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 Manatee County
 Comprehensive Plan
 Element 4 - COASTAL
 Appendix 1.2. Port History

  § 1.2.3. Continued Expansion in Recent Decades to Serve Growing Market Demands

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  • Since the mid-1990s, Port Manatee has continued to improve and expand its assets to serve growing market demands. Between 1993 and 2003, the Port was home to weekly cruises, operating from Berth 9. In 2003, Chapter 67-1681 and subsequent amendments to the Laws of Florida relating to Port Manatee were recodified, reenacted, amended, and repealed. A new Manatee County Port Authority Act was recreated and reenacted (Chapter 2003-351, House Bill No. 829, Laws of Florida).

    Currently, Port facilities comprise approximately 1,100 acres of land, a ship basin 1,588 feet long by 787 feet wide, and an access channel 2.9 miles long, 400 feet wide and 40 feet deep, which links the ship basin with the federal channel in Tampa Bay. With the completion of Berths 4 and 5 in 2008, and the extension of Berths 12/14 in 2013, the Port has ten 40-foot depth berths totaling 7,243 linear feet. Adjacent to Berths 12/14, the initial 10 acres of a planned 52-acre containerized cargo have been developed. Two Gottwald mobile harbor cranes, installed in recent years, can load and unload bulk, breakbulk, heavy lift, and general cargo at multiple locations. Five of the berths have underground pipelines installed to load and discharge petroleum products; A roll-on, roll-off berth accommodates trailers and rolling equipment.

    To improve rail access, two new energy-efficient switch engines have been added to the Port's Class III railroad.

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    Warehouse space for the storage of general cargo products totals more than one million square feet, including 207,000 square feet of refrigerated space as well as 200 stationary reefer plugs plus 80 portable receptacles. A planned multi-user cold storage facility will add 148,000 square feet of space, subdivided for separate temperature control and other features. Other facilities include the terminal previously used for cruise operations, the Port's administrative offices, the Intermodal Center, and the Access Control Center at the Port's north entrance.