Larsen swings through Edmonds to visit new food bank location and attend Congressional Ferry Caucus kickoff

U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen (D-2nd Congressional District) made two stops in Edmonds Wednesday morning — at the Edmonds Food Bank and the Edmonds-Kingston ferry terminal.

Larsen first visited Edmonds Lutheran Church at 23535 84th Ave. W., where he met with Edmonds Food Bank Executive Director Casey Davis, pastor Tim Oleson, and other officials. They briefed him on food bank services and plans for relocating the Edmonds Food Bank to the church property.

Davis said that the move will almost double the size of the food bank and ensure it reaches more customers with expanded hours and facilities.

“In addition to the larger size, it will also include a commercial kitchen, which will allow us to directly support the Annie’s Kitchen program already operating at Edmonds Lutheran,” Davis said. “We would be able to be open during the hours that our customers need us, including evenings, which we can’t do at our current location [Edmonds United Methodist Church]. Many of our customers work during the day, so they need early mornings or evenings to shop at the food bank. It will also allow us to better support the City of Edmonds human service activities and those of our 30-plus other partners in the community.”

Davis went on to explain that the Edmonds Food Bank currently serves more than 1,400 households weekly comprising an estimated 4,000 individuals.

“I would say 25% of our customers are seniors,” she said. “Most are retired, have worked their entire lives, and with the rising cost of everything, age-related health care issues and threatened cutbacks to federal programs, they’re facing increasing food insecurity and need what the food bank can provide.”

Plans call for the new food bank to be housed in a $12 million building constructed on the site of the church’s present community garden, which will be relocated to another part of the church property. Rep. Larsen has been instrumental in requesting $2 million in federal funding to help move the project forward.

Referring to the federal cutbacks proposed in what he terms “the Republican Rip-Off Budget Bill,” Larsen pointed out that the impact of these cuts goes beyond the individual, spreading throughout the community. “They’re really going to be impacting your neighbor, your friend, a friend of a friend,” he said explaining that the proposed budget cuts will cause an estimated 14,000 people in Northwest Washington State to lose access to affordable food.

Larsen’s next stop was the Edmonds ferry terminal, where he joined federal, state and local officials in launching the Congressional Ferry Caucus, a bipartisan group advocating for investments in marine highways and multimodal transportation. The caucus aims to unite members from across the U.S. to support ferry systems, which have received over $158 million in federal funding for 2025-2027.

U.S. Rep. Emily Randall (D-6th District) who leads the caucus, and Washington Deputy Transportation Secretary Steve Nevey emphasized the importance of reducing climate impact and increasing transportation accessibility. Larsen discussed the bipartisan support needed for the surface transportation bill, which includes funding for ferry systems.

Other activities of the caucus include addressing ferry system-related challenges like deferred maintenance and workforce development.

The caucus’s key goals are to:

1. Advocate for investments in marine highways.

2. Reduce environmental impact by promoting ferry transportation.

3. Bring together local, state and national stakeholders to support ferry systems.

4. Create bipartisan support for ferry infrastructure.

After thanking and welcoming attendees, Randall explained the group’s mission to “bring together folks from the local, national and state levels to ensure that we’re advocating for the needed investments our marine highways that allow us to get around beautiful regions like this by traveling across the water and avoiding intense climatic impact of driving.”

Larsen, a key member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, pledged to work specifically to:

1. Advocate for ferry systems throughout Washington State, including routes in Edmonds, the San Juan Islands and Skagit County;

2. Work to reauthorize the surface transportation bill, which funds transportation infrastructure;

3. Secure federal funding for ferry projects, including:

– $4.9 million to electrify the Clinton ferry route.

– $115 million for ferry boat maintenance.

– $4.8 million for ferry refurbishment.

– $5 million for a new Southworth terminal.

“It is important that that Congress understand that the ferry programs exist, that ferries move people and goods and vehicles, it’s part of their job to create and support this infrastructure,” he said. “And it is not just Washington state or just the East and West Coast systems. There are critical ferry systems running on waterways in the Midwest too, and hence many members of Congress have a direct interest in funding these program. The ferry caucus will help ensure that Congress hears about how important this type of infrastructure is throughout the country.”

Larsen was followed by State Sen. Marko Liias (D-21st District), chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, who outlined his priorities of:

– Maintaining Washington’s leadership role in transportation policy — specifically ferry systems

– Investing in new ferries

– Advocating for diversity in ferry employment

– Recognizing the critical role of federal funding for ferry systems.

“The federal government deeply impacts our ability to operate ferries,” he said. “We work in partnership, and it is entirely appropriate that the federal government help us meet those commitments with dollars on the ground. We have an aging fleet, and we’ve got to keep those boats on the water. As we transition our fleet to low and no emissions, it’s going to be the federal partnership that helps deliver that as well.

“Getting a bipartisan group of Congresspeople from around the country to understand and bring support to it is critically important,” Liias said. “I look to see a surface transportation bill passed and reauthorized so that we can continue to make investments around Washington, and the ferry caucus playing a key role in this.”

Rep. Randall summed up the event by reiterating the bipartisan nature of the ferry caucus.

“I’m so pleased that we have just as many co-chairs who identify as Republicans as those who identify as Democrats,” she said. “Regardless of party, we have so many similar challenges to face, and I think ensuring that we’re representing communities across the country is one of the best ways that we can build the kind of momentum that we need to continue advocating for the current ferry funding we enjoy, increase funding to keep us moving forward, and find ways to advocate for all ferry systems.”