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THE PORT OF PALM BEACH:
www.portofpalmbeach.com
The Port of Palm Beach District is an independent special taxing district (an
autonomous port), a sub-division of the state of Florida. Established under the
provisions of the Laws of Florida, Acts of 1915, Chapter 7081, as amended and
supplemented, the Port District is located in Palm Beach County, Florida. It
covers a land area of 971 square miles or approximately fifty percent of the
County area. The District has statutory authority to levy ad valorem millage tax
but has not done so since Fiscal Year 1975. For FY'05, the Commissioners of the
Port of Palm Beach District have, for the thirty-third consecutive year, voted
not to levy any millage to the property owners of the Port District. Operating
under Florida Sunshine Laws, all monthly Board meetings are open to the
public. The Port District is governed by a board of five commissioners elected at large by the
voters within the District. Its administration is through an Executive Director
and professional staff of 45 full time employees.
OPERATING SCOPE:
The Port of Palm Beach is located 80 miles north of Miami and 135 miles south of
Port Canaveral. Vessel entrance is through an inlet channel 300 feet wide with
no aerial obstructions leading into Lake Worth. Berthing is a short 20 minutes
from first sea buoy to anchorage with operating drafts of minus 32 feet mean low
water (MLW). The largest vessels capable of through putting via the Port's "dog
leg" channel are those up to 700 feet length overall. A swing (turning) basin
measuring 1,100 feet by 1,400 feet provides a safety margin for cruise and cargo
vessels at minus 32 feet MLW draft (salt water).The Port has three slips, four
marginal wharves and two ro/ro ramps for a total of 5,200 linear feet of
berthing space. The District is authorized to raise funds through General
Obligation Bonds. Income is derived through user fees such as wharfage, dockage,
leasing, permitting, equipment, labor, special services and sale of potable
water. As a landlord port, we maintain all piers, turning basins, docks,
dredging, and improvements to District owned properties.
All maritime services are performed through
privatized, licensed permit holders including agents, stevedores, warehousing
and chandlers. Pilot and tug services are also privately owned. The Port is
authorized to issue industrial development bonds for building specialized
facilities on Port property. These facilities must be marine related. They are
subject to long term commitments backed by sound credit standings of individual
firms. Operated as an enterprise fund, Port revenues can only be invested on
Port owned properties and cannot be diverted into non District owned lands.
EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE:
The Port of Palm Beach is the fourth busiest container port in Florida and the
eighteenth busiest in the continental U.S. In addition to intermodal capacity,
the Port is a major nodal point for the shipment of bulk sugar (domestic
usages), molasses, cement, utility fuels, water, produce and breakbulk
items.The Florida East Coast Railway Company (FEC) services the docks and piers
through the Port's industrial rail switching operations. We are the only port
facility in South Florida operating a rail system with pier-side box, hopper and
intermodal cars operating 24 hours a day. Located on Port property are six miles
of trackage for intermodal transfers and handling. All essential federal
agencies with oversight for international trade and passenger flow are located
in the Maritime Office Complex (MOC).
A foreign Trade Zone (FTZ # 135)
has been in
operations since 1987. It encompasses several Port and private sector sites.
There is one privately owned general purpose warehouse in Boca Raton, four
privately owned warehouse sites in Martin County (near Stewart International
Airport), the Port of Palm Beach Cold storage terminal and one 18,000 sq. ft.
warehouse with five adjacent unimproved acres by the Port Executive Plaza (PEP).
The Port District views its mission as a
proactive endeavor in the regional international trade community. Port users are
encouraged to maximize the total infrastructure capabilities of the Port
District. The Board of Commissioners and the management team have addressed the
marketability as well as the implementation of projects needed to bring the Port
into the 21st century of port technology facilitating the export/import of goods
from the county, region and state.
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