WHITMAN COUNTY (December 4, 2023) — Today, the Port of Whitman County Commission voted to authorize the Executive Director to sign a 20-year lease with AGROW Solutions for a vacant 10-acre lot at the Port of Central Ferry. 

Pullman-based AGROW Solutions plans to invest $2.5 million for the development of a new fertilizer manufacturing and distribution facility on Lot F at the Port. The project is estimated to create seven jobs upon construction completion.

AGROW Solutions provides crop consulting and custom fertilizer blends to farmers on the Palouse. However, the company has reached capacity at its flagship facility in Pullman. Leasing at the Port of Central Ferry will allow AGROW Solutions to expand its business. The company plans to utilize the lot to store bulk quantities of fertilizer, mix personalized fertilizer packages and move its product to market.

“AGROW Solutions is excited to move forward in expanding our business to the Port of Central Ferry with the signing of a long-term lease today,” AGROW Solutions Owner Ben Moehrle said. “This milestone brings us one step closer to serving more of the Palouse region’s farmers with fertilizer blends personalized to their unique field fertility and yield goals.”

The Washington State Community Economic Revitalization Board (CERB) recently awarded the Port of Whitman County a $1.6 million low-interest loan to expand rail and water infrastructure to Lot F. The CERB loan will fund an extension of the property’s Port-owned rail lead and installation of a well. The public infrastructure improvements are slated for completion in early summer.

In addition to its private investment of $2.5 million in the facility, AGROW Solutions is providing the required $400,000 match for the public infrastructure project. The public infrastructure project, including engineering, fees, contingency and construction, is expected to total $2 million.

Extending rail and water infrastructure to Lot F and leasing to AGROW Solutions aligns with the Port’s mission of developing industrial real estate in Whitman County.

“The Port Commission is grateful to CERB for providing the public infrastructure project funding that makes it possible for us to meet the leasing needs of an expanding local company,” said Port Commission President Karl Webber. “We’re happy to sign a lease with AGROW Solutions today and ensure a growing Whitman County business stays in Whitman County.”

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About the Port of Whitman County

The Port of Whitman County is dedicated to improving the quality of life for all citizens of Whitman County through industrial real estate development, preservation of multimodal transportation, facilitation of economic development and provision of on-water recreational opportunities.