Doing Business in Skagit County

Skagit County is development-ready.

Utilities

The SWIFT Center is served by a full suite of utility services. These include:

  • Water served by Skagit PUD
  • Wastewater served by the City of Sedro-Woolley
  • Electricity served by Puget Sound Energy (PSE). The SWIFT Center can be provided with up to 6MW of electricity through a PSE substation south of the Campus.
  • Further power support for the SWIFT Center is served by BPA transmission infrastructure adjacent to the SWIFT Center, through 230KV lines, 500KV lines, and a large BPA substation south of the Campus.
  • Natural gas served by Cascade Natural Gas; the Williams NW pipeline runs through the western portion of the SWIFT Center property

Zoning and site constraints

The land use plan at the SWIFT Center has three defined development spaces called the “Core,” “New Construction” and the “Open Space” Areas.

  • The Core: The Core Area includes the historic central section of the Center, where the primary functions of the Northern State Hospital once existed, and includes the Administration Building, Hub Building, and Wards.
  • New Construction: Areas include the support facilities of the former hospital (the Powerhouse, Maintenance Buildings, and shops) and the largely undeveloped property south of Thompson Drive.
  • The surrounding Open Space area is intended to preserve natural systems and open spaces while providing a buffer between adjacent land uses. Infrastructure and parking is also allowed within this area.

Keeping SWIFT a historic district

Developers with a background or interest in historic buildings will love the unique potential at the SWIFT Center. Special incentives to reuse the buildings on the campus apply.

If you select the SWIFT Center as a development opportunity, you may benefit from the investment tax credit provisions of the Revenue Act of 1978. The Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 generally replaces the rehabilitation tax incentives under these laws beginning January 1, 1982 with a 25 percent investment tax credit for rehabilitations of historic commercial, industrial and residential buildings. This can be combined with a 15-year cost recovery period for the adjusted basis of the historic building. Historic buildings with certified rehabilitations receive additional tax savings by their exemption from any requirement to reduce the basis of the building by the amount of the credit.

Learn more about the complete design guidelines for the SWIFT Center.