[citation needed] In 1889, an association of investors led by Pierre B. Cornwall formed the Bellingham Bay Improvement Company (BBIC).

The company was mostly made up of wealthy California businessmen who were investing heavily into Bellingham with the vision that it would one day become an important urban center for commerce and trade.

The BBIC invested in several diverse enterprises such as shipping, coal, mining, railroad construction, real estate sales and utilities.

After a survey showing that BBIC was supplying Bellingham with cheaper power than any of the municipal proposals, the city subsequently backed off.

[1] In addition to the hostility felt by the city council, the BBIC was also encountering construction problems at Nooksack Falls.

Stone & Webster took over construction operations and on September 21, 1906, Bellingham received power from the plant via a 47-mile-long (76 km) transmission line.

Because of its remote location, rugged landscape, and primitive transportation, the only practical way to operate the plant was to have employees on site.