As a major milestone for projects and future link service in Pierce County and South King County, the Sound Transit Board selected the South 336th Street site in Federal Way as the future location of the Operations and Maintenance Facility (OMF) South.
The Board of Directors had previously identified the site as the preferred alternative for 2021 following the publication of the draft environmental impact statement.
The agency said on its website that once completed, OMF South will house and maintain Link’s light rail trains for future rail expansion, including service to West Seattle and Tacoma. The project is also expected to create more than 600 permanent jobs at the site.
In addition, there will be a test track where new light rail vehicles can be conditioned and tested around the clock so that they can be put into passenger service more quickly.
“Location of the operations and maintenance facility in the south is another important milestone for Sound Transit in our most ambitious public transit expansion in the country, designed to strengthen service throughout the Central Puget Sound,” said Dow Constantine, King County executive and Sound Transit board chairman.
However, the choice of location also has disadvantages.
According to The Tacoma News Tribune, a megachurch in Federal Way is slated to be demolished to make way for the project. The Christian Faith church currently stands on that site. The $58 million, 2,500-seat location in Federal Way opened in 2007. The church has another location in Mill Creek.
Claudia Balducci, chair of the Sound Transit System Expansion Committee, said the facility will help transform the light rail into a regional network with 83 stations.
“We are also pleased to create much-needed living wage jobs in South King County,” she added.
“Due to the limited land area, we had limited options for this new operations and maintenance facility. I believe this is the most cost-effective decision we could make as good stewards of taxpayer dollars,” said Pete von Reichbauer, Sound Transit board member and King County Councilman. “At similar facilities, the average employee wage is $45 an hour – that’s more than $85,000 a year. I’m glad these important jobs that support regional transit will be in South King County.”
“With the OMF South site now selected, we look forward to working with our project partners to advance final planning and build and operate a world-class facility that will serve the region for generations to come,” said Goran Sparrman, interim CEO of Sound Transit.
Once completed, OMF South will clean and repair approximately 144 light rail vehicles and include 1.40 miles of connecting track from the Federal Way Link Extension to the site. These tracks are expected to be used by the future Tacoma Dome Link Extension, which is currently undergoing an environmental impact assessment.
The project will now proceed with final design and construction. The Board has set a target date for commissioning of 2029 and actions are being taken to accelerate the current schedule and meet this date.
Bill Kaczaraba is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read his stories here. Follow Bill on X, formerly known as Twitter, Here and send him an email here.
