The Port of Seattle announced the top three names chosen for each of the six port-owned parks and shoreline access sites along the Duwamish River to new names that reflect their cultural, historical and environmental significance. The port partnered with Seattle Parks Foundation, a well-recognized public parks and greenspace non-profit, to design and implement the re-naming campaign with transparency, equity and community involvement.

Port Freeport announced that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers awarded a $15.4 million contract to Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Company for the first phase of the Freeport Harbor Channel Improvement Project. Construction will begin in the fall of 2020 with expected completion in May 2021. The Port of New Orleans reported that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officially kicked off the historic deepening of the Mississippi River Ship Channel to 50 feet, as Weeks Marine’s cutterhead dredge Captain Frank started dredging 5 miles above the Head of Passes.

Representatives from the Port of Beaumont delivered more than $3,000 worth of supplies to Port of Lake Charles. The Port of Beaumont team was met by the Port of Lake Charles Port Director and CEO Richert Self and Director of Operations Todd Henderson, who introduced their recovery staff. The donations, contributed by Port of Beaumont staff members, Cooper/Ports America, Coastal Welding Supply and Periodpower Pantry, included air conditioning units, water, fans, tarps, non-perishable food items and more.

After an early summer surge, maritime tonnage through the Port of Duluth-Superior slowed atypically in August, amidst a tepid recovery from COVID-induced lows. Total tonnage stood 31% behind the 2019 pace for the same period, driven primarily by declines in coal and iron ore tonnage (down 59% and 26% respectively). The Port of Los Angeles processed 961,833 TEUs in August, the first monthly cargo increase in a year. The 12% gain in cargo was driven by imports, which eclipsed 500,000 TEUs for the first time. The Port of Virginia’s cargo volumes are continuing their rebound and in August grew by more than 26,000 units when compared with July. The amount of cargo moving across the port’s terminals in August was 247,349 TEUs and is an increase of 26,301 TEUs, or nearly 12%, when compared with July.

If you are looking for ways to connect to your community and promote your port in a creative, visual light, there might be an opportunity in the form of a photo contest. Some ports have been capitalizing on this idea for quite some time and have already seen the benefits, such as the Port of Long Beach, Port of Los Angeles and Port of Oakland. A contest of this sort encourages photographers and creative types to capture your port at its best – and share those beautiful images – while at the same time allowing you to engage with your community and strengthen that relationship.

In the next issue of Seaports, we are going to have a feature about organizing and holding a photo contest. Plus, if you’ve held a contest recently and want to share some of the winning photos,
we’ll have a spot for that as well. Connect with Pam Maher (pmaher@aapa-ports.org) or Shani Calvo (shani@naylor.com) BY OCTOBER 16 if you’d like your port to be part of this article!

The Port of Everett has been awarded a $17.75 million U.S. Department of Transportation Better Utilizing Investment to Leverage Development (BUILD) Grant to support the creation of a new maritime facility at the former Kimberly-Clark mill site to enhance cargo movement and commerce, and to restore and grow jobs at the site.

PortMiami, the cruise capital of the world, thanks Senators Rick Scott and Marco Rubio for introducing the Set Sail Safely Act, which will establish a Maritime Task Force, in coordination with a Private Sector Advisory Committee, to address the health, safety, security, and logistical changes needed to allow cruise lines and ports to resume operations. Currently, cruise lines are under a no sail order until September 30 amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The Port of New York and New Jersey welcomed the CMA CGM Brazil to APM Terminals at the Elizabeth Port Authority Marine Terminal on September 12, marking another milestone as the largest vessel to dock at the port. The Port of Virginia also welcomed the CMA CGM Brazil, which at 15,000-plus TEUs is the biggest container vessel to ever call Virginia and the U.S. East Coast.

The Port of Long Beach budget for FY 2021 was recently approved by the Long Beach City Council. The $650 million budget for the Harbor Department includes a transfer of about $19 million to the city’s Tidelands Operating Fund, which supports quality-of-life projects along Long Beach’s 7-mile coastline.

America's 3.6 million professional truck drivers are honored this week, and the Port of Brownsville is proud to support the U.S. trucking industry by celebrating National Truck Driver Appreciation Week.

Port Milwaukee seeks to establish a new Capital Asset Renewal Plan (CARP) to comprehensively address deficiencies in port facilities and infrastructure and establish a new maintenance schedule. Responses must be submitted by September 25 at 5:00 p.m. (Central) via email to port@milwaukee.gov.

Finance Director, Old Saybrook, CT; Connecticut Port Authority

Director, Engineering Services, Kingston, Jamaica; Kingston Wharves Limited

Channel & DMPA Development Project Manager, Corpus Christi, TX; Port Corpus Christi Authority

Director of Business Development, Philadelphia, PA; PHILAPORT