PORT AUTHORITY ACQUIRES ADDITIONAL WATERFRONT PROPERTY TO DEVELOP NEW CONTAINER TERMINAL AT THE PORT OF NY/NJ
As part of its recent initiatives to position the Port of New York and New Jersey for
future economic growth, the Port Authority today announced the acquisition of additional
prime waterfront property – the 98-acre Global Terminal on the Port Jersey peninsula in
Jersey City and Bayonne.
Coupled with the Port Authority’s previous transaction in 2007 to change the use of the
adjacent Northeast Auto Terminal lease to allow for container handling, today’s
agreement will lead to the expansion of the Global Container Terminal to 170 acres,
which will assist in handling future cargo growth. The expanded Global Container
Terminal will become part of the Port Jersey-Port Authority Marine Terminal facility.
Earlier this week, the Port Authority also agreed to purchase a significant portion of the
Military Ocean Terminal at Bayonne for future, long-term port use.
Despite the global economic decline in recent years, the Port Authority remains confident
that the shipping industry will rebound and come back strong, and the agency will make
certain it has the capacity to meet future demand as the busiest port on the East Coast of
North America.
The Port Authority remains committed to its port facilities in Elizabeth, Newark and
Staten Island, including continued investments in the on-dock rail system and the 50-foot
channel-deepening program.
Port Authority Chairman Anthony R. Coscia said, “The Global acquisition is good for the
port and good for the region’s economy. It gives us the key waterfront property we need
to expand, and will support even more middle-class jobs at our maritime facilities.”
Port Authority Executive Director Chris Ward said, “This strategic acquisition was a long
time in the making and positions the Port of New York and New Jersey for future
economic growth.”
Port Authority Deputy Executive Director Bill Baroni said, “This investment furthers our
strategy to ensure that the existing port terminals continue to thrive while acquiring prime
waterfront land to guarantee the port’s future success. Our vision includes expanding the
port beyond its current boundaries, finding a cost-effective solution to the clearance issue
at the Bayonne Bridge, and developing the underused Greenville Yards to remove trucks
from New Jersey highways.”
Under the Global agreement, the Port Authority takes over ownership of the Global
property and, in turn, reaches a 37-year lease agreement with Global under which the
terminal operator will develop the former Northeast Auto Terminal property into one new
container terminal known as the Global Container Terminal as part of the Port Jersey-
Port Authority Marine Terminal facility. Global, which is owned by the Ontario
Teachers Pension Plan, will then handle the day-to-day cargo operation on the much
larger footprint.
The lease agreement calls for revenue sharing on containers handled by Global on the
170-acre combined facility and staged rental payments as the terminal is developed over
time. In addition, the Port Authority will provide Global with up to $150 million to
develop and construct new container terminal space. The Port Authority also has agreed
to develop a rail facility on the adjacent Greenville property that could handle up to
250,000 containers per year.
In addition, the New Jersey Turnpike is redesigning the 14A interchange to handle
projected port traffic as the Global terminal expands over time.
The Global acquisition and development will relieve the State of New Jersey from a $150
million financial obligation to the federal government to cover the cost of the 50-foot
channel-deepening project in the Port Jersey Channel.
Global currently employs approximately 350 workers at its existing terminal. It is still
undetermined how many workers will be hired to operate the additional cargo container
space.
Another important piece of the port’s long-term strategy was achieved last month when
the Port Authority’s Board of Commissioners authorized the agency to move ahead with
the purchase and redevelopment of Greenville Yards, a century-old rail yard in Jersey
City, N.J. The facility will serve as the lynchpin to removing up to 360,000 trash trucks
annually from trans-Hudson crossings and New Jersey highways by moving New York
City’s sealed containerized solid waste and other commodities by barge and rail when the
facility is opened in 2013.
end
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey operates many of the busiest and most important
transportation links in the region. They include John F. Kennedy International, Newark Liberty
International, LaGuardia, Stewart International and Teterboro airports; AirTrain JFK and AirTrain
Newark; the George Washington Bridge and Bus Station; the Lincoln and Holland tunnels; the three
bridges between Staten Island and New Jersey; the PATH (Port Authority Trans-Hudson) rapid-transit
system; Port Newark; the Elizabeth-Port Authority Marine Terminal; the Howland Hook Marine Terminal
on Staten Island; the Brooklyn Piers/Red Hook Container Terminal; and the Port Authority Bus Terminal
in midtown Manhattan. The agency also owns the 16-acre World Trade Center site in Lower Manhattan.