SEAFOOD INDUSTRIAL PARK RECEIVES PORT AUTHORITY GRANT
Newport News’ Seafood Industrial Park at the southern tip of the city will get a $506,508 grant from the Virginia Port Authority to upgrade safety equipment, replace deteriorated wood structures and increase capacity in the park.
In the last few years, the park has received more than $2 million from the authority for various projects.
Doreen Kopacz, the park’s harbormaster, said demand for space is high, particularly during rough conditions on the water. Sometimes, she’ll have 140 vessels to manage — “it’s like chess to place everything just right,” she
said.
Part of the grant will fund refurbishment of heavy barge mooring on the southern side of the commercial pier to increase capacity and allow in larger vessels, according to a news release from the city.
Kopacz said many structures at the park should be replaced after decades in the water.
The park got about 25 years of use out of its fendering system, and Kopacz said the new concrete pilings should last much longer.
Projects from the grant are expected to start toward the end of the summer.
Kopacz said most of the recent projects were similarly focused on increasing capacity, allowing larger vessels into the harbor and various replacements.
She started soon after the economic crash of 2008 and had a tenant pull out of the park, causing a “sizable cut” to revenue.
The improvements over the years, she said, have helped revenue bounce back, and the park set a record for revenue last year.
She said items for Hampton University’s Proton Therapy Institute were delivered through the park, and construction companies often bring equipment through as well. One time, there was a military stealth fighter — Kopacz said it was covered, but she could tell what it was.
“The seafood park touches a lot of areas,” she said.
As harbormaster, the business element is important, but it’s also vital to her that the park supports mariners and offers safety when they need it. She has decades of experience working on vessels and being out on the water.
“I know what it’s like to need to take shelter,” she said, adding that the weather this past week has led several mariners to inquire about the park. “They know it’s safe here.”
The Virginia Port Authority distributed $1 million through it’s Aid to Local Ports Grant Program this year, and the Seafood Industrial Park was the largest recipient.