Candidates for Ocean Highway & Port Authority – Expand to the west?

July 28, 2016 1:00 a.m.

Editor’s Note: A Fernandina Observer Town Hall Meeting involving candidates for the Ocean Highway & Port Authority scheduled for July 15, was cancelled due to a tragic accident that claimed the life of an employee at the Port of Fernandina. Since scheduling another Town Hall within a short period of time was not possible, we presented candidates with five questions and asked for their written responses. This is the fourth in a series of five questions posed.

District 2 Candidates

Jimmy Dubberly, Incumbent Danny Fullwood

Fullwood
Incumbent Danny Fullwood Candidate for Ocean Highway & Port Authority District 2.

How should OHPA expand its county involvement west of Amelia Island?

The Ocean Highway and Port Authority is an arm of Economic Development and by its Charter has the ability to issue bonds to any business that may need money to start its business. The Port also needs storage space. We would like to build a storage facility somewhere west of I-95.

 

 

 

 

Jimmy Dubberly, Candidate OHPA District 1
Jimmy Dubberly, Candidate OHPA District 2

How should OHPA expand its county involvement west of Amelia Island?
“The current and past Master Plans lack county unity. The Port of Fernandina should be a viable entity of our community and should provide positive influence in the future. The Port Authority should offer assistance to small, minority, and women-owned businesses by partnering with them on Port business. This includes the Westside of Nassau County.

Port of Fernandina Beach (OHPA) Procurement Department is responsible for the purchasing of construction, improvement, repair, or building, goods, supplies materials and services, to be used for port purposes, as specified by Chapter 95-488, Laws of Florida (“Enabling Act”). The problem is that OHPA lets Kinder Morgan provide these services and does not bid them out to small businesses.

The Port of Fernandina Beach should be helping small businesses within Nassau County. This includes those small businesses on the Westside of the County. If this Port was run correctly the millions of dollars that Kinder Morgan makes as a profit should be spread among the small businesses in Nassau County to include the Westside.”

Click here to view Dubberly Press Release submitted to the Fernandina Observer.

OHPA District 1 Candidates

Edward T. Coop, Pat K. Gass, Robert “Bob” Sturgess

Edward T. Coop, Candidate OHPA, Dist 1
Edward T. Coop, Candidate OHPA, Dist 1

How should OHPA expand its county involvement west of Amelia Island?

“As the OHPA has a voting seat on the North Florida Transportation Planning Organization the OHPA has direct involvement in securing funds for highway improvements in Nassau County. The acting members of the organization should be extremely proactive in securing all funds available for the highway improvements which can help in moving products in and out of Nassau County more efficiently.

I also suggest the development of a shipping transportation hub on the west side of the county where land is cheaper so products can be moved in and out of the Fernandina port without having to increase its footprint, thus easing the minds of the citizens who live alongside the port fearing eminent domain authority which could take their homes for public use.”

Pat K. Gass, Candidate OHPA District 1
Pat K. Gass, Candidate OHPA District 1

How should OHPA expand its county involvement west of Amelia Island?

“The OPHA has the ability to influence and generate economic opportunities throughout the county, this is due to it’s unique nature as an independent Special District we can save money for citizens by selling bonds to pay for improvements and economic opportunities for the citizens of Nassau county without raising our taxes.”

 

 

Bob Sturgess Crop
Candidate Robert “Bob” Sturgess OHPA District 1

How would OHPA (the Port Authority) expand its county involvement west of Amelia Island?

“First, the question presumes that the Port Authority has the ability to expand. According to its 2015 financial statement, the Port Authority is not only broke, but in the hole almost a half-million dollars. It has used its property as collateral to borrow money from Kinder Morgan to make its annual bond payment.

If the Port Authority had the ability to expand off the island, my other answers have already spoken to those residents of the potential dangers of such expansion. Beware of a knock on your door by a person who says, “Hi. I’m from a Special District of the government called OHPA, and I’m here to help.”

If the Port Authority has both the ability to expand (money) and good intentions, it should distribute the money to the County and municipalities. If the bond is paid off, the Port Authority could have well over a million dollars a year to spend. However, rather than have the five OHPA Commissioners sit back and decide how and who to help, I would simply distribute funds to the County and municipalities. The west side of the County, for example, needs infrastructure, and the County Commissioners have already prioritized it. At the very least, a Port Authority with money should do nothing without restoring every city’s Constitutional rights.

In sum, if and when the Port Authority has funds to spend on expansion, our City and County Commissioners should have the final say-so on the expenditures – not OHPA – unless it can demonstrate judicially a public purpose and reasonable necessity to act on its own.”

Click here to view press release submitted to the Fernandina Observer.