The Tillamook County Creamery Association is expanding its Columbia River Processing plant at the Port of Morrow in Boardman.

A planned 40,000-square-foot whey-drying and warehouse facility will create 17 jobs, said port general manager Gary Neal. He said the project represents a $100 million capital investment by Tillamook.

Site preparation is under way. Dahlgren Industrial Inc. of Seattle is the builder, according to a Morrow County zoning permit. Dahlgren has yet to obtain a city building permit, said city clerk Lila Killingbeck.

These are big capital investments and there are lots of construction jobs with these projects, Neal said.

Tillamook expects to start hiring in July and begin operations at the plant in February 2013, according to its application with Business Oregon for an income-tax exemption through the Oregon Investment Advantage program.

Employers at the port generally pay wages about 1.5 times the county average wage, or about $50,000 annually, including benefits, Neal said. 

When we get 15 here and 20 there, it adds up, he said.

Tillamook corporate communications manager Tori Harms by email Wednesday said company plans to expand in Boardman are incomplete. The zoning permit and the application for a tax exemption are both standard requirements for expansion plans, she said. She declined further comment.

However, a zoning permit application by Dahlgren Industrial Inc. and approved Feb. 15 by the Morrow County Court outlines plans for the facility. The tax-exemption application with Business Oregon also cites 17 new jobs added with the whey-drying plant and warehouse.

Business Oregon, a state agency, provides incentives and other assistance in order to create, retain, expand and attract businesses …, according to its website.

The Columbia River plant produces whey protein as a liquid concentrate for drying outside of Oregon, according to the Business Oregon application. Drying the product concentrates whey protein, which the company expects will command a higher market price, the application states.

Whey, a byproduct of cheese making, is the liquid that separates from the thicker part when milk coagulates. Whey protein is a popular dietary supplement, among its other uses.

Tillamook, based in its namesake city on the Oregon coast, in January laid off 50 workers at its cheese plant there. No jobs at the Boardman plant were affected. Company CEO?Harold Strunk at the time said the company acted to reduce inefficiencies. Forty-seven of the 50 received severance packages.

The Columbia River plant started making Tillamook cheese in 2001, said Morrow County Planning Director Carla McLane.