The Port of Newport’s long-anticipated international terminal project is nearing a milestone as completion of the Joint Permit Application is expected in late April. The first phase of the revamped project calls for removal of the crumbling World War II vintage concrete cargo ship Pasley - the reasons highly visible in the cracks and gaps and listing as viewed from Yaquina Bay - that served as the foundation for the original dock. (Photo by Terry Dillman)

Designing efforts at 60 percent completion



Project engineers and managers presented an update on the Port of Newport’s much-anticipated International Terminal Renovation Project during the port commission’s regular session Tuesday night.

They reported nearing the 60 percent design completion - a milestone - while work on the permitting process is wrapping up.

The port must submit a Joint Permit Application (JPA) to the department of State Lands and the U.S. Army corps of Engineers before in-water construction work can begin. Art the same time, the port must provide a biological assessment to the National Marine Fisheries Service.

Port officials said they expect completion of all documents - which focus on a broad range of issues, including remediation of environmental threats and impacts to jurisdictional waters and protected species - by late April.

After the agencies involved decide those documents are complete, they become available for public review and comment for 30 days. Port officials encourage public participation. They recently updated the project steering committee, which features representatives from the fishing industry, longshoreman’s union, and local conservationists.

Port Commissioner JoAnn Barton said they have had “productive discussions” with local and regional conservation groups, keeping them apprised of the project’s progress.

Updates to the port’s website (www.portofnewport.com) provides recent project information, along with a page of frequently asked questions, and an online comment form. Port General Manager Don Mann said they would post additional details as plans and permits are finalized.



New iterations

Since April, the terminal renovation project has lingered in the background as port officials first pursued a grant to glean funds to remove the crumbling Pasley and Hennibique - two World War II-era self-propelled, flat-bottomed concrete supply barges a private company scuttled at the site 60 years ago to serve as the terminal’s foundation, then went after and landed an even bigger project.

With the effort well under way to prepare a new homeport facility for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s Pacific research fleet, port officials are simultaneously focusing on the course change for the terminal project.

“Based on input from resource agencies and focus groups, the plan now is to remove both ships,” Mann told the News-Times in February.

“Both vessels require environmental clean-up and remediation,” he said Tuesday, noting that, over time, the Pasley has become unstable and threatens complete structural failure, risking release of contaminants into Yaquina Bay. “Systematic remediation, demolition, and removal eliminates these risks and increases critical habitat for salmonids and other aquatic species in Yaquina Bay.”

The first phase of the revised project includes remediation of both vessels. Then the most important consideration is removing the listing, deteriorating Pasley.

Mann said the removal would cost $5.5 million, which must derive from the $15.4 million bond voters approved in 2006. Doing so leaves no money for upland construction of buildings and utilities installation, and the overall effort would split into two phases.

In addition to removing the Pasley, Mann said the key focus is to “get the piers built.” That means rebuilding the terminal’s cargo and fishing piers. Phase one includes building a new dock where the Pasley sat, and upgrading the dock over the Hennibique. They will remove the existing office and warehouse buildings near the Hennibique, and begin utility work.

The second phase involves removing and replacing the dock in front of the Hennibique, and completing utility work. Mann said removal of the vessel itself would come later, requiring additional funding.

The Port of Newport is one of only three deepwater draft ports on the coast, and as such, the state, county, and city have identified it as an asset to develop to its full economic potential, which Man said this project would enhance.

Mann said they expect to begin upland construction work this summer, and the first phase in-water work in November, with the full project expected to wrap up in 2013.

To find out more, contact Mann at 5410265-7758, or got to the port’s website. Submit comments on the project to terminalproject@portofnewport.com.



Terry Dillman is the assistant editor of the News-Times. Contact him at (541) 265-8571, ext 225, or terrydillman@newportnewstimes.com.





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