Coast Guard reveals why it's dialing back major Seattle waterfront expansion
The U.S. Coast Guard has decided to significantly scale back plans to expand its Seattle base at Pier 36 to store new polar icebreaker ships, according to a notice on its website.
The Coast Guard had previously planned to acquire up to 54 acres of land from the Port of Seattle, including up to 53 acres at Terminal 46 and 1.1 acres at the Belknap property, both adjacent to its Seattle base on Elliott Bay.
The goal was to construct berths for upcoming modernized icebreaking ships, used for military and research activities in the Arctic and Antarctic. President Donald Trump has made expanding the country’s icebreaker fleet a priority as other nations also eye growing opportunities for polar research and resource extraction as ice sheets melt from rising global temperatures.
Now, the Coast Guard only plans to move ahead with roughly one-tenth of its planned land acquisition. After conducting an environmental impact review, it has decided to not construct any new berths and to acquire 5.5 acres of land at Terminal 46 and the 1.1-acre Belknap property. The Seattle Times first reported the news on Saturday.
https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2026/04/13/coast-guard-seattle-base-expansion-project.html