Port Canaveral Approves $60 Million for New Cruise Terminal

Port Canaveral Approves $60 Million for New Cruise Terminal

The Canaveral Port Authority Commission approved more than $60 million in construction projects, including the building of a new cruise terminal by summer 2012, and the design of the Canaveral Cove Welcome Center, targeted for opening in 2013.

Skanska USA Building Inc. of Orlando was chosen to build the new Cruise Terminal 6 and Tampa-based Misener Marine was selected to build new piers for cruise and cargo berths. The commission also moved forward with revitalization of the Cove in choosing GWWO Inc. of Baltimore to design the Canaveral Cove Welcome Center. The project is seen as the catalyst for development of the Cove, the port’s entertainment district on the south side of the harbor.

“The building of a new cruise terminal, piers, and the design of the Cove project are vital to the growth of Port Canaveral, and come at a crucial time for our community,” said Joe Matheny, chairman of the Canaveral Port Authority Commission. “The thousands of direct and indirect jobs created from these various projects will help provide local employment and tax revenue to bolster our area’s sagging economy.”

The Canaveral Port Authority in December supplemented its own revenues with a $42 million loan to take advantage of low construction costs in order to accelerate its $100 million expansion program of its cruise and cargo facilities. The low 3.14 percent interest rate loan has a term of 13 years and, with the port’s existing debt, will enable Port Canaveral to be debt free in 2023.