NEWPORT, Ore. (AP) — The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says it will review whether there was a workable alternative to moving its Pacific fleet of research ships to Newport, Ore.
In a news release Friday, the agency says it is responding to a Government Accountability Office decision in December to sustain a protest by the Port of Bellingham, Wash., to award the lease to Newport. NOAA wants to move the fleet from its current base on Seattle’s Lake Union to the Oregon coastal city.
NOAA says it expects to complete its review by May 28. In addition to Bellingham, Seattle and Newport, Port Angeles, Wash., had sought the base.
