Port mulls new lease for Washougal’s only floating restaurant

A proposed new lease for the Washougal waterfront’s only floating restaurant should be seen as a “case study” and an example of how the Port of Camas-Washougal plans to reexamine agreements with current tenants going forward, port leaders say. But the owners of the Puffin Cafe say the lease increases the monthly rent too much, too soon — and doesn’t offer the long-term security they need.

During an Aug. 6 workshop, port Business Development Director Derek Jaeger revealed the terms of a new lease that more than doubles the Puffin Cafe’s current monthly rent over the next six months in an effort to “adjust to market rates.”

“I think you guys can be the perfect test case for us,” Commissioner John Spencer told Puffin Cafe owners Robert and Jennifer Guetter during the meeting. “The way I’m looking at this is, we’ve got to bring your rent up; that makes total sense. But you also need help. I would love to see us brainstorm and provide resources.”

The port’s 2026-30 strategic plan, approved by commissioners in July, states the port will “work with local partners to define and adopt a strategic role in local and regional economic development” by the end of 2026, and that the “resulting plan will be measurable and community supported.”

“And what does that mean? It means that (we look at) what we are doing as a port to help our tenants,” port CEO Trang Lam said during the meeting. “We haven’t done programmatic economic development here, but we’re going to take a look at each legacy transition like this and say, ‘What’s our role in helping them through some of this?’”

Port Commissioner Larry Keister asked the Guetters if they would be willing to examine “alternate methods” of revenue generation, such as hosting meetings for nonprofit organizations and other community groups during the restaurant’s offseason, when it brings in as little as $150 on some days.

“We are involved with a lot of things that go on in our community,” Keister told them. “What can we do to help you offset the increases?”

Currently, the Puffin Cafe — which has served Caribbean-style cuisine from the port docks since 2003 — pays $523 per month in rent. The port is proposing to increase that to $700 in September, $810 in December and $1,181.80 in March.

“That’s a significant jump for us,” Jennifer Guetter said, adding that she would like to see the rent increase to the final amount over five years, rather than six months, so they have time to adjust.

Jaeger said the restaurant occupies the equivalent of roughly five 35-foot boat slips, which would cost boaters a combined $904 per month.

“(The previous) lease structure was initially set on random slip rates,” Jaeger said. “Unfortunately, it has not kept pace with the market of our rate structure for the slips.”

The Guetters told port leaders they understand the reasoning behind the proposed rate increase but objected to the lease’s one-year term.

Their current lease — which took effect Sept. 1, 2019 — included five one-year options for 2020-25 and expires Aug. 31. Previously, the restaurant operated with a mix of one- and two-year agreements or partial seasonal leases, according to Jaeger, who added that the longest consecutive term was a five-year lease from 2009-14 with one amended five-year option for 2014-19.

“I think we’ve proven over the years that we’re not going anywhere,” Robert Guetter said. “We’re going to work our butts off to keep this place. I’m willing to suck up the price, but a one-year lease, I don’t know if I hurt somebody’s feelings? The one-year really hurt my feelings.”

Jaeger said the port “doesn’t intend to get rid” of the Puffin Cafe but is proposing the one-year lease to assess the long-term impacts of the proposed changes.

“I can understand why this would be kind of a shock to you, but for us it’s not,” Jaeger told the Guetters. “This is what we’ve done with other tenants as we’re trying to figure out a longer-term process. I couldn’t come to you right now, today, and effectively share what a five-year lease with options would look like with all the other considerations in this particular lease.”

Doug Flanagan: 360-735-4669; [email protected]