The Port of Galveston’s West Port Cargo Complex will soon undergo a massive transformation, courtesy of a $29.9 million contract.  The Galveston Wharves Board of Trustees recently approved a construction contract that will kickstart the first phase of the facility’s larger $90 million cargo infrastructure expansion and improvement project. The contract, funded by cash reserves generated from the Port of Galveston’s cruise operations, will facilitate the enclosure and filling of a slip at Pier 38/39, with construction expected to begin this summer.   Concurrently, the following two phases, also anticipated to commence this summer, will cost $50.1 million and will be backed by $36 million from a $42 million state grant that was awarded to the port last year, along with $14.1 million from port reserves. These phases entail the enclosure and filling of a slip at Pier 40/41.  “As we continue to develop our cruise business, we’re generating cash reserves to fund long-neglected cargo infrastructure, said Port Director Rodger Rees in a statement. “It’s a great day in the port’s nearly 200-year history when we can invest almost $100 million to build up our waterfront.”  The project also consists of a new 1,426-foot-long berth stretching from Pier 38/39 to Pier 40/41. Meanwhile, future phases will involve paving and other various enhancements, with the entire construction expected to conclude by 2026.   Additionally, alongside the expansion and improvement project, the port will oversee the demolition of a decommissioned grain elevator at Pier 30/33 this summer. Completion of this project is scheduled for the end of 2025, after which the land will be repurposed for cargo handling and laydown. Through these endeavors, the port is set to augment the complex by nearly 30 acres.  The port’s fourth cruise terminal, which will house the MSC Seascape, is also expected to be completed in 2025. “Our [new] cruise terminal will bring in an estimated $10 million-$14 million a year in additional revenues and hundreds of jobs,” Rees said. “We’ll use these revenues, along with grants, to continue to improve our aged cargo infrastructure.”  These critical infrastructure projects are integral components of the port’s 20-year Strategic Master Plan, designed to position the port for sustained growth and expansion over the next four decades.   Learn more about Houston's transportation and logistics industry and our global trade ties.   

Investment in infrastructure is critical to a community’s sustainable growth. Here in Houston, infrastructure takes many forms, from flood mitigation projects to expansion of critical highways. These and other topics were covered in the Partnership’s inaugural State of Infrastructure event on September 29.  Partnership President and CEO Bob Harvey told attendees that infrastructure investment in the region was on the right track, “but we must continue to come together and ensure our investments…are smart and are carried out in ways that fosters community.” A panel of experts discussed infrastructure topics including broadband development, mass transit, flood mitigation and highway development. The panel moderated by Marc Watts, president of The Friedkin Group, featured:  Toni Beck, Vice President, External Affairs, Comcast Texas Region Ed Jackson, Director, Federal Solutions and Technology, Jacobs Sanjay Ramabhadran, Chairman, Houston METRO Laura Ryan, Commissioner, Texas Department of Transportation  Here are just a few of the takeaways:  Ramabhadran on Mass Transit “Our continued economic growth is tied to our ability to make quality of life improvements. We are in a competition for business and talent and if we want to ensure that continues, we need to make investments into what businesses and talent want.” “We need to make sure we have safe, reliable, multimodal transportation options. It’s not an either-or approach to easing congestion, it has to be an all of the above approach." Ramabhadran also said that bidirectional HOV lanes are important because millennials increasingly want to live in neighborhoods like the Heights, Midtown and Downtown, but work in places like Pearland, Sugar Land and other suburbs. Ryan on Highway Infrastructure  “Whatever we build today has to plan for the unknown of tomorrow. The vision is that we create a really solid base that accounts for all the options...It’s going to take collaboration to get there.” “We’ve taken a lot of the best we’ve been able to learn over time and included those things in the I-45 (NHHIP) project...There are a lot of ways that major infrastructure projects can improve quality of life because those things are intertwined.” “We are a region of immense diversity but we have also historically been a region of respect and collaboration. We need more of that right now to advance infrastructure.” Jackson on Flood Infrastructure  “You don’t develop flood infrastructure overnight. It takes time...How are we looking long term to ensure what we’re putting in the ground is the right solution and works into the future?” “Infrastructure solutions have to include everyone, the varied faces that represent the Houston metro area.” Beck on Broadband Infrastructure  “We have a digital divide--that’s a fact and it’s been there for way too long. The pandemic thrust it into the spotlight.”  However, said Beck, the circumstances of the digital divide in rural America and urban America are often different. “One in 10 households in the Houston area lack a computer. That’s the urban digital divide,” she said.  Harvey said with considerable momentum around infrastructure investment, “the Partnership is committed to working with our elected officials at all levels of government and community partners to ensure the region receives the resources needed to meet the demands of our growing community.”