The Port of Tacoma Commission has approved a ground lease for a proposed cold storage and processing space first announced by Fathom Seafood in 2025.
The commission said Saxum Investment Company has been granted a lease for a 30-acre site in the port, which is located in the U.S. state of Washington. The commission said the project is expected to cost USD 250 million (EUR 218 million) and generate 400 jobs with USD 43 million (EUR 37 million) in annual wages.
“When we talk about supporting family wage jobs, this is exactly what we mean,” Port of Tacoma Commission President Dick Marzano said in a release. “We thank Saxum for committing to grow the workforce in Pierce County and for recognizing the Port of Tacoma as a great place to do business.”
Fathom Seafood CEO Cody Mills told SeafoodSource about the project in March 2025, and described it as a massive, 550,000-square-foot facility that would include a range of cold storage and seafood processing services. To accomplish the facility, he said, the company brought in Domenic Prinzivalli, the former global head of operation services at Amazon and an expert in automation, robotics, and software optimizing supply chains.
According to the Port of Tacoma, the project is being developed by Saxum, and will be built over a 24-month construction period.
“Saxum has been focused on the Tacoma market for several years, and we are grateful for the Port of Tacoma’s trust in Saxum,” Saxum Real Estate Principal Matthew Wassel said. “As a leader in the cold storage development sector, we are confident in our ability to deliver a durable, quality asset on a critical site at the Port of Tacoma, and we look forward to furthering the strong relationships we have made in the market since first identifying this opportunity.”
The port said Saxum has signed a 50-year ground lease, which will begin after it completes remediation of legacy contamination that is still at the site.
“This project is a great example of our commitment to cleaning up contaminated land and putting it back into productive use,” Port of Tacoma Executive Director Eric Johnsen said. “When we can improve the environment and create jobs in a single project, it aligns perfectly with our mission of sustainable economic growth.”
