City Council Updates
An engineering report detailing $228 million in needed repairs to Richmond’s Point Potrero Marine Terminal prompted a detailed discussion Tuesday night after Councilmember Soheila Bana pulled the item from the city’s consent calendar for public review.
The presentation by Port Director Charles Gerard and a consultant from Moffatt & Nichol outlined structural deterioration across the city-owned port. Moffatt & Nichol found corroded pilings, cracked beams, pavement failures, and significant damage between Berths 6 and 7, where a fractured beam poses an immediate safety hazard.
The $250,000 study identified 11 priority projects to be phased over the next decade. Near-term work includes stabilizing damaged sections of the wharf and repairing the interface between marine and upland areas. Longer-term efforts would rehabilitate the port’s aging piers, graving basins, and the deteriorated Whirley Crane structure.
City Manager Shasa Curl told the council that, because the report and its findings had now been publicly presented, the city was obligated to act quickly on the most critical safety concerns.
“From a risk management perspective, now that we’ve had this conversation in public and you’re all on notice, those two red priority projects need to begin right away,” Curl said. “Prior to this report being finalized, we didn’t have a definitive way to articulate what the priorities were. Now we do, and we have to act.”
Curl said staff had already begun prioritizing the immediate safety work identified in the report. Curl said the city would use the port’s roughly $20 million in reserves to fund urgent repairs while continuing to pursue state and federal grants, including an $11.9 million Port Infrastructure Development Program application pending with the U.S. Maritime Administration.
The Point Potrero Marine Terminal operates as an enterprise fund, meaning its approximately $13 million in annual revenue and reserves are managed separately from the city’s general fund. Curl confirmed that no police, fire, or other general city funds would be used for port repairs. The port still owes the city less than $10 million from past advances, Curl said, with a repayment plan in place.
Councilmember Bana said she pulled the item because of its size and fiscal importance.
“Anything over a million should be discussed,” Bana said, adding questions about financing, debt, and the port’s ability to generate future revenue for the city.
Earlier in the meeting, Richmond resident Don Gosney criticized the city’s use of consent calendar items, saying that significant policy and financial matters were sometimes placed on agendas without sufficient public scrutiny.
“Consent items should be so innocuous that it doesn’t warrant a discussion,” Gosney said. “Inserting an issue onto the consent calendar is a very easy and very sneaky way of hiding something from the public.”
Consultant Matt Trowbridge said most ports across the United States face similar challenges in maintaining aging maritime infrastructure and rely heavily on public grants to offset costs. Trowbridge said Richmond’s planned upgrades would extend the terminal’s life for up to 50 years and position the facility for heavier cargo and higher-value shipping operations like construction and farm equipment.
Councilmember Claudia Jimenez said the assessment provides the foundation for a strategic plan to strengthen the port’s economic role.
“We need to have that plan so we can start really getting into implementing it,” Jimenez said.
According to Gerard, the port’s revenues have grown steadily and, while small compared with larger facilities like those in Oakland, Richmond’s marine terminals are fully leased. Gerard said the goal is to use the assessment as a “building block” toward long-term planning and future grant readiness.
SUPPORT LOCAL JOURNALISM - SUBSCRIBE TODAY!
Grandview Independent needs your financial support to continue delivering the news that matters to our community. Quality journalism costs money, and we can't do it without readers like you.
SUBSCRIBE NOW and get:
• Unlimited access to all articles
• Newsletters with exclusive content
• The satisfaction of backing independent local news that serves your community
CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE - Starting at just $10/month
FOLLOW US FOR BREAKING NEWS:
• Twitter: @GrandviewIndy
• Instagram: @GrandviewIndependent
• Facebook: @Grandview Independent
Copyright © 2025 Grandview Independent, all rights reserved.
Members Discussion