Maritime | 253

Tacoma Public Schools and the Port of Tacoma are teaming up to build Maritime|253, a state-of-the-art Maritime Skills Center designed to prepare students for the real-world demands of the maritime industry. Located within the Port of Tacoma, this facility—set to open in 2026—will offer hands-on, career-driven training at no cost to students from multiple school districts.

Maritime|253 isn’t a traditional high school: it’s a regional Career and Technical Education (CTE) center where students will take advanced, industry-focused courses alongside their required high school classes. Whether heading straight into the workforce, pursuing apprenticeships, or continuing to two- and four-year colleges, Maritime|253 equips students with the skills, training and knowledge to succeed in the maritime industry.  

The Maritime|253 Skills Center is being developed as part of a Port of Tacoma waterfront campus and operated by Tacoma Public Schools.

The proposed site for the project is on a piece of Port-owned property along the east side of the Thea Foss Waterway, where the Wheeler-Osgood Company mill once operated.

The project is a partnership between the Port of Tacoma and Tacoma Public Schools. Maritime|253 will be a regional Career and Technical Education center serving high school students from school districts throughout Pierce County, with intentional programming to prime a professional pipeline to the maritime industry bringing opportunities to more members of the community and helping fill a growing need for workers in the trades and maritime careers. The location will also be home to a new Port of Tacoma business operations center and commission chambers, along with the potential to incorporate amenities such as public walking paths and access to the Foss Waterway.

 Expected opening: September 2026

This project is funded by the $535 million school construction bond voters passed in 2020.