It’s Tampa Port Authority’s overarching opinion that more legislative changes are needed to support the business interests of seaports – seeing as they are the gateways for international trade.
To this end it’s thrown its weight behind the US Chamber of Commerce’s campaign to get the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) Bill, which aims to deepen the nation’s federal channels, moving through the senate quickly.
The port authority says that the current delivery system for making these improvements is “slow inefficient and hampered by bureaucratic processes that delay vital projects by years or sometimes decades.”
Meanwhile, House Bill 391 has served to further enhance the Port of Tampa’s attractiveness as a location for manufacturing and industrial development, according to Andy Fobes, spokesperson, Tampa Port Authority.
Mr Fobes told Port Strategy that with the recent acquisition of an additional 110 acres adjacent to its Port Redwing properties, the Tampa Port Authority is now in the process of marketing and development of a total of 270 acres for maritime and industrial use in South Hillsborough County.
“These efforts to optimise the development of these properties will be strengthening by passage of this legislation”, he said to PS.
The combined 270-acre footprint of the Redwing and South Bay properties is adjacent to deep water, has excellent Interstate highway and rail access and is situated in close proximity to Tampa Electric Company’s Big Bend power plant, allowing for abundant and competitive energy costs.
As a result, the port authority says that the site is uniquely positioned in Florida and the Southeastern US to attract investment in industrial development and manufacturing focused on export and import activity.