Mayport on port authority's charts for cruise terminal

[thelakelander]

An unexpected availability of land makes it the best option for a permanent site

By TIMOTHY J. GIBBONS, The Times-Union

The Jacksonville Port Authority is considering building a permanent $60 million cruise terminal in Mayport adjacent to the St. Johns River Ferry docks, a move the authority says could lead to more ships and thousands of additional passengers.

Port authority Executive Director Rick Ferrin said Thursday the idea is the latest in a string of plans to move the temporary cruise terminal at Dames Point to a location that would allow bigger ships to access the docks. The Dames Point bridge now limits the height of cruise ships that can come that far down the river, limiting the business.

For the plan to come to fruition, the authority has to buy additional parcels of land, get regulatory approval and negotiate a long-term deal with cruise ship companies that would use the facility. Once clearing these hurdles, the project could take upward of two years to complete.

The Mayport plan began to surface this year when the city approached the authority about taking over operations of the ferry, which plies the river between Mayport and Fort George Island. Among the property the authority took responsibility for when it agreed to adopt the ferry come Oct. 1 is a strip of riverfront land now housing the offices and spare parts warehouse of Hornblower Marine Services, which has day-to-day responsibility for the ferry.

The authority then began to speak with two adjacent property owners about acquiring their land, an idea to which they were amenable, Ferrin said.

"For the first time, we could conceivably purchase property on the water" without going through eminent domain proceedings to acquire it, Ferrin said. "It began to develop into something looking very positive."

One of the parcels is owned by The Vestcor Cos., which planned a 2.5-acre mixed-use development on the site. Plans released late last year for Mayport Village called for a four-story project with retail and condominiums.

Calls to Vestcor Chairman John Rood weren't returned Thursday.

Ferrin said the port authority hadn't reached an agreement on price, but the market value of the land from the Duval County Property Appraiser's Web site is about $5 million. That figure reflects the market value for the roughly 25 parcels of land the authority's cruise terminal site plan shows.

The authority has in the past considered locating a cruise terminal in Mayport but had rejected the area because land wasn't available. Other sites that had been considered and rejected included Pine Island, which the authority would have had to condemn, and part of Blount Island that sits in the midst of industrial operations.

"Rabbit No. 4," the most recently considered location, was a part of Blount Island not suitable for industrial use. After months of studying the site, the port considered it the best remaining choice, although it still had "a lot of problems," including tricky navigation issues, Ferrin said.

The Mayport site doesn't have those issues and obviates the height problems of Dames Point, as well as being closer to the ocean, all things potentially making it more attractive to more cruise lines.

That could lead the cruise industry, which has found success in Jacksonville with ships routinely going out fully booked, to home-base more ships in the area, Ferrin said. In fact, for the plan to go forward, Carnival Cruise Lines would need to agree to base two ships at the terminal. With a deal in place, the authority could turn to the bond markets to finance the $60 million terminal that would be built at the site.

Although Carnival says it's happy with the business in Jacksonville - come next September it will replace the Celebration with the Fascination, a larger ship - a spokeswoman said it was too early to comment on plans for the new terminal. "It is way too early to speculate in terms of what Carnival's ship deployment plans may be in relation to a new terminal," Carnival spokeswoman Jennifer de la Cruz said.

In a best-case scenario, Ferrin said, the terminal would service two Carnival ships doing four- and five-day cruises as well as two ships from higher-end cruise lines going on weeklong voyages. That growth could mean about 500,000 passengers a year through Jacksonville compared with about 130,000 a year now.

The plans might hit other snags.

Such an increase might not sit well with Mayport residents who cherish its quaintness and antique charm.

"As far as the impact on the area," said Paul Parsons of the Mayport Waterfront Partnership, "I'm concerned if they can handle it."

A cruise terminal could be a boon for the area's tourism economy, he said, but also could overwhelm it; multi-story parking garages, 1,000-foot-long docks and clogged roads would be a new experience for the historic village.

"If it was in my backyard," Parsons said, "I don't know if I'd want it."

The port will continue working on the project for the next three months, with an eye toward bringing the plan to the authority board early next year. If approved, the new operation would open in late 2009.

"Of all the options, this is the best," Ferrin said. "I look at it as a win for everyone."

timothy.gibbons@jacksonville.com

http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/091407/met_199356302.shtml

[thelakelander]

Mayport would be ideal home for cruise ships

By RON LITTLEPAGE
The Times-Union

We'll always have Paris.

Guess not.

Oh, well. The Jacksonville Landing nightclub wasn't my shot of whiskey to begin with.

But here's something that is exciting.

The Jacksonville Port Authority is now eyeing Mayport as the home for a permanent cruise ship terminal.

I've always thought that would be the ideal location and much better than a previous harebrained plan to park giant cruise ships in the middle of the Timucuan preserve.

Mayport, obviously, is close to the ocean, which cruise ship companies like because it cuts down on travel time.

There are no bridges in the way that would limit the height, and thus the size, of cruise ships that could use the terminal.

And Mayport itself, which has been struggling of late, could use the boost the terminal would bring.

The problem with Mayport has always been putting together the waterfront property needed for the terminal.

That may be possible now that one of the big real estate players there, John Rood of the Vestcor Cos., is working with the port authority to see if the deal can be done.

If it is, it could be a huge boost for tourism in this area.

The smaller cruise ships currently based here generally serve people who drive to Jacksonville, get on the ship, take the cruise, get off the ship and leave Jacksonville.

Having the terminal at Mayport could entice those travelers to spend more time in the area.

One enticement could be a tie-in with the resorts at Amelia Island.

Another lure for visitors could be our wonderful parks such as the Talbot Islands State Park System and the Timucuan preserve.

Tourists are a good thing, of course, because they leave their money here and then leave themselves.

And having tourists and cruise ship travelers going to Mayport would further cement the need to keep the Mayport ferry operating.

I'm told there also could be a way to relocate shrimp boats and retain Mayport's fishing village atmosphere. Perhaps fishing guides could be headquartered there as well, which would be another draw.

The planning is in the preliminary stages, but if Mayport works out, it could be the answer we've long looked for.

The cruise ship industry has always been worth pursuing, and we certainly have spent a lot of time doing that; it's finding a home for the terminal that's been the problem.

Now here's another dream:

Imagine a river ferry service that would take visitors from Mayport to Fort Caroline or to Kingsley Plantation or to the zoo or to the downtown museums or even to the new cowboy honky-tonk going into the Landing.

We may no longer have Paris, but we would have more tourists.

ron.littlepage@jacksonville.com,

(904) 359-4284

This story can be found on Jacksonville.com at http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/091607/opl_199632897.shtml.

[Jason]

I'm with Ron, bring on the terminal!

[raheem942]

I'm with Ron, bring on the terminal!

me to jason ..........build it , i'll help

[Ocklawaha]

Bring it on! Bring it on!

BUT!!!

Make it blend with the "village" theme. No reason why the facade of the new port can't be a fishing village or a 1900 London waterfront... Please JPA, no glass and steel in Mayport, let's play by the rules this time and a page from Central Florida and keep it themed. Any ideas, photos or drawings Lake...

Ocklawaha

[thelakelander]

Glass in steel in Jacksonville?  I wish (not in Mayport).  Stucco and cheap lap siding dominates this region.

[Jason]

^  That's the charm of Florida.

[Jason]

I agree about a new terminal needing to fit in with its surroundings.  It could be very tastefully done if the right design team was used.

[thelakelander]

Bring it on! Bring it on!

BUT!!!

Make it blend with the "village" theme. No reason why the facade of the new port can't be a fishing village or a 1900 London waterfront... Please JPA, no glass and steel in Mayport, let's play by the rules this time and a page from Central Florida and keep it themed. Any ideas, photos or drawings Lake...

Ocklawaha

Making a terminal blend in with it's surroundings architecturally is the easy part.  The difficult issues and the ones those living in Mayport are probably more concerned about is the increase in traffic, the size of parking areas for cruise ship visitors and having 200' tall ships berthed in the middle of their little village.

I can see the benefit of having a terminal in the middle of Mayport from a tourism standpoint (it sure beats the current site hands down), but I can also see why Mayport residents could be in opposition.  If you're (this goes for anyone) controlling the process, how would you deal with these issues to help bring Mayport residents on board?

[Ocklawaha]

I'm not in control of anything but certainly the access road will have to be raised and widened, Perhaps with the use of screening and an elongated parking lot. Another idea, of course, a tram of some sort to tie the parking with dockside. Village shops could also be used as a parking screen, so that facing NW from Mayport town itself, one would see, landscaped road/tram, village shops, (hidden parking) terminal, dock, ship in that order and ONLY when the ships were in port. Other times, there would not be a major change except for shopping and community improvements. Mayport residents, played right, this could be the chance to gain those services you've always been denied.

Ocklawaha

[thelakelander]

The Mayport cruise terminal proposal is moving forward.

Informal concurrency for proposed cruise ship terminal, 4500 block of Ocean Street, between Minorcan Way and Henry Street, Mayport, 9 acres, to generate 10 full-time, 100 part-time jobs; owner is Jacksonville Port Authority; proposed cruise terminal would be 90,000 square feet with a 1,200-space parking garage. Project cost is estimated at $60 million. (No. 4402.9)

http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/123107/bus_229833378.shtml