by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
Since it was founded more than 50 years ago, the Downtown Council of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce has had a membership consisting of business people from all industry segments.
Originally, since most of the business in Jacksonville was located Downtown in the 1950s, most of the group’s membership owned businesses Downtown.
As Duval County grew beyond the urban core, the council’s membership reflected the change. Another longtime tradition is for the Downtown Council to invite guest speakers to its meetings who provide a wide range of insights into the elements of local business that affect everyone.
The port is one such element.
At Friday’s meeting, Dennis Kelly, Trapac. Inc. regional vice president and general manager, was invited to present an overview of his business and the future of global shipping through Jacksonville’s port.
Trapac is a subsidiary of Mitsui OSK, a Tokyo-based maritime shipping company that operates 1,000 cargo vessels. Kelly said about 300 of the ships transport cargo containers, with the remainder involved in shipping vehicles, liquid cargoes and bulk freight.
Kelly said Trapac’s Jacksonville port terminal is its first on the East Coast, joining West Coast operations in Los Angeles and Oakland, Calif. The company invested $399 million to develop the automated freight-handling facility at Dames Point that opened for business on schedule and on budget in January 2009.
“We brought a new concept of business to Jacksonville,” said Kelly, referring to Trapac’s automated operations.
“We employ three or four people compared to 20,” he said.
When the terminal opened, it expanded the port’s business beyond Latin America and Puerto Rico, adding traffic from Asia to make Jacksonville a global shipping point.
The timing wasn’t the best, he admitted.
The recession took hold while the terminal was under construction.“We opened at the worst possible time in the last 60 years,” he said.
Trapac’s freight volume through the facility has fallen far short of the projections. Designed to moved as many as 500,000 containers annually, Kelly said the current volume is about 50,000 containers per year, but he is confident the volume will increase as the economy recovers.
Looking ahead, he said there are two major issues facing the port. The first is based on getting vessels in and out of the port and the second relates to getting containers from the ships to the final destinations.
“Mile Point,” about a mile inside the mouth of the St. Johns River, is a hydrological factor that limits the time available for large ships to enter and leave the port.
“Water on the falling tide funnels out of the river and creates currents that affect deep-water vessels,” said Kelly. “They can’t navigate 24/7; we’re limited to eight hours or less per day.
“The port advertised 40 feet of water. We were surprised that it was only a few hours a day.”
He said it will cost at least $50 million to correct the situation and that the funding can come from the port and state and federal governments.
“It’s critical to get this addressed,” he said.
The other issue is rail service to Trapac and to the Hanjin terminal, which is expected to open on the north side of the river in 3-5 years.
“For us to get the full benefit of the port, we have to have rail service,” said Kelly.
Containers coming off ships at Trapac are currently transported by truck to the CSX rail yard on the Westside. Kelly said rail service at or near a port terminal is “critical” and that Trapac is building a rail yard within its facility in Los Angeles.
He said Trapac is optimistic about the future of shipping in Jacksonville based on the city’s history in the industry.
“Jacksonville is the 10th-best logistics city in the country,” he said.
In June, Trapac began unloading containers that originated in southern Asia, including coffee for Maxwell House and leather goods for Coach from Vietnam. Kelly said Trapac is now developing trade routes with European clients to widen the global reach of the operation for his company and for the port.
Council members and guests also heard Jacksonville Jaguars Group Sales Coordinator Dan Rios explain the team’s efforts to sell out the remaining home games of the season.
Rios said the latest promotion, “Give the Gift of the Jaguars,” includes a game ticket, a cap, a T-shirt and a food voucher for $60.
He also said promotions are available for nonprofit organization to sell tickets and retain a portion of the sales, and a way for businesses to sell Jaguars tickets and support a charity of their choice are also in place.
“There are a lot of options. Give us a number and we’ll definitely work with you,” said Rios.
The Downtown Council’s next meeting is Dec. 3 when Downtown Vision Inc. Executive Director Terry Lorince will speak. Meetings begin at 7:30 a.m. the first and third Fridays of each month at Currents Bistro on the second floor of the Aetna Building on the Southbank.
For details, visit www.downtowncouncil.org.
356-2466