Canaveral Harbor Project Moves Forward

port_canaveral1-600x0Canaveral Harbor was included in the first draft of the U.S. House Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) based upon its completed and fully approved Section 203 study. Port Canaveral officials will continue to work with leaders in Washington as the bill is debated and eventually approved to assure this essential project secures its authorization. Upon House approval, WRDA will go to the Senate for final approval.

With favorable approval from the Chief of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and inclusion in the first draft of the House legislation, which includes language for WRDA bills on a regular basis, widening and deepening of Port Canaveral harbor will begin this fall. Completion of Phase 1 of the project is expected in late 2014.

Port Canaveral’s channel will be widened by another 100 feet and deepened an average of 2 feet along the length of the harbor to accommodate larger vessels. With the growth of Port Canaveral’s cruise and cargo operations, the improvements will improve navigational and safety margins.

“Already a thriving and growing cruise Port, we rapidly are expanding to become one of Florida’s major container ports,” said Port CEO John E. Walsh. “Widening and deepening of the Port’s harbor is one of the best investments for our state. We already have begun early efforts to continue deepening to eventually get to 50-to 55-feet deep.”

Walsh added, “Passage of a WRDA this fall is essential for Port Canaveral, our fellow Florida seaports and critical seaport infrastructure projects nationwide. We need to reinvest in our future.”

Canaveral channel improvement costs total $57 million to date, with the Port Authority paying $19.4 million and Florida Department of Transportation paying $37.6 million. As part of overall cargo services expansion, Port Canaveral is constructing two new cargo berths and has purchased two new post-Panamax ship-to-shore cranes.                                  Port Canaveral

 

 

The 102nd Annual AAPA Convention to take place in Orlando and Port Canaveral

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For the first time in its 60-year history, the Canaveral Port Authority will serve as host of the American Association of Port Authorities’ annual convention, which takes place Oct. 13-17.  And, for the first time in AAPA’s 102-year history, the business meetings for its international conference will be split between two locations: Port Canaveral, Fla.-one of the world’s busiest cruise ports with growing cargo; and Orlando, Fla.-one of the busiest American cities for conferences and conventions.

The Annual Convention and Expo is AAPA’s largest membership meeting of the year. Held every fall in a different port city, the Convention includes technical and policy committee meetings, business sessions and social events allowing port professionals and stakeholders in the marine transportation industry to exchange views and expand business contacts. The Expo is an integral part of the convention program providing opportunities for networking and exchange of ideas.

As part of the convention’s informative business program, a host of presenters from both the private and public sectors will discuss topics ranging from global and economic trade recovery to perspectives on the future of public port authorities.  Keynoting the program will be U.S. Department of Transportation Deputy Secretary John Porcari, as well as Canadian Ambassador to the United States Gary Doer and Disney Cruise Line President Karl Holz.

The AAPA Annual Convention is the premier Western Hemisphere gathering of the seaport industry and includes an industry exposition featuring companies in the port services industry. The AAPA annual expo is the place to exhibit to reach top decision-makers from port authorities, marine terminal operators, integrators, engineering firms and key industry executives.

Space Coast Music Festival in Cape Canaveral

space-coast-music-festival-85 This year`s Space Coast Music  Festival in Cape Canaveral promises to  turn an ordinary day into a real musical  celebration with a lot of fun moments  and unforgettable memories.  The Festival will include 10 hours of non-  stop music, featuring headliner The New  Orleans Suspects, on a beautiful  waterfront setting.

The all-day party will be held at the Manatee Sanctuary Park in Cape Canaveral on Saturday, September 28th from 11 AM – 10pm. There will be all kinds of interesting activities for the guests, including a classic car show cruise, a children’s stage area with Rock Star Parties, where the little ones can get their faces painted, colour their hair with spray and perform with real instruments.

The event will also feature the renowned and diverse array of critically acclaimed art and craft vendors. This year`s Space Coast Music Festival will also include THE KING (QUEEN) OF WINGS COMPETITION, where Space Coast area restaurants will compete to see who has the best wings.

The admission for this day of celebration is only $5 and children under 12 will be admitted free with a paid adult admission.

 

The NewYork-styled Norwegian Breakaway to call at Port Canaveral

norwegian-breakawayRecently, Norwegian Cruise Line announced that its newest ship, the 4,000-passenger Norwegian Breakaway, will call at Port Canaveral during 7-day cruises from New York City to the Bahamas, starting in October of this year.

Norwegian Breakaway, which debuted in April 2013, is a New York City-inspired ship that sails year-round from the Big Apple to Bermuda. The ship is the first of two Project Breakaway vessels. Breakaway, the first of a new vessel class for Norwegian, was designed to reflect the culture and style of its New York homeport from the outside in. The hull pops with a colorful depiction of the NYC skyline designed by American pop icon Peter Max. The high-energy ship is chock full of eateries, entertainment venues, lounges and outdoor activities. Chances are you’ll never get to try everything in one sailing. Between three Broadway shows, 27 restaurants, an 80’s-themed dance party with fireworks, a full schedule of day and night activities and the half-deck Aqua Park and Ropes Course, you might have a hard time deciding which activity to tackle first.

“This is an exciting ship with the kind of innovative experiences we always are looking to add to this Port’s offerings,” said Port Authority Commissioner John Evans. “And we look forward to welcoming the thousands of visiting passengers it will bring to enjoy the attractions of the Space Coast.”

Carnival Cruise Lines with changes at Port Canaveral in 2014

Carnival SensationPort Canaveral announced that starting in 2014 Carnival will add new ships to its schedule of home-ported ships sailing year-round to Caribbean destinations. The first new ship, the renovated Carnival Sunshine, will arrive in April 2014 and replace the Carnival Dream at Canaveral. The next month, the larger Carnival Liberty will arrive to replace the Carnival Ecstasy at the Brevard County seaport.

Carnival Sunshine, which recently completed a massive $155 million transformation, will be repositioned from New Orleans to Port Canaveral beginning in April 2014. This move will allow Carnival to continue to offer attractive new options from Port Canaveral and marks the first time the line will have a ship in Central Florida featuring all of the fantastic Fun Ship 2.0 bar, dining and entertainment innovations.

Carnival will also increase capacity in Port Canaveral by 30 percent when Carnival Liberty launches year-round five- to eight-day Caribbean cruises in May 2014, adding a second Fun Ship 2.0-equipped vessel to the Space Coast.  The ship’s many popular features include Guy’s Burger Joint, developed in tandem with Food Network star Guy Fieri, along with BlueIguana Cantina, RedFrog Rum Bar, EA Sports Bar, BlueIguana Tequila Bar and the award-winning Alchemy Bar.

Carnival Sensation will continue sailing 3- and 4-night cruises to The Bahamas from Port Canaveral to round out Carnival’s three-ship Canaveral fleet

“Port Canaveral has been a valuable partner with Carnival for more than 20 years and we’re pleased to expand our operations from the Space Coast with the deployment of the Carnival Liberty in 2014,” Carnival Cruise Lines President and CEO Gerry Cahill said in a prepared statement.

Carnival Cruise Lines continues to make a positive economic impact upon our community,” said Port Canaveral Commission Secretary/Treasurer Frank Sullivan “and we continue to warmly welcome their ships and their partnership at our Port.”