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Finance: Freeport, Hueneme, Palm Beach

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Port Freeport has received a GFOA Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for its 2012 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR). The Port of Hueneme recently secured financing for shore side power infrastructure and other needed port improvements through the federal New Markets Tax Credits Program (NMTC). Florida state funding amounting to $7,876,000 have been awarded the Port of Palm Beach in recent weeks for various capital improvements.  

Freeport (TX) Earns GFOA Recognition for 24th Year 

GFOA – the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada – has awarded Port Freeport a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for its 2012 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR).

An impartial panel determined that the CAFR met the high standards of the program including demonstrating a constructive "spirit of full disclosure" to clearly communicate its financial story and motivate potential users and user groups to read the CAFR. It is the 24th consecutive year that the port has received the GFOA award.

"This award is a tribute to the hard work by a great team of employees in the Finance Department. Port Freeport is serious about keeping our accounting and financial reporting system at the highest national standard possible," said Port Executive Director Glenn Carlson. "This award shows we continuously achieve it."

Port Freeport Controller Mary Campus holding the GFOA award certificate as Chief Financial Officer Jeff Strader (left) and Port Commission Chairman John Hoss look on.  
Photo/Port Freeport


Hueneme Closes New Markets Tax Credits Deal 

Taking advantage of the federal New Markets Tax Credits Program (NMTC), the Port of Hueneme has secured financing for its Shore Side Power infrastructure and other needed port improvements. Wells Fargo and Clearinghouse CDFI paved the way for this financial opportunity by bringing more than $3 million to the NMTC transaction. 

The NMTC Program was established by Congress in 2000 to spur new or increased investments into operating businesses and real estate projects located in low-income communities. It attracts investment capital to low-income communities by permitting individual and corporate investors to receive a tax credit against their Federal income tax return in exchange for making equity investments in specialized financial institutions called Community Development Entities.  

The port combined the NMTC financing with a grant from the California Air Resources Board to help offset the purchase and installation of the shore power installation that will allow berthed ships to shut down their diesel engines while in port. The port’s railhead will also receive funding for asphalt upgrades and more efficient lighting. 

Additionally, the port partnered with Port Renovation, Inc., a newly-formed California Public Benefit Corporation, that will oversee targeted port projects including the funding of a Mobile Pantry Program through the well-established FOOD Share, Inc. The program will bring fresh, nutritious food, free of charge as well as nutrition counseling and cooking classes to designated "food desert" areas of Ventura County. 

"The port’s use of the new markets tax credits program attracts private equity investment to our important projects," said Harbor Commission Board President Jason Hodge. "It is a natural step in the board’s continuing efforts to bring value and economic vitality to our customers and our region.

Palm Beach: $7.8M in State Funding for Port Improvements

The Port of Palm Beach announced last month it has been awarded Florida state funding for various capital improvements amounting to $7,876,000. Included are:
  • $4.6 million for the expansion and infrastructure improvement of Berth 17 to include a heavy-duty expanded apron, a heavy-duty ro/ro ramp, and a load-bearing staging area for cargo on land adjacent to the berth. The total cost of the project is $9.2 million and requires a 50 percent matching contribution of port funds.
  • $275,000 from the Florida Seaport Transportation and Economic Development (FSTED) Council to help finance the installation of 80 reefer plugs. Fifty percent of the $550,000 project cost must be borne by the port.
  • $3 million for the expansion and infrastructure improvements of Berth 1. The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) has approved a $3 million grant to be made available in fiscal year 2019 for improvements to Berth 1. While the $6 million project has been approved and granted funding from FDOT, the scope of the work must be determined by port staff and approved by the Port of Palm Beach Board of Commissioners. The FDOT grant requires a 50 percent cost-share match by the port.
The funds secured in fiscal year 2013 are in addition to the millions of dollars that the port obtained for the $26 million Slip 3 expansion and improvement project, which is fully funded and well underway.

"The port must continue to identify and secure any possible funding to contribute to the stability and growth of our current tenants’ business while also enabling us to market to new businesses," said Port Executive Director Manuel Almira, PPM®. "We have to accommodate the needs of the industry to capture our share of the business."
 

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