Portside Magazine: Mount Vernon Megasite

FROM THE BOARD ROOM
The Ports of Indiana Commission is a seven-member,
bipartisan board of directors for the Ports of Indiana
which is appointed by the governor and meets six times
per year to approve major projects.
Ken
Kaczmarek
Chairman
Greg
Gibson
Vice Chairman
Marvin
Ferguson
Michael
Browning
Monica
Newhouse-
Rodriguez
Christine
Keck
Miriam
Robeson
Investing in infrastructure drives future growth
The Ports of Indiana
Commission approved nearly
$6 million in infrastructure
investments for Indiana’s three
ports for 2017 bringing the port’s
nine-year capital improvement
program to over $58 million.
“Investments in critical
infrastructure are a ‘way of life’ at
the Ports of Indiana and we have
made a commitment to our port
companies to keep our campuses
Rich Cooper
CEO, Ports of Indiana
in tip-top shape when it comes to land, roads, rail and maritime
infrastructure,” said Ports of Indiana CEO Rich Cooper. “As a
self-funded enterprise, we have to make the same type of decisions
that all businesses make when it comes to how and where to
reinvest. The answer has been very easy for us—continual
reinvestment into our port properties and infrastructure has
always been a stimulus for our private sector partners to do the
same. At the end of the day, we want to create a premier inland
port system and an environment that provides our port family of
businesses with a sustainable competitive advantage.”
Capital investments approved this year for the Port of
Indiana-Mount Vernon include repairing and re-paving
port roads. Road improvements were made at the Port of
Indiana-Jeffersonville and work began on a multi-year rail
expansion project.
Jay
Potesta
Secretary/Treasurer
Projects at the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor include
additional security cameras, upgrades to the port’s fire pump
system and completion of a multi-year sewer project.
Shipments at Indiana’s three ports are up over 10 percent
year-to-date through September, compared to the same time
period last year. Project cargoes, up nearly 118 percent over
2016, have included nine shipments of wind energy components
and ICARUS, the world’s largest liquid argon particle hunter.
Metro Ports, the country’s oldest stevedoring company,
opened its only Great Lakes facility at the Port of Indiana-Burns
Harbor in July, immediately doubling the size of the port’s bulk
terminal. The port was recently notified by the U.S. Department
of Transportation that it has been approved for a $9.85 million
FASTLANE grant as part of a $19.7 million expansion of the
port’s infrastructure to increase cargo handling capacity and
multimodal capabilities.
The total value of economic activity provided by Indiana’s
three ports has increased from $5.4 billion to $7.8 billion since
2009, an increase of 45 percent. In addition, beginning in 2010,
$636 million has been invested by private companies into new
port facilities or expansions.
The mission of the Ports of Indiana is to develop and
maintain a world-class port system that operates as an agile,
strategically-driven, self-funded enterprise dedicated to growing
Indiana’s economy. Additional capital projects will be reviewed
and awarded at future Ports of Indiana Commission meetings.
For information, visit portsofindiana.com.
Governor appoints two new commissioners to Ports board
Indiana Governor Eric J. Holcomb has appointed Monica
Newhouse-Rodriguez and Michael Browning to the Ports of Indiana
Commission. Newhouse-Rodriguez is managing principal of
Newhouse and Associates, a national airport consulting firm which
provides airport planning, capital management and development
services. Browning is the former president and
CEO, and now chairman of the board, for
Browning Investments, the largest developer
of industrial distribution facilities in central
Indiana.
“It is an honor to have two business
professionals with such distinguished careers
and extensive experience in transportation
planning and industrial development join the
Ports of Indiana team,” said Ports of Indiana
CEO Rich Cooper. “Our organization is
dedicated to growing Indiana’s economy by
Michael
Browning
developing world-class ports with a sustainable business model that
does not require state funding to subsidize operations. We have
been extremely successful because of the highly-qualified, businessfocused
leadership provided by our commission and management
team, and we look forward to the contributions that Monica and
Michael will make to the Ports of Indiana.”
Newhouse-Rogriguez currently manages transportation and
planning issues for the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport,
George Bush Intercontinential Airport and Miami International
Airport. She received her bachelor’s degree in aerospace from Middle
Tennessee University and her MBA in information decision sciences
from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
She is on the Board of Directors of World
Business Partners and Associates for Airports
Council International–North America, the
primary trade association for airports in the
U.S. and Canada, and one of five worldwide
regions.
Browning has been chairman of the board
Monica
Newhouse-Rodriguez
for Browning Investments since 2013 and was
the company’s president and CEO from 1981
to 2013. The Indianapolis-based real estate
development company’s portfolio includes
large industrial parks, such as AirTech Park and AllPoints Midwest,
and several downtown office buildings totaling over 2 million square
feet, including Capital Center and 300 North Meridian. Michael
has been honored as “Entrepreneur of the Year” by Ernst & Young
and Inc. Magazine and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the
University of Notre Dame.
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PORTSIDE – 2017 Issue 1