Ga, S.C. Cooperate for New Jasper Port
Competition On River Expected To Rise, Create Efficiencies

By Strother Blair
TBR Staff

On a dusty road overlooking the Savannah River, Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue and South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford appeared to have finally laid to rest years of legal wrangling over who would own, build and manage a new port in Jasper County, S.C., last week.

Governors Sonny Perdue and Mark Sanford agreed to build a Jasper County port together last Tuesday.

Governors Mark Sanford and Sonny Perdue signed a bi-state compact creating a bi-state port Authority last Tuesday.

Encircled by jostling press, the governors signed a compact creating a bi-state port authority to take charge of the Jasper Terminal Site. Both the authority and the port will be funded, owned and run "50-50" by the two states.

The compact also authorized the cash-strapped Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) to sell its interest in the site to the bi-state authority for fair market value.

The South Carolina State Ports Authority (SPA) has been litigating to have the GDOT's land condemned. According to its terms, if the bi-state compact fails and the title to the site remains with the GDOT, then the compact suggests it would be "equitable" for Georgia to refund South Carolina's investment in the project.

The governors explained that the new authority will be modeled on the bi-state authority of New York & New Jersey, formed in 1921. However, that authority was the first and only authority for those states. Here, the Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) and the SPA will continue to operate independently and in competition, even with this new third body.

"I believe competition will make both of our ports better," said Perdue.

Sanford agreed: "I think it's a win-win." He also suggested that a stronger regional shipping industry would help the area take on larger ports, like Norfolk and Miami.

An initial $500 million has been laid out to get the project going. "And we'll be working up from there," said Sanford.

Each state will bear half the cost of a Jasper terminal, but the governors are also looking to involve private capital. Right now, they are inviting companies to propose plans for the first phase of development of the 1,800 acres of scrubland smeared along the southern boarder of Jasper County.?

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will also be involved because it has a permanent easement on the tract where it dumps the spoils of river dredging. "We want to work with them as partners, as well," said Perdue. Terms of the compact leave it to the GDOT to work out the easement withdrawal with the Corps.

Perdue also said intimations that this compact was some kind of stall tactic to allow both existing authorities to build out their facilities before bringing Jasper County online were off base. "This is not a ruse," said the governor. "This is a partnership, and we expect to go forward."

How quickly? "As quickly as humanly possible," said Sanford.

Jasper County Commission Vice Chair Gladys Jones voiced some cautious optimism about the deal. "I feel positive," said Jones amid Tuesday's hullabaloo on the riverbank. "I'll trust them until they prove to that they can't be trusted."?

Jasper County Chairman George Hood agreed. "I am very encouraged. We will have to observe and see what [happens]."

More Dredging Ahead

For nearly a decade, the GPA has been working to bring the river's navigable channel down from 42 to 48 feet, which is becoming the new industry standard.

Perdue's COO Jim Lientz said that a Jasper terminal will not affect the ongoing efforts to deepen the Savannah River.?

The GPA will remain in charge of the push and the dredging, if approved by the Environmental Protection Agency, will not stop at the Jasper site, which is closer to open waters, but will extend up to the Garden City terminal, as planned.

"That's never been contemplated in any portion of any agreement," said Lientz of the dredging short. "I think there's just so much requirement by the shippers and the steamship lines to use the facilities at the Garden City port."

Lientz pointed out that the container berths at the Garden City terminal area already are close to maxing out. The Jasper site will start with just a few berths or docking locations several years from now, so its ability to meet that demand is "a long way off," according to the COO.

The only impact of this deal on the deepening project is it will now receive financial support from South Carolina, according to the terms of the compact.

The Next Acts

In the next 180 days, a joint task force will be formed to flesh out the plan's details, including recommendations on how to select leadership for the new authority. No one has yet been named officially to the task force.

Perdue, unknotting his tie, insisted Sanford make the deal official Tuesday by trading neckwear.?

However, before this new authority becomes legal it must also be approved in both states' legislative bodies and ratified by the U.S. Congress.?

That's a lot of ties.