HOUSTON, Aug. 25, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- The Port Commission of The Port of Houston Authority will consider funding a $9.9 million share of a Houston Ship Channel dredging and maintenance project and several other matters at its public meeting on Monday, August 28, beginning at 1 p.m. in the board room of the PHA Executive Building, 111 East Loop North (Exit 29 off Loop 610) in Houston. Chairman Jim Edmonds will preside over the meeting with Commissioner Steve Phelps, Commissioner Jim Fonteno, Commissioner Kase Lawal, Commissioner Jimmy Burke, Commissioner Janiece Longoria and Commissioner Elyse Lanier.
BAYPORT MATTERS
(Agenda Items G8, G9) As Phase 1 work on Bayport continues in earnest, commissioners are being asked to approve two contract amendments totaling $321,166. The first amendment, in the amount of $87,563.11, will be used to fund construction of extended conduit lines and supplemental power and communication manhole to handle communications with the container yard. The second amendment, in the amount of $233,603, is for additional drainage work under the railroad crossing and Port Road temporary detour and at Cruise Road inlets.
(Agenda Item G10) Commissioners are being asked to approve a $945,731 contract amendment with Zachry Construction to stabilize the dredge fill material at the Cruise Road and parking lot construction sites. The measures are being proposed to ensure adequate sub-grade strength and required elevation.
(Agenda Item L1) Commissioners are being asked to evaluate and rank qualifications of three firms -- Hermes Architects, Natex Corporation Architects and Prozign Architects -- and authorize negotiation of a professional services contract with the top-ranked firm. The contract will apply to engineering services for the Bayport Marine Emergency Building.
(Agenda Item L3) Commissioners are being asked to evaluate and rank qualifications of three firms -- HNTB Corporation, Landtech Consultants Inc. and Sparks-Barlow-Barnett Inc. -- and to authorize negotiation of a professional services contract with the top-ranked firm. The contract will apply to engineering services for the expansion of Port Road.
PROPOSED TARIFF CHANGES
(Agenda M7) Commissioners will consider a staff recommendation to amend PHA Tariff No. 8 to include a terminal use and security fee applicable to container cargo that passes through a PHA terminal without being loaded or unloaded from a vessel. If approved, the proposed terminal use fee of $40 per loaded container would go into effect on October 1, 2006.
(Agenda M8) Commissioners will consider a staff recommendation to amend Tariffs 8 and 14 to allow freight handlers to assess a fuel surcharge as a percentage of the freight handlers' invoiced loading and unloading charges. The charge is being proposed to offset sharp rises in diesel fuel costs. Proposed surcharges range from 1.75%, when diesel fuel prices range from $2 to $2.24 per-gallon, to 2.75%, for $3 or higher per-gallon prices, and would go into effect on October 1, 2006.
HOUSTON SHIP CHANNEL MATTERS
(Agenda Item G4) The PHA staff is requesting commission evaluation and ranking competitive sealed proposals (CSPs) from three companies -- King Fisher Marine Services, Inc., Mike Hooks Inc. and T.W. LaQuay Dredging, Inc. -- for maintenance dredging of Jacintoport Terminal's channel and berthing areas and Care Terminal's No. 1 and No. 2 docks. The staff is also seeking commission approval to negotiate and award a contract of up to $3.5 million to the top-ranked company for work on the project.
(Agenda Item M9) Commissioners are being asked to authorize a $9.9 million payment to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to cover the PHA's share of expenses related to Houston Ship Channel work for fiscal year 2007. The port authority is responsible for 25 percent of the channel construction work scheduled for October 2006 through September 2007.
ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS
(Agenda Item M1) Commissioners will consider a PHA staff recommendation to enter in a Memoranda of Agreement (MOA) with San Jacinto College regarding development of a nature preserve adjacent to the city of Morgan's Point. If approved, PHA will study the feasibility of this project, improve the shoreline property in the vicinity of Barbours Cut Terminal, and possibly purchase property for $150,000. Presently, PHA owns about 35 acres and San Jacinto about three-quarters of an acre of the land being considered for development. A separate MOA will foster the joint efforts of San Jacinto College and the PHA to forge new educational partnerships with Houston Ship Channel businesses.
(Agenda Item M3) The PHA staff is asking commissioners to approve an interlocal agreement with Harris County to augment annual mosquito control service at PHA dredged material areas supporting the Houston-Galveston Navigation Channels Project. The port authority's portion of the costs for fiscal year 2006 would be $95,000. The request comes in response to an appeal by Harris County's Mosquito Control Division for additional financial assistance because it says it doesn't have adequate resources to effectively control mosquitoes in those areas.
MARITIME INDUSTRY MATTERS
(Agenda Item G7) Commissioners are being asked to evaluate and rank proposals from three companies -- Garibaldi Consulting, John C. Martin Associates LLC and Norbridge -- and to authorize negotiations with the top-ranked company on a professional services contract of up to $485,000 to develop a Marine Terminal Optimization and Market Study. The MTOMS will focus on PHA's Turning Basin Terminal.
(Agenda Item M11) Commissioners will consider a PHA staff request that the port authority purchase a $55,000 sponsorship of the Third Annual Western Hemispheric Port Security Conference and Trade Exhibition, "SecurePort 2007". The conference will be held in Houston, January 29-31, 2007. SecurePort 2007 will be attended by top maritime industry executives, port directors, ocean carriers, supply chain experts, representatives of the Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
(Agenda Item M12) Commissioners will consider a request for PHA to sponsor the Second Annual Houston Port Region Coffee Symposium, scheduled for Oct. 19-20, at the Hilton Americas-Houston Hotel. Working in concert with the Economic Alliance of Houston Port Region and the Greater Houston Coffee Association, PHA would co-host the event, which is designed to showcase the Houston region's rising stature in the areas of global coffee trade and economic development. The sponsorship will cost $50,000. Last year, more than 1,400 attended the inaugural event, held at the Pasadena Convention Center.
To view the complete agenda, please visit: http://portofhouston.com/publicrelations/meetings.html
The Port of Houston Authority owns and operates the public facilities located along the Port of Houston, the 25-mile long complex of diversified public and private facilities designed for handling general cargo, containers, grain and other dry bulk materials, project and heavy lift cargo, and other types of cargo. Each year, more than 6,600 vessels call at the port, which ranks first in the U.S. in foreign waterborne tonnage, second in overall total tonnage, and 10th largest in the world. The Port Authority plays a vital role in ensuring navigational safety along the Houston Ship Channel, which has been instrumental in Houston's development as a center of international trade. The Barbours Cut Container Terminal and Central Maintenance Facility are the first of any U.S. port facilities to develop and implement an innovative Environmental Management System that meets the rigorous standards of ISO 14001. Additionally, the port is an approved delivery point for Coffee "C" futures contracts traded on the New York Board of Trade's Coffee, Sugar & Cocoa Exchange.
For more information, please visit www.portofhouston.com
To access the port's web site photo gallery, please visit http://www.portofhouston.com/publicrelations/publicrelations.html and click the link for PHA Photo Gallery.
The Port of Houston Authority logo is available at http://media.primezone.com/prs/single/?pkgid=720