Facebook Twitter Twitter    Archive | www.aapa-ports.org December 16, 2013
   

Waterfront Development: AIVP, Bellingham, Grays Harbor, Los Angeles

Print Print this Article | Send to Colleague

AIVP – the International Association of Port Cities – has produced a "missions charter" for port centers created to facilitate "integration between the city, the port and the public." The Port of Bellingham has joined the city of Bellingham in adopting a agreement for the development of a "waterfront district" on the site of a former Georgia Pacific pulp and paper mill. The Port of Grays Harbor’s purchase of the manufacturing assets of NewWood Corporation, a bankrupt former tenant of the port’s Satsop Business Park, has been approved by a superior court judge. The Port of Los Angeles’ Southern Pacific Slip Waterfront Plaza received the 2013 B.E.S.T. Project of the Year award from the Southern California Chapter of the American Public Works Association. 

Port City Association Publishes Port Center Missions Charter 

More than three years ago, AIVP – the International Association of Port Cities – decided to take up the concept of "port centers" as a means of "improving integration between the city, the port and the public." The initiative has been endorsed by the American Association of Port Authorities and the European Sea Ports Organization, among others. 

Now the AIVP and its partners in the Port Center Network have compiled "Experiencing the Port Together: Missions Charter of Port Center." The document identifies the challenges and objectives of a port center in a series of 10 points, the first of which notes: "The Port Center explains how a port works, enabling city inhabitants to grasp and understand the socio-economic importance of port activity in their region. It presents a multi-sectorial, themed approach which takes into account the challenges facing the port-city, the context of globalization, and the complexity of the links between different port activities."

The charter has already been adopted in more than seven port cities wth a port center or a port center project, including Antwerp Havencentrum Lillo, Genoa Port Center, Port Center of Le Havre, Dunkirk Maritime Museum, Houston Maritime Museum, Ashdod Visitor Center, and Livorno Port Center.  

AIVP hopes the port center concept will be adopted by "all those who are interested in opening their ports to the public, making young people aware of port-related professions and activities, and developing the emergence of a living port-city culture."

Click here to view the full text of the missions charter.

Bellingham Port and City Approve Waterfront Redevelopment Agreements

The Bellingham waterfront redevelopment project took a huge step forward earlier this month when the Bellingham City Council and the Port of Bellingham Commission adopted the complete package of master planning and development agreements for the Waterfront District.

The approved documents include a master plan, development regulations, development agreements, planned action ordinance and an interlocal agreement for facilities that describes the investments the port and city are committing to make in the 237-acre waterfront site once occupied by a Georgia Pacific pulp and paper mill. 

Environmental cleanup projects, demolition and site preparation have been underway for several years. The approval sets the stage for redevelopment work to begin. This will include design and construction of early roads, parks and trails, as well as selection of developers to begin making investments in the property.

"Our goal is to find developers who share the community’s vision for the waterfront and who have the ability to be long-term partners in this important development," said Port Executive Director Rob Fix

Job creation is a shared priority for the port and city. At its peak, the Georgia Pacific operation supported about 1,200 full-time "family-wage" jobs.

The redevelopment plans underwent a decade of public participation and planning that began in January 2003, when the port and city established the citizen-led Waterfront Futures Group. This group spent over a year guiding the community through a visioning process for all 11 miles of Bellingham Bay shoreline within the city limits. Because Georgia Pacific was in the process of phasing out its pulp and paper mill, the industrial waterfront area received the most focus from the Waterfront Futures Group.

In 2004, the port undertook a year-long comprehensive analysis of whether to acquire the Georgia Pacific property. This included developing partnership agreements with the City of Bellingham and the state Department of Ecology. In January 2005, the port commission voted to acquire the property, and the port and city adopted an interlocal agreement that established a long-term site partnership for planning, cleanup and development.

The newly approved Interlocal Agreement for Facilities replaces that original partnership agreement and sets out specific project and cleanup responsibilities, linked to site development and density. 

"We are celebrating an important step for our community and the achievement of a significant, decade-long project," declared Bellingham Mayor Kelli Linville. "Our goals were cleanup and habitat restoration, public access to the water and good paying jobs, and these plans and agreements set the stage for achieving these goals.

This 273-acre former Georgia Pacific site is slated for redevelopment as the Bellingham Waterfront Center.
Photo/Port of Bellingham

Grays Harbor: Judge Approves Sale of NewWood Corporation Assets to the Port 

The Port of Grays Harbor’s purchase of the manufacturing assets of NewWood Corporation, a bankrupt former tenant of the port’s Satsop Business Park was approved December 9 by a superior court judge.

The $1.3 million purchase price includes the manufacturing equipment located in a port-owned building, as well as the intellectual property on the process of turning scrap plastics into usable building material. NewWood Corporation has been in receivership since November 2012. The sale required that all equipment be free of liens and that personal property taxes owed to Grays Harbor County be paid from the proceeds of the sale. 

The port commission authorized the purchase at its November meeting with the intent to work with companies to find a viable operator for the facility (Advisory, November 11, 2013). "We are committed to getting the facility up and running, and by purchasing these assets we are in a better position to control our own destiny," said Port Executive Director Gary Nelson

Los Angeles’ Southern Pacific Slip Waterfront Plaza Honored

The Port of Los Angeles has received the 2013 B.E.S.T. Project of the Year award from the Southern California Chapter of the American Public Works Association (APWA) for its Southern Pacific (S.P.) Slip Waterfront Plaza.

The plaza, located on the Los Angeles waterfront near Ports O’Call Village, commemorates San Pedro's history as a commercial fishing hub.

Winning in the recreation and athletic facilities category, the S.P. Slip Waterfront Plaza includes improved public waterfront access for pedestrians and vehicles and development of a 1.5-acre landscaped plaza that features the "Ghost Fish 102" sculpture, a 40-foot blue fin tuna by artist Carl Cheng, hung from a galvanized steel frame over the water at Berth 73. Teak benches by San Pedro woodworker Harold Greene were also installed near the public art display. The plaza was completed in December 2012 at a cost to the port of $6.5 million.

"Ghost Fish" sculpture in Southern Pacific Slip Waterfront Plaza.
Photo/Port of Los Angeles

The LA Waterfront features several beautification and redevelopment projects that cover more than 400 acres of existing port property in San Pedro and neighboring Wilmington. With miles of public promenade and walking paths, acres of open space and scenic views, the LA Waterfront attracts thousands of visitors annually. For more information, visit www.lawaterfront.org.

The APWA is an international educational and professional association of public agencies, private sector companies, and individuals dedicated to providing high quality public works goods and services. 
 

Share Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn