by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
After what Jacksonville Port Authority Senior Director of Global Marketing and Trade Development Roy Schleicher called “intense negotiations,” Wednesday the Port Authority and Korean shipper Hanjin signed a 30-year lease on a new 90-acre container facility at Dames Point Marine.
“This is exciting and we are proud that Hanjin is going to become one of our partners,” said Schleicher.
The $300 million container terminal is expected to be open in late 2011. Coupled with the Mitsui OSK Lines TraPac Container Terminal that will open in mid-January, the Port Authority is poised to triple the number of cargo containers it moves annually from about 800,000 to 2.4 million. That increase will make Jacksonville the third-largest port on the East Coast.
“This is a historic event for the Jacksonville Port Authority,” said JPA Executive Director Rick Ferrin. “This is the coming to fruition of what Roy Schleicher and I saw and the (Port) Board (of directors) saw years ago.”
Ferrin said the new terminal will make Jacksonville an international gateway for goods coming in and leaving the port.
“This will stretch and expand our trade routes and expand the type of cargo,” he said. “Hanjin is a key element of that vision. Just like TraPac, Hanjin will be responsible for 5,600 new jobs, both directly and indirectly.”
Ferrin said the new terminal is expected to have a $1 billion annual economic impact on the area — a fact that Jerry Mallot, executive vice president of economic development for Cornerstone, the economic development division of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce, says could be just the beginning for Jacksonville and the Northside.
“This is a pinnacle situation. It’s about as good as it gets,” said Mallot. “Today signifies an agreement on a project of so much impact. It will impact us basically forever. This is such great news.”
Mallot said the deal also sends a message to the rest of the country. While there’s no question there’s an overall recession and layoffs are occurring daily, Mallot said the Hanjin and Mitsui deals indicate the Jacksonville economy is still relatively strong.
“The construction alone will make a huge difference, let alone when the terminals open,” he said, adding the immediate economic impact will be the creation of jobs followed by the Northside becoming a distribution hub for possibly the entire Southeast United States.
C.S. Choi, a senior vice president with Hanjin Shipping, said the new terminal will be Hanjin’s first on the East Coast.
“The Hanjin family is happy to be here,” said Choi, adding one of the major issues was the current worldwide recession. “A united vision has led us to this point. This is the first step in a long journey together. We look forward to successful results.”
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