Posted on February 13, 2019
Repairs to damage caused by Tropical Storm Harvey at the former CB&I Island Park on Pine Street will soon begin.
Port of Beaumont commissioners on Monday gave final approval for the sale of up to $30 million in bonds to fund the work.
Port Director and CEO Chris Fisher said some utility restoration has already been done by Allegiant Industrial, which is leasing the facility from the port, but the bulk of the work will be funded and “kicked off” by the bonds.
It’s “just in time to get on the bandwagon,” said Commissioner Pat Anderson, referring to recent announcements of major industry expansion in the Golden Triangle.
The 500,000-square-foot facility is expected to operate as a fabrication and paint shop and create about 200 full-time jobs. Fisher said some paint shop work has already begun and about 100 jobs have been created.
In addition to having one of the largest paint facilities in the state, the Port of Beaumont Allegiant Island Park will make modules for plant expansion projects along the Gulf Coast, President Ronnie Yawn said in mid-2018.
Yawn did not return requests for comment Monday.
This is expected to support the expansion of oil and gas facilities along the Gulf Coast.
“Because of exclusive water access to the Gulf of Mexico, the Allegiant Industrial Island Park campus can deliver the most complex modular solutions, enabling us to fabricate large boar piping greater than 48 inches, as well as coded vessels,” according to the company’s website.
Allegiant will repair the electrical system and use soil stabilization to address non-catastrophic Harvey damage, Yawn said previously. The company doesn’t have plans to make major changes to the facility to storm-proof it against another 500-year flood aside from improving drainage and runoff.
The port’s lease to Allegiant Industrial Island Park, which was finalized in mid-2018, is set for 20 years with the option to extend up to 50 years, Fisher said.
The Port of Beaumont is the nation’s fifth-largest water port by tonnage, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. That puts the port behind South Louisiana, Houston, New York and New Jersey and New Orleans.
Source: Beaumont Enterprise
