million. Yoshitani was given authority to spend an additional $4 million on overhead, professional services and a contingency for keeping the existing track in place.

The commission's action didn't resolve a conflict over whether the rails should be removed to make way for a trail — a debate that has strained relations between Yoshitani, who favors further study, and King County Executive Ron Sims, who wants to pull up the rails to make way for a trail between Renton and Woodinville.

"We do have some time to determine its ultimate use for the full 42 miles," Commissioner Lloyd Hara said.

The county and the Port are continuing to discuss how best to accommodate "dual use" of the corridor for both trail and rail use.

"I think what's gotten lost in that whole debate," said Port Commission President John Creighton, "is the common vision I think shared by many stakeholders in the region including the Port and the county that we protect the corridor for public use and that we get that corridor into public ownership."

Keith Ervin: 206-464-2105 or kervin@seattletimes.com