By Kari Bray
For the Globe-Times
ARLINGTON — The state Department of Transportation plans to relocate its aviation division by the end of the month.
WSDOT Aviation has been headquartered in Arlington for about 12 years, the past five at Arlington Municipal Airport.
The office is moving to Olympia Regional Airport to save money and be closer to other state offices, said Nisha Marvel, a spokeswoman for the state DOT.
WSDOT Aviation moved to Arlington from Seattle’s Boeing Field in 2002, seeking lower costs and a location that was closer to aviation events and expertise.
“Arlington has a great general aviation community,” Marvel said. “After being here for a while, we just saw the opportunity to move to Olympia and be closer to other offices.”
The state’s lease with the city of Arlington ends Sept. 30. The department began looking at other locations several years ago under a mandate from the state secretary of transportation to cut costs, according to a 2011 report.
In a state study, Olympia edged out Arlington. Olympia ranked higher on long-term savings, future staff recruitment and coordination with other state offices. Arlington was rated better for short-term savings, employee retention and the quality of office, storage and parking space.
The state Aviation Division will lease 4,596 square feet at the Olympia airport in Tumwater for $5,362 a month. It currently leases 4,440 square feet in Arlington for $7,703 a month.
The facility was built about five years ago in part to accommodate the DOT, Arlington Mayor Barbara Tolbert said. The city hopes to find a new tenant soon, Tolbert said.
“We’re sorry to see them go, but we understand the business decision they have to make,” she said.
With services like aircraft registration and grant applications online, Tolbert does not expect the move to be much of a hassle for pilots. There won’t be any reduction in services, just a new way of doing them, she said.
WSDOT Aviation handles aircraft registration, airport grants and investments, and land use planning for public airports around the state. The division also manages 16 airports, Marvel said. Neither the Arlington nor Olympia airport is state-operated.
