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July 17, 2017
In this issue:
Commissioners will
consider a proposal at Thursday's meeting to refinance up to $21.5 million
in debt to save money.
Commissioners
will also hear updates
on the 2018 budget process and potential business plans for the former Kaiser
site.
The
meeting starts at noon on July, 20. See the full
agenda.
Commission meetings are held in Room 104 of the Fabulich Center, 3600 Port of
Tacoma Road. Meetings are streamed live.
Pile driving will resume July 18 for improvements to Husky
Terminal when the annual February-to-July fish migration season closes.
Pile driving at the northwest end of the Blair Waterway is
expected to occur during regular construction hours of 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
weekdays and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturdays.
The Pier 4 work is part of $250 million in terminal improvements
that began in September 2016 on Tacoma’s General Central Peninsula. Upgrades
include strengthening and realigning a berth and adding eight new super-post-Panamax
cranes capable of serving two 18,000-TEU container ships at the same time.
Learn more about the project.
United Parcel Service (UPS) will lease a 770,000 square-foot
warehouse located just off I-509 near Fife. The warehouse is on land owned by
the Port of Tacoma and leased to Prologis, a San Francisco-based developer.
Known as Prologis Park, the development is on about 80 acres of port land. In
total, Prologis plans to develop three warehouses on the land.
Prologis has a 50-year lease with the Port of Tacoma, with an
option for a 25-year extension. At the end of the lease, the buildings revert
to the port.
The UPS facility is scheduled for completion this fall and will
employ between 800 and 1,200 people. UPS also plans to keep operating at its
current facility in Fife.
Port of Tacoma employees recently returned from a second
inspection trip to China, where The Northwest Seaport Alliance’s new super
post-Panamax container cranes are being built by Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy
Industries Company Limited (ZPMC).
The group included Maintenance Project Manager Joe Caldwell,
mechanics Dax Koho and Don Olsen, electrician Bruce Koch and crane consultant
Gregg Andrus. During the week-long trip in June, the team inspected the
fabrication process, including the paint and welding on the cranes. Once
completed, these structures will be capable of serving ultra-large container vessels
with an outreach of 24 containers and a lift height of 165 feet above the pier
deck.
Caldwell, who’s coordinating the crane inspection, said the trip
has been vital for his team to identify any concerns before the structures are
assembled and erected.
“It was beneficial for us to see
firsthand how these cranes are built,” he said. “We plan on making several more
trips back to China to track the progress before the cranes are ready for
delivery to Port of Tacoma.”
At their June meeting, The Northwest
Seaport Alliance Managing Members approved a $52 million purchase of four more
container cranes for Husky Terminal in the South Harbor.
The first four cranes are estimated to
be completed in 2018. The four additional cranes will arrive in 2019.
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Nearly 1,000 people participated in the Port of Tacoma’s
annual boat tours last weekend. The one-hour tours provided Pierce County
residents with a fun way to learn about the maritime activities that are a part
of daily life on a working waterfront.
The port also offers monthly bus tours. Find out more.
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