by Joe Wilhelm Jr.
Staff Writer
A project that could help stretch the window of opportunity for some cargo ships to dock in Jacksonville’s port may be experiencing another type of changing tide.
The City Council Seaport-Airport Special Committee was updated Tuesday on the Jacksonville Port Authority’s ongoing projects to prepare its harbor and shipping lanes for larger ships and it received some disappointing news regarding its “Mile Point” project.
The project focuses on a section of river where the Intracoastal Waterway and St. Johns River meet. The two waterways move in different directions — with the St. Johns flowing north while the Intracoastal flows south — and this causes some ships to spin depending on the level of the tide. Currently, this presents some ships with two four-hour windows in which to pull into port. The Mile Point project aims to reduce the effect of these two waterways and provide more opportunity for vessels to dock in Jacksonville.
“We’ve got a hiccup, a little bit of a problem,” said Rick Ferrin, CEO of the Port Authority. “It’s with the Army Corps of Engineers. We met with them back in May and at that time they told us that the Mile Point project would be ready for authorization in 2010. The authorization would be contingent on the endorsement of the chief of engineers.”
A month after this meeting that deadline was pushed to 2011 by the Army Corps of Engineers, said Ferrin, which still worked within the Port’s plans. Now the port is being asked to look at a widening of the channel as opposed to a reconstruction of the levees, or training walls, which was originally planned.
“They want us to do a thorough analysis of that and see if that would be an appropriate remedial measure,” said Ferrin. “The (Jacksonville) District (of the Corps) is against doing that. Their hydrological engineer, who has been here a long time and knows the river and knows exactly what the problem is and what the solution is, has said investigating a widening is an exercise in futility. The study could add another year to the project.”
The Army Corps of Engineers recently completed a feasibility study of the Port Authority’s proposal and Ferrin expected the permitting process to take up to 18 months, which would place the start of the project in 2011.
The Seaport-Airport Special Committee was created to help both Port Authorities secure necessary funding and legislation they need for economic development and its chair, Daniel Davis, traveled with Ferrin earlier this year to Washington, D.C. to let legislators know how important the project is to Jacksonville.
“I thought we already had that promise (from the Army Corps of Engineers),” said Davis, “that the project would proceed.”
“We did,” said Ferrin. “You were there when we spoke to (Terrance) Rock Salt (of the Army Corps of Engineers). He said, ‘Not a problem, we’ll stick with the schedule.’”
Ferrin plans to discuss the proposal with the District engineer and Davis said he would make himself available if another trip to Washington, D.C. was necessary to further the project.
The Jacksonville Aviation Authority (JAA) also had an update on some of its projects. It is pursuing an opportunity to be able to house P-3 Orion aircraft used by the United States Customs and Border Patrol at Cecil Field. JAA has responded to a request for information (RFI) from the federal government asking for specifications to be able to hangar P-3s for Customs and Border Patrol, which currently has an hangar at Cecil Field. The next step will be for the government to issue a request for proposals.
Also, the ground breaking ceremony for the Florida State College at Jacksonville’s aircraft painting facility is quickly approaching. The event is scheduled for Sept. 28 at Cecil Field Commerce Center.
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