Company trying to open long-awaited oyster bar sues Pierce Co. city over sewer
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Minterbrook Oyster Co. sued Gig Harbor to compel sewer service for Purdy restaurant site.
- The city council had denied a request for sewer service for a future restaurant.
- Complaint argues sewer capacity exists and contends owners hold vested rights.
A company seeking to open an oyster bar and seafood restaurant in Purdy has filed a lawsuit against the city of Gig Harbor, challenging the city’s denial of sewer service to the site.
Minterbrook by the Sea, LLC, filed its complaint in Pierce County Superior Court Dec. 22. The complaint asks the Court to order the city of Gig Harbor to provide sewer service to the company’s property at 13810 Purdy Dr. NW, where their proposed restaurant Laguna’s on the Bay would be located. The finished project would be a two-floor mixed-use building with restaurant, retail and office space, according to permits filed with the county, The News Tribune reported.
Kent Kingman, co-owner of Minterbrook Oyster Company and a governor of the LLC, said in a phone call that the lawsuit was his only way to appeal the city’s decision not to provide sewer.
“If I don’t respond, then their decision becomes final and there’s nothing I can do then at that point, or the county or the state,” he said. “Nobody can do anything at that point.”
He said he sees this as an appeal, giving the city time to respond and “work through things.”
“I full well expect it’s just a discussion,” he said.
A reporter contacted a spokesperson for the city of Gig Harbor Tuesday for comment .
City Administrator Katrina Knutson wrote in a statement Jan. 5: “This was a routine utility extension agreement application consideration and denial based upon applicable code and state law. We will not comment further on pending litigation.”
The move marks the company’s efforts to continue looking for a way to make the restaurant possible after over a decade of collecting permits and investing in infrastructure to support their vision. The News Tribune reported that the business had hoped to open Laguna’s on the Bay in the summer of 2025, but hit a roadblock when the city denied their request for additional sewer service Dec. 8.
The city currently provides one ERU of sewer service to the site, which is about as much as a single residence uses, The News Tribune reported. That was enough for the office building that formerly occupied the site. The restaurant asked the city for nine more ERUs.
At their meeting Dec. 8, the Gig Harbor City Council denied that request, following city staff’s recommendation that the city say no because the area isn’t part of the city’s Urban Growth Area (UGA). A city’s UGA is the surrounding area designated for urban growth and in some cases possible annexation, according to state law. The Gig Harbor Municipal Code aligns with state law in restricting the city from providing sewer service outside the UGA — except when such services would “protect basic public health and safety and the environment” and “are financially supportable at rural densities and do not permit urban development.”
The Purdy area, including the Laguna’s on the Bay site, used to be part of the Gig Harbor UGA, but was removed as part of changes to the Pierce County Comprehensive Plan that took effect in February 2025.
The Kingmans acquired Minterbrook Oyster Company in 2012, making them the third family to operate the business after the Secor and the Wiksten families, The News Tribune reported. The company farms oysters and shellfish at their local plant off of the Key Peninsula and ships them worldwide. They run a retail shop at 12002 114th St. Court.
The complaint lists several arguments for why the city should provide sewer service. For one, the city’s sewer system already has the capacity to provide the amount of service requested, the complaint says.
“The Washington Supreme Court has held that where a city is the sole provider of a utility service, it is obligated to provide that service,” the complaint says. “Here, the Property is in the City of Gig Harbor’s sewer service area and has been for decades.”
It also argues that the property was part of the city’s UGA when the owner “submitted complete applications to the County and thus has vested rights to urban zoning and the necessary supporting infrastructure.” Further, the complaint notes that the state ordered the county to produce a stronger justification for removing Purdy from the Gig Harbor UGA.
The state Growth Management Hearings Board issued that decision after Purdy Interchange, LLC, filed a petition challenging Pierce County’s removal of the Purdy UGA in March 2025, the case records show. The board wrote in their decision in September that in “retracting Purdy from the UGA, the County failed to account for the reality that Purdy’s built environment is characterized by urban growth, not rural development.”
Kingman said Minterbrook Oyster Company is “flexible.” They’re open to adjusting their plans and working with the city and the county. They want what’s best for the community and for Purdy, he said.
“If it gets into a fight, now people have to start protecting their territory,” he said. “I don’t want that ... and then decisions get made based on things that probably don’t make sense.”
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include comment from the city of Gig Harbor.
This story was originally published January 2, 2026 at 10:39 AM.
