Blount Island
Encyclopedia
Blount Island is an island of approximately 2000 acres (8.1 km²) on the St. Johns River
in Jacksonville, Florida
, nine nautical miles (16.7 km) west of the Atlantic Ocean
. One of three public cargo facilities at the Port of Jacksonville
is located there, and it is also the site of the United States Marine Corps
Blount Island Command
.
between Jacksonville and the Atlantic Ocean twists and turns. That was not a problem until shipping companies began using bigger and bigger freighters after World War II
. The United States Army Corps of Engineers
created the Dames Point Cut, a straight channel that provided an alternative to the river's natural course, which contained several of the sharpest turns in the river. Four marsh islands received the dredging spoil
and became Blount Island. The property was turned over to the Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) for development.
The west side of the island was developed and used for freight operations after the Jacksonville Port Authority
(JAXPORT) was established in 1963. Railroad access to the site was added in the late 1960s.
and ship builder Tenneco
. The company intended to manufacture and assemble floating nuclear power plants. The east half of the island was unused and mostly marsh until OPS obtained 850 acres (3.4 km²) of land from JAXPORT, destroyed the marsh and replaced it with sterile fill. Utilities, roads and other infrastructure was established and the world's largest crane, 38-stories tall and capable of lifting 990 metric tons, was purchased and installed for $15 million. A total of $125 million was invested in development of the site and improvements, but no power plants were ever built and the company closed in 1984.
Westinghouse sold their Blount Island property to Gate Petroleum
for $17 million in 1985.
. In 1989, the U.S. Navy signed a $5 million per year contract with Gate to dock two ships at Blount Island on new piers built for that purpose. The construction, which would require dredging the channel, was opposed by a group of fishermen, environmentalists and nearby residents who owned riverfront property.
Gate's project was consistent with the city's master plan for the industrial area, but Gate chose to abandon the development and requested that the Navy cancel the contract for public relations reasons.
In November 1990, Gate sold the 20-year old Offshore Power Systems crane for $3 million to the China State Shipbuilding Corporation
and their workers dismantled it for shipment overseas.
squadrons (each with multiple ships) strategically located in the Mediterranean Sea
, the Indian Ocean
and the Western Pacific Ocean
. The squadron's ships contain enough food, equipment, supplies, and ammunition to support a Marine Air-Ground Task Force
for one month.
In 1986, the U.S. Marine Corps established the Biennial Maintenance Command (BMC) on the east side of Blount Island using 262 acres (1.1 km²) leased from Gate Maritime Properties
for $11 million per year. The lease between Gate and the Marine Corps was due to end in 2004, and in 2000, the Corp stated their intentions to purchase the property when the lease expired. The Marine Corps budget included $115.7 million for the acquisition, but extended negotiations did not result in an agreement. Gate contended that the land was worth between $160 million and $200 million, so in August 2004, the Marine Corps seized 1100 acres (4.5 km²) on Blount Island (Gate's entire Blount Island holdings) by eminent domain
and paid $101 million (later increased to $106 million). When land is seized by eminent domain for uses that benefit the public, the government is required to pay landowners "just compensation", so Gate asked for a jury to decide the land's value. On November 14, 2005, a jury determined that the government should pay $162 million for the parcel.
Blount Island has one 112-ton whirly crane and six container cranes (three 50-ton cranes, one 45-ton crane and two 40-ton cranes), with two additional cranes planned for purchase in 2010. The terminal also offers 240000 square feet (22,296.7 m²) of transit shed space and a 90000 square feet (8,361.3 m²) Container Freight Station for cross-dock efficiency.
In addition to import operations, several companies provide freight service to the Caribbean
, including Trailer Bridge and Crowley Maritime
.
directly. JAXPORT owns the 14 miles (22.5 km) of track, which was laid down in the late 1960s. In the Fall of 2009, the Port Authority received a grant of almost $6 million to improve the Blount Island rail system, which was also utilized by the U.S. Marine Corps' terminal. The United States Department of Transportation
required matching funds of $1.7 million from JAXPORT. The project laid 3½ miles of new track and replaced 12,000 aging crossties.
(State Road 9-A) is located one mile (1.6 km) west; Interstate 95
is five minutes away with Interstate 10
on the west side of the I-295 beltway. Interstate 75
is a one hour drive west.
St. Johns River
The St. Johns River is the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida and its most significant for commercial and recreational use. At long, it winds through or borders twelve counties, three of which are the state's largest. The drop in elevation from the headwaters to the mouth is less than ;...
in Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
, nine nautical miles (16.7 km) west of the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
. One of three public cargo facilities at the Port of Jacksonville
Port of Jacksonville
The Port of Jacksonville is an international trade seaport on the St. Johns River in Jacksonville, Florida. The newest port in the United States, it carries over 21 million tons of cargo each year and has an annual impact of over $19 billion, including 65,000 jobs...
is located there, and it is also the site of the United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
Blount Island Command
Blount Island Command
Blount Island Command is responsible for the United States Marine Corps' Maritime Prepositioning Ships Maintenance Cycle operations and oversight of the Marine Corps Prepositioning Program-Norway .-History:...
.
History
The St. Johns RiverSt. Johns River
The St. Johns River is the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida and its most significant for commercial and recreational use. At long, it winds through or borders twelve counties, three of which are the state's largest. The drop in elevation from the headwaters to the mouth is less than ;...
between Jacksonville and the Atlantic Ocean twists and turns. That was not a problem until shipping companies began using bigger and bigger freighters after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The United States Army Corps of Engineers
United States Army Corps of Engineers
The United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...
created the Dames Point Cut, a straight channel that provided an alternative to the river's natural course, which contained several of the sharpest turns in the river. Four marsh islands received the dredging spoil
Spoil
Spoil or spoils:*Plunder taken from an enemy or victim.*Material removed during:**excavation**mining**dredging*An Australian rules football tactic, see One percenter #Spoil...
and became Blount Island. The property was turned over to the Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) for development.
The west side of the island was developed and used for freight operations after the Jacksonville Port Authority
Jacksonville Port Authority
The Jacksonville Port Authority also known by its brand name, JAXPORT, is the independent government agency in Jacksonville, Florida that owns and operates much of the seaport system at the Port of Jacksonville.-History:...
(JAXPORT) was established in 1963. Railroad access to the site was added in the late 1960s.
Floating Power
Offshore Power Systems (OPS) was a 1970 joint venture between nuclear power company Westinghouse ElectricWestinghouse Electric Company
Westinghouse Electric Company LLC is a nuclear power company, offering a wide range of nuclear products and services to utilities throughout the world, including nuclear fuel, service and maintenance, instrumentation and control and advanced nuclear plant designs...
and ship builder Tenneco
Tenneco
Tenneco is a $6.2 billion Fortune 500 company that has been publicly traded on the NYSE since November 5, 1999 under the symbol TEN...
. The company intended to manufacture and assemble floating nuclear power plants. The east half of the island was unused and mostly marsh until OPS obtained 850 acres (3.4 km²) of land from JAXPORT, destroyed the marsh and replaced it with sterile fill. Utilities, roads and other infrastructure was established and the world's largest crane, 38-stories tall and capable of lifting 990 metric tons, was purchased and installed for $15 million. A total of $125 million was invested in development of the site and improvements, but no power plants were ever built and the company closed in 1984.
Westinghouse sold their Blount Island property to Gate Petroleum
Gate Petroleum
Gate Petroleum is a privately held diversified corporation headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, the 11th largest in Florida in 2010. In FY 2008, the company ranked #338 on the Forbes list of America's Largest Private Companies...
for $17 million in 1985.
Gate Petroleum
The following year, Gate Petroleum leased a portion of their Blount Island property to the United States Marine CorpsUnited States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
. In 1989, the U.S. Navy signed a $5 million per year contract with Gate to dock two ships at Blount Island on new piers built for that purpose. The construction, which would require dredging the channel, was opposed by a group of fishermen, environmentalists and nearby residents who owned riverfront property.
Gate's project was consistent with the city's master plan for the industrial area, but Gate chose to abandon the development and requested that the Navy cancel the contract for public relations reasons.
In November 1990, Gate sold the 20-year old Offshore Power Systems crane for $3 million to the China State Shipbuilding Corporation
China State Shipbuilding Corporation
The China State Shipbuilding Corporation is one of the two largest shipbuilding conglomerates in China, the other being the China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation . CSSC consists of various ship yards, equipment manufacturers, research institutes and shipbuilding related companies in China...
and their workers dismantled it for shipment overseas.
Marines
Blount Island Command supports three Maritime Prepositioning shipMaritime Prepositioning ship
The 31 Maritime Prepositioning Ships are part of the United States Military Sealift Command's Prepositioning Program. They are strategically positioned around the globe to support the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Defense Logistics Agency...
squadrons (each with multiple ships) strategically located in the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
, the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
and the Western Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
. The squadron's ships contain enough food, equipment, supplies, and ammunition to support a Marine Air-Ground Task Force
Marine Air-Ground Task Force
The Marine Air-Ground Task Force is a term used by the United States Marine Corps to describe the principal organization for all missions across the range of military operations. MAGTFs are a balanced air-ground, combined arms task organization of Marine Corps forces under a single commander that...
for one month.
In 1986, the U.S. Marine Corps established the Biennial Maintenance Command (BMC) on the east side of Blount Island using 262 acres (1.1 km²) leased from Gate Maritime Properties
Gate Petroleum
Gate Petroleum is a privately held diversified corporation headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, the 11th largest in Florida in 2010. In FY 2008, the company ranked #338 on the Forbes list of America's Largest Private Companies...
for $11 million per year. The lease between Gate and the Marine Corps was due to end in 2004, and in 2000, the Corp stated their intentions to purchase the property when the lease expired. The Marine Corps budget included $115.7 million for the acquisition, but extended negotiations did not result in an agreement. Gate contended that the land was worth between $160 million and $200 million, so in August 2004, the Marine Corps seized 1100 acres (4.5 km²) on Blount Island (Gate's entire Blount Island holdings) by eminent domain
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
and paid $101 million (later increased to $106 million). When land is seized by eminent domain for uses that benefit the public, the government is required to pay landowners "just compensation", so Gate asked for a jury to decide the land's value. On November 14, 2005, a jury determined that the government should pay $162 million for the parcel.
Public facility
The 754 acres (3.1 km²) Blount Island Marine Terminal is JAXPORT's largest container facility, handling 80% of all container cargo at the port, but also processes Ro/Ro, heavy lift, breakbulk and liquid bulk cargoes. The terminal has 6,600 linear feet (2,012 m) of deep water berths.Blount Island has one 112-ton whirly crane and six container cranes (three 50-ton cranes, one 45-ton crane and two 40-ton cranes), with two additional cranes planned for purchase in 2010. The terminal also offers 240000 square feet (22,296.7 m²) of transit shed space and a 90000 square feet (8,361.3 m²) Container Freight Station for cross-dock efficiency.
In addition to import operations, several companies provide freight service to the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
, including Trailer Bridge and Crowley Maritime
Crowley Maritime
Crowley Maritime Corporation, based in Jacksonville, Florida, and founded in 1892, is primarily a family and employee-owned company that provides transportation and logistics services in U.S...
.
Rail
Over 30% of the terminal's shipments utilize on-dock rail service provided by CSX CorporationCSX Corporation
CSX Corporation was formed in 1980 by the merger of Chessie System and Seaboard Coast Line Industries and eventually merged the various railroads owned by those predecessors into a single line that became known as CSX Transportation. Based in Richmond, Virginia, USA after the merger, in 2003...
directly. JAXPORT owns the 14 miles (22.5 km) of track, which was laid down in the late 1960s. In the Fall of 2009, the Port Authority received a grant of almost $6 million to improve the Blount Island rail system, which was also utilized by the U.S. Marine Corps' terminal. The United States Department of Transportation
United States Department of Transportation
The United States Department of Transportation is a federal Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with transportation. It was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, and began operation on April 1, 1967...
required matching funds of $1.7 million from JAXPORT. The project laid 3½ miles of new track and replaced 12,000 aging crossties.
Truck
The island has highway access nearby. Interstate 295Interstate 295 (Florida)
Interstate 295 , an auxiliary route of Interstate 95, is a bypass route around central Jacksonville, Florida, which is currently signed on the western half for...
(State Road 9-A) is located one mile (1.6 km) west; Interstate 95
Interstate 95 in Florida
Interstate 95 is the main Interstate Highway on the east coast of the United States; it serves the Atlantic coast of Florida. It begins at a partial interchange with U.S. Highway 1 just south of downtown Miami, and heads north past Daytona Beach and Jacksonville to the Georgia state line at the St...
is five minutes away with Interstate 10
Interstate 10
Interstate 10 is the fourth-longest Interstate Highway in the United States, after I-90, I-80, and I-40. It is the southernmost east–west, coast-to-coast Interstate Highway, although I-4 and I-8 are further south. It stretches from the Pacific Ocean at State Route 1 in Santa Monica,...
on the west side of the I-295 beltway. Interstate 75
Interstate 75
Interstate 75 is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes and Southeastern regions of the United States. It travels from State Road 826 and State Road 924 in Hialeah, Florida to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, at the Ontario, Canada, border...
is a one hour drive west.