Regional Information County and Community Profiles Grant County At 2,660 square miles Grant County is the fourth largest county in Washington. With 139 lakes, 13 beaches and the historical Columbia River passing through it, Grant County has more fresh water shoreline than any other county in the state. Seattle is less than 180 miles to the west on Highway 90, Spokane is only 100 miles east, and Portland is 250 miles southwest of Grant County.   Utilities: Grant County has among the lowest electric power rates in the country-- an average of approximately 2 cents per kilowatt-hour for industrial users! Natural gas is available in some communities. All cities have municipal water and wastewater treatment capacity available for industrial growth.   Climate: Grant County is part of a temperate desert climate. The average temperature in the summer is 84 degrees F and the average in winter is 40 degrees. Average annual rainfall is 8.42 inches, and most days are sunny and bright. In fact, there are normally more than 300 sunny days each year in the county. Population: Grant County has experienced a 29 percent increase in population since 1990, with approximately 75,900 people now residing in the area. Workforce: While aerospace and high tech industries are found throughout the area, agriculture is the foundation of the county, which leads to wide swings in its economic base. The July unemployment rate for Grant County of 8.3 percent (the most current) was much higher than the state average of 4.6 percent. Transportation: Interstate 90 bisects the county, running east/west through the towns of Moses Lake and George. In addition, there are five state highways throughout the county. Seven major truck lines serve most of Grant County out of Moses Lake, and overnight delivery is available with 500 miles. Greyhound and Northwest Trailways provide long distance bus service, with Grant Transit Authority providing public transportation between most cities and towns in the county. Air: Grant County International Airport, just north of Moses Lake, has a Foreign Trade Zone with a full time customs agent. Scheduled passenger service is provided by Big Sky airlines, with three flights per day round trip to Seattle, and one round trip per day to Spokane. The airport is also the training center for Japan Airlines and a test site for Boeing. Local municipal airports are located at Ephrata, Quincy, Moses Lake, Warden, and Desert Aire. Rail: Burlington Northern serves Quincy, Winchester, Ephrata and points north of there. Columbia Basin Railroad serves the Moses Lake area and connects to Burlington Northern at Connell. Amtrak passenger service exists from Ephrata to Seattle and Spokane. Shipping: The nearest deep water port is Seattle, 176 miles from Moses Lake; the nearest shallow water port is at Pasco, 71 miles from Moses Lake.       Moses Lake With 14,953 people within the city limits and an additional 12,700 in close proximity, Moses Lake is the largest city in Grant County. It is located 176 miles east of Seattle and 102 miles west of Spokane. The city is situated along the shores of Moses Lake, and supports 18 city parks with one state park nearby. Additionally, there are more than 24 lakes in the immediate area. There are three golf courses, numerous softball and baseball parks and a large aquatic park for summer swimming and water recreation for all ages. Major industries are: Nestle Brands, potato processing; ASiMI, producing polycrystalline   silicon/silane; Basic American Foods/Sunspiced, potato processing; Inflations Systems, Inc.,producing propellants for automotive air bags; Pacific Northwest Sugar Co., producing sugar from sugar beets; D&L Foundry, producing iron castings. The covered employment within the city zip code area is estimated at 11,524 and an unemployment rate of 7.2 percent. The Port of Moses Lake operates Grant County International Airport, which is just north of Moses Lake. The Port has industrial property available, as well as a foreign trade zone. Natural gas is available for industry and an industrial wastewater handling system is being constructed. Electric Power averages industrial users less than 2 cents per kilowatt-hour. Back to the top