HANJIN INKS THE DEAL FOR OUR PORT

[Ocklawaha]

Today we have more then one reason to celebrate in Jacksonville. FIRST HAPPY VETERANS DAY TO ALL COMPATRIOTS. Secondly, there is the new shipping line. Nothing big mind you, just one of the largest companies on earth! JAXPORT and the City of Jacksonville have inked the deal this morning. Hanjin with 50 worldwide terminals is building their first "home"...

For the complete story see: http://jacksonvilletransit.blogspot.com/

The most cool part is that Hanjin is bring along their partners - COSCO - Ying-Ming - K-Line, all huge players in the international Port game. Now if we could just sell them on the concept of the first Zeppelin Port in the USA. Man this thing is HUGE NEWS.


hee hee hee

[Basstacular]

That is tremendous news.  Everything I have read indicates that an estmated 900+ million in local revenue will be contributed by Hanjin & Matsui when both ports are fully operational.  I do not claim to be the smartest man, but considering our City budget was in the 900+ million dollar range this year, this extra revenue can work wonders for our city if appropriated properly.

[alta]

Hmm.  Maybe a quality transit system?? 

[civil42806]

Great news, now what do we do about getting the cargo out of the port!

[thelakelander]

As far as rail improvements go, support the Orlando commuter rail plan, Amtrak's proposed Florida corridor service and relay track back on the S-Line. 

1. The Orlando commuter rail plan pays for CSX's $40 million Springfield bypass and yard at the new terminals.

2. Amtrak's corridor service would require an upgrade that increases capacity on several rail corridors that travel through our region.  This improvement for passenger service also improves conditions for moving additional freight by rail.

3. Right now CSX has a monoply on port access.  The S-Line may be the key to help tie in the other rail lines with the port, thus moving more truck traffic from roads, to rail.

[Ocklawaha]

Lake you are so right. The KEY to opening this port to international attention is to have direct service via 3 major railroads = CHOICE. The rub is while the Blount Island Terminal and JEA trackage is city or port owned, the access to Blount is pure 100% CSX. WE MUST CHANGE THAT.

1. Of course CSX will spit at any such thought, and why not, they OWN the main port. a

2. CSX could be called to the carpet by suggesting they are AFRAID of the competition and thus would hurt their home town for a dollar. If they are a great as we are led to believe, they should support open access to the port because they'll hold their own in the marketplace.

3. Failing that the "S" certainly plays a part in the Talleyrand-Keystone terminals and could serve NS and FEC by night, commuters by day, and feed the city rail system $$.

4. The City of Jacksonville should create a tax incentive so incredible + perks that the NS and FEC decide to follow the JEA lines around the northside to the Blount Island and Hanjin Terminals. JEA certainly has the right-of-way, and the crossing point is in Westlake. So a West Lake, International Airport Trade Zone, Blount Island Terminal railroad is within the ability of a joint FEC - NS strike force.

5. The logical conclusion is the PORT having 3 railroads + the local JAXPORT TERMINALS or TALLEYRAND TERMINAL railroads. While I don't see the trackage from North Main to Blount Island changing hands, I could see the trackage from the junction near Busch - South along the "S" line becoming city owned and leased back to FIRST COAST or TALLEYRAND TERMINAL RAILROAD.

6. Freight only trackage would continue business as usual, but the old "S" mainline and the Gateway segment would go commuter rail with freight moving at night. Even with this plan the CSX might retain freight priority from Blount island NORTH to Georgia.

7. One more reason we need to consider the remanufactured RDC car as our mainstay commuter vehicle = IT CAN RUN with freight trains.

[pwhitford]

These 2 new tenants (lets not forget, this is the second big, bright, shinny new tenant Jax Port has landed!) has the potential to be HUGE and have a lasting and incredibly beneficial impact on this city.  But it is only a first step, albeit a TREMENDOUS one!  Now we must capitalize on it.  

1) We should use this as a springboard to upgrade not only the infrastructure that supports the port, but by extension our entire municipal infrastructure (trains, roads, electrical grid, IT, etc).  If we think of what needs to be done to upgrade the port in all these areas, then overlay that with how it can be done to offer maximum benefit to the municipal core as well (either simultaneously or on a more extended schedule), then we have the ultimate win/win.  This only takes some daring foresight and a little innovation.

2) We also will need to address the condition of our city core.  We need to make it more attractive for the foreign executives who will be considering moving here and spending their high wage salaries here in Jax.  We will need to re-invent this city so it can become a cosmopolitan attraction, a selling point in negotiations not only to theses but to other prospective tenants/partners as well, not something we need to make excuses for.  But from what I have seen, this will take a major and fundamental paradigm shift for those in power here in Jax.  We need to move from the "Ring theory" (growing attractive 'burbs around a relatively ignored and blighted core left to rot) to the "Spokes in a Wheel' theory (the city core as the epicenter of a series of interconnected, interrelated and integrated  neighborhoods or "destinations", like a wheel with a central hub and many "spokes" diverging off of it).  We must embrace the trends of the future: mass transportation, urban development (the "city center" concept"), "green" living and walkability, growing local communities

We also need to be reaching out to other similarly situated potential tenants from the Far East Shipping community and all the vendors that support them (truckers, logistics companies, barge operators, insurance companies, etc.).  These are bear times for this sector and cost cutting, which is what we offer, is very attractive to them now.

It also points out another possibility: Mayor Payton would probably be a much better head of the Chamber of Commerce.  This way, his interest and the interests of his job would be in harmony.  But of course, we would have to give the Chamber some real legs and let it do its job - go out and get us some real business here.  

I have more, but I have to go.  I’ll cut this rant short as you have all heard it before, too.

Go JaxPort!  And Go Jacksonville â€" don’t let this opportunity, or the momentum, slip away.

[Bostech]

Does Payton know about this?

[ProjectMaximus]

Does Payton know about this?

Unless I'm misunderstanding you, of course he does. (it's "Peyton" btw)

This would be one of the only projects he actually has vision for, and he's done a fairly good job in trying to realize the potential for this city.

[Ocklawaha]

Right now there is only ONE THING that our port "or any others in the USA" are missing. This is back in Europe and we are sitting on more land then 1/2 of the EU anyway. Let's be bold!


Just imagine this at IMESON - Trans-Atlantic in 42 hours, WITH containers and STOL abilities. Don't think it's so? VISIT the ZEPPELIN AIRCRAFT website.

OCKLAWAHA
Deo Vindice River!

[Keith-N-Jax]

   How did we accomplish something like this. This is great news and is well welcomed with all the failed projects. hopefully this will spur our local economy and bring some good paying jobs for those who need one. Go Jax!!!

[MattnJax]

This is great news for Jax, especially with all the recent news we've been reading about layoffs around the country. Such as DHL single-handedly devastating an entire Ohio town. http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/11/10/dhl.closing.wilmington/?iref=mpstoryview