Community and Outreach: Los Angeles, New Orleans, San Francisco

The Port of Los Angeles announced a pilot community investment program that will support a variety of local organizations that positively impact the Los Angeles harbor. The Port of New Orleans last week launched its newly redesigned website, along with a social media platform intended to inform the community, customers and stakeholders of current happenings. On July 17, the San Francisco Port Commission celebrated the opening of Brannan Street Wharf, a newly constructed two-acre public park on the Embarcadero.

A pilot Community Investment Sponsorship Program initiated by the Port of Los Angeles will provide $50,000 in grant funding for local programs and events benefiting the Los Angeles harbor area and waterfront. Its purpose, according to Cynthia Ruiz, the port’s deputy executive director for external relations, is to "reach and support a variety of local organizations undertaking programs and projects that positively impact our local port community."

In addition to supporting efforts that promote the LA waterfront and surrounding coastal areas as visitor destinations, grants will also be awarded to organizations focused on educating the community about environmental stewardship and sustainability, the benefits of international trade, security and safety, and maritime history and tradition.

The pilot program will make funds available in increments of up to $5,000 per requesting organization. Nonprofit organizations must have 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status to apply, and funds must be spent by June 30, 2014. A grant committee comprised of port and community representatives will review and approve all grant applications. Funds for this grant pilot program come from Port of Los Angeles revenues, which are non-tax supported. Grant applications are due September 20, 2013.

The Port of New Orleans last week launched its newly redesigned website, along with a social media platform intended to inform the community, customers and stakeholders of current happenings.

The website, still found at www.portno.com, now has a streamlined design organized under the category headings "Cargo," "Cruises" and "Real Estate." The categories educate the public on the business of the port, while facilitating user navigation of the site.

"The new sleek design and navigational ease of the website will not only benefit the public seeking information on the Port of New Orleans, but will help customers and stakeholders find the answers to their questions more efficiently," said Port President Gary LaGrange, PPM®.

A New Orleans-based public relations and branding firm redesigned the site, working with port staff and administrators.

In addition to the new design, the site expands upon the port’s cargo handling capabilities and facilities, along with cruise schedules and passenger information.

Other features include an expanded "Procurement" section for firms wishing to do business with the port, updated bridge information, and more detailed information on how companies can take advantage of the port’s FTZ.

Mayor Edwin M. Lee joined the San Francisco Port Commission and other city and local officials in celebrating the opening on July 17 of Brannan Street Wharf, a newly constructed two-acre public park on the Embarcadero. The $26 million wharf includes a neighborhood green, a waterside walkway with seating and picnic tables, a shade structure; and interpretive features about the height of the tide and the site’s maritime and cultural history. It is located at the former sites of Piers 34 and 36.

The wharf includes a 52-foot long interpretive exhibit featuring the multi-faceted history and importance of the site to maritime shipping, Chinese immigration, and labor struggles that established San Francisco as the base for the International Longshore and Warehouse Union.

"The new Brannan Street Wharf represents the fabric of the South Beach community, which is rich in maritime history, diverse in culture and built on the strength of our local labor," said Port Executive Director Monique Moyer.

The wharf has been constructed to tilt up toward the bay, and includes a solid bullrail curb to the railing to provide additional protection from waves, and designed to withstand increased wave loading and limited flooding.

During the ribbon-cutting ceremony, the crowd of nearly 300 people heard Otis Redding III, son of the late Otis Redding Jr., perform the song "Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay." In summer 1967, Otis Redding Jr. was inspired to write the song as he sat on a houseboat in Sausalito watching the tide roll in and out of San Francisco Bay. The Brannan Street Wharf project includes three large tidal columns that illustrate tidal change of the bay each day. Lyrics to the Redding song are cast in bronze at the base of one of the tidal columns.

The Brannan Street Wharf is designed for sustainability; materials were chosen to perform well in the salt water environment, the design accommodates 75 years of projected sea level rise, and the structure will ride out small earthquakes and survive major shakers with repairable damage. It is the first wharf in San Francisco to include instrumentation to measure structural response during earthquakes, which will advance the study of earthquake engineering as well as aid in assessing post-earthquake inspection.

The total project cost of approximately $26.1 million was covered by an $18.5 million contribution from the port; $2.9 million the 2008 Clean & Safe Neighborhood Parks Bonds, a $100,000 grant from the California Coastal Conservancy and $4.7 million from a federal appropriation.