COLFAX, WA – The Port of Whitman County is moving forward with a plan to build a childcare center in Colfax.

The agency hopes to use the old Rogers Brothers Seed Company site behind Colfax High School for a new childcare center. The port is close to buying the property and hopes to finalize the deal at the end of the month.

The project would require cleaning up the site which operated as a pea seed processing and storage facility from the 1940’s to the 1980’s. The firm Haley & Aldrich was hired to examine what it would take to cleanup the ground. The company has completed that review and the port is set to present the findings to Colfax City Council tonight.

That assessment found that it would cost over four million dollars to cleanup the property. The port is applying for a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and additional funding from the Washington Department of Ecology to pay for the work. The owner of the old ag site has been using the property for car and boat storage.

The Port of Whitman County began working on a childcare center for Colfax in 2024. The latest findings will be presented during the Colfax City Council meeting tonight at 7:00. The public can comment about the port’s plan through January 26th by emailing port@portwhitman.com