JAXPORT Cuts Dredge Project by $200 million

[MusicMan]

Well this is the essence of Jacksonville.  Correct?

More bad policy not truly and properly vetted. Mostly a huge (and expensive) question mark that no one in a leadership position is willing to try and answer.

Very similar to the 50 year mortgage that was foisted onto our children in the disguise of a pension plan fix. Kick the can down the road. We'll figure it out later. Jacksonville seems destined to never learn from it's own, or others, mistakes.

[Tacachale]

To me, JAXPORT's plan to move TraPac show that the agency realizes now that Gulftainer had a good idea before, and the port leadership and mayoral administration at the time dropped the ball. There definitely has been a leadership gap at both the port and city hall.

In addition to that there's really no unbiased information out there that gives an in-depth, well studied view of where we should go. The only study is the one done by the Army Core of Engineers, which is obviously written with the port's dredging goals in mind. The anti-dredging advocates don't have a comparable study, and of course they don't have an unbiased view about what we should do, as fighting the dredging is their one goal here.

[thelakelander]

What's your opinion of the work by Dale Lewis?

[Tacachale]

What's your opinion of the work by Dale Lewis?

I haven't read all of his stuff (by the nature of what he's doing, he does more presentations and stuff than writing big, thorough, boring reports), but what I have read seems like a fair critique of some of Jaxport's claims about the dredging. He's definitely the most clearly articulate critiques of the dredging critics (though he's does not actually oppose the dredging). He's also pretty much the only one critiquing the dredging that's offering alternatives (he's suggested boosting car imports and the Puerto Rico trade, where we already dominate). On the other hand, I find some of Jaxport's rebuttals of some of his points compelling. They're the ones with the most up to date shipping data and who are speaking to the companies that want to expand, so for better or worse, they're the ones with the clearest picture of what TraPac, CSX, Puerto Rican shippers, etc. are looking to do.

There are some things Lewis has brought up that I don't think anyone on either side is getting at. For instance, he's saying that the full costs of building out our infrastructure to accommodate new business will greatly exceed the dredging alone. Well, that's the case whether we dredge or not if we want to stay in the port business at all. The anti-dredging advocates typically don't want to get into that, as it brings up the fact that there's a cost to *not* dredging as well, and again, their primary goal in the debate is fighting the dredging, not finding alternatives for the port.

[MusicMan]

"Dale Lewis has also gone through all of the Army Corps economic forecasts for each of the Southeastern ports; read the strategic plans for Miami, Port Everglades, Tampa; and analyzed all of the Florida Ports Council's 5-yr growth plans from 1998 to 2017. He has essentially conducted the multi-port analysis that the Army Corps should have done as part of their review of the project.  His analysis shows that Jaxport will have an extremely difficult time taking market share away from Savannah, Charleston or even Miami, and this latest plan does nothing to make Jaxport more competitive."

Seems like Dale Lewis is better informed than anybody else in town.  I'd listen seriously to whatever he has to say. 

[riverkeepered]

It's interesting how Jaxport would have us believe that the relocation of TraPac is a done deal.  It doesn't look that way. http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2017-06-15/moving-port-s-biggest-tenant-river-deepening-easier-said-done

I can't imagine TraPac is going to leave its state-of-the-art terminal for Blount and continue to pay off the bond debt on the terminal.  I bet Jaxport will have to assume responsibility for the amount still owed.  Anyone think there is a possibility that this might not work out and TraPac hits the road?

[Tacachale]

It's interesting how Jaxport would have us believe that the relocation of TraPac is a done deal.  It doesn't look that way. http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2017-06-15/moving-port-s-biggest-tenant-river-deepening-easier-said-done

I can't imagine TraPac is going to leave its state-of-the-art terminal for Blount and continue to pay off the bond debt on the terminal.  I bet Jaxport will have to assume responsibility for the amount still owed.  Anyone think there is a possibility that this might not work out and TraPac hits the road?

That would be your dream come true, wouldn't it?

[riverkeepered]

That would be your dream come true, wouldn't it?

Not really.  TraPac has been critical to the recent growth in Asian cargo.   I just don't think they need to dredge to continue to be a viable port.  In fact, I don't think dredging will change all that much for JaxPort.  They would likely remain a secondary port, but at a much higher cost for the taxpayers, JaxPort and our river.