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2021 Port of Brownsville Year in Review

 

While the aftereffects of 2020 continue to reverberate across industries worldwide, the Port of Brownsville overcame significant challenges to develop sustainable infrastructure and job creation for local families and businesses. As we look back at the quarterly highlights of 2021, we celebrate the successes and look forward to the promise of 2022.

 

First Quarter

  • In its annual State of the Port, the port reported record-breaking statistics with the movement of  11.6 million short tons of diverse cargo with operating revenues of $37 million for FY 2020.
  • International Shipbreaking, part of the world-leading recycler EMR Metal Recycling, gained EU Ship Recycling Regulation (EU SSR) accreditation – the first in the United States – for its site at the Port of Brownsville after investing $30 million in compliant infrastructur
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Port of Brownsville Recognizes Schaefer Stevedoring with 2021 Chairman’s Award

BROWNSVILLE, Texas — December 14, 2021 — The Port of Brownsville presented Schaefer Stevedoring with its 2021 Chairman’s Award in honor of the company’s achievements throughout its 30 years of operation.
Brownsville Navigation District Chairman Sergio Tito Lopez presented the award to Ken Schaefer, president and owner of Schaefer Stevedoring, on Dec. 14 during the annual Customer Appreciation Luncheon held at the Rancho Viejo Convention Center in Rancho Viejo.

 

Headquartered at the port, Schaefer Stevedoring is an international stevedoring company providing shipping services within the maritime and port logistics industries of the United States and Mexico. The family-owned company currently employs 85 staff members at its Brownsville headquarters.

 

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TXDoT Gives Port Top Marks in Risk Assessment

The Texas Department of Transportation (TXDoT) in October issued the Port of Brownsville a grade A score for its Local Government Risk Assessment based on the performance of the South Port Connector Road construction project.
A risk score of A signifies that the Brownsville Navigation District (BND) presents a low-level risk to TXDoT based on the current project performance. The Local Government Risk Assessment and Qualifications Review process includes criteria such as a local government’s credibility, audit history, financial records, compliance, communications, expertise, stability, and teamwork. Interdepartmental collaboration between port departments was key in achieving the score.
Construction of t

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85th Anniversary Community Celebration

The Port of Brownsville has proudly served the Rio Grande Valley region for nearly a century.

On Saturday, Oct. 23, the port invites the community to its 85th Anniversary Community Celebration. This free community event commemorates the port’s opening in 1936 and its continued growth and economic importance throughout the Rio Grande Valley. By seeing the port firsthand, you’ll know why it is known as the Port that works.

The 85th Anniversary Community Celebration will take place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 23, at the Port of Brownsville. This event will be a fun-filled day for children and adults of all ages to enjoy:

 

  • Live music
  • Animal exhibits
  • Free food
  • Port boat tours*
  • Port bus tours*
  • Children’s play area
  • Prizes
  • Much More

 

*For

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Port Pilots Set the Course for Safety

 

On any given day, vessels loaded with cargo appear to effortlessly glide over the deep Gulf Coast waters on their way to the only deepwater seaport on the U.S.- Mexico border led by one of the four Brazos Santiago Pilots Association (BSPA) harbor pilots. Captains Gene R. Tuttle, Chris Urbanovsky, Jonathan P. Willett and Grant S. Wilson are tasked with safeguarding the waterways of the Brownsville Navigation District and Port Isabel-San Benito Navigation District while guiding vessels in and out of the 17-mile long Brownsville Ship Channel with unmatched knowledge and expertise.

Since its grand opening in 1936, vessels from around the world have called upon the Port of Brownsville to deliver essential goods supporting a wide range of industries throughout North America. Eighty five years later the port continues to be the leading economic driver of the Rio Grande Valley. In 2

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Economic Development Key to Port’s Success

New Committee to Explore Economic Development Opportunities

BROWNSVILLE, Texas – October 1, 2021 – Brownsville Navigation District Chairman Sergio Tito Lopez named Secretary Esteban Guerra as chairman of a newly created committee focused on enhancing economic development opportunities at the Port of Brownsville. The committee will also include Commissioner John Reed as vice chair.

“As highlighted by U.S. Senator John Cornyn’s recent visit to our port, we are the economic engine of the Rio Grande Valley,” Chairman Lopez stated. “I have created this committee to identify those opportunities so that we as a commission may act on them.”

Senator Cornyn visited the Port of Brownsville on Sept. 16 to participate in an economic development roundtable discussion with Rio Grande Valley public officials and members of the business community. The event was organized

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Advanced Manufacturing Training Coming to the Rio Grande Valley

On Sept. 23, the Texas A&M University System and two of its state engineering agencies – the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station (TEES) and the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service (TEEX) –announced a new initiative to invigorate an important Rio Grande Valley industry sector, advanced manufacturing, with workforce development programs that will prepare people for high-need jobs.

The Texas A&M RGV Advanced Manufacturing/Training Innovation Now (TRAIN) program gathers community input, creates collaborations and develops training courses that meet the needs of current and future employers at the Port of Brownsville. In two years, TRAIN will award 10,000 certificates through on line and on-site classes.

TEES and TEEX, two state agencies renowned for their workforce training and professional development, will offer these courses in English and Spanish. There i

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Honoring our Highway Heroes: Celebrating National Truck Driver Appreciation Week

By Sergio Tito Lopez, Chairman of the Brownsville Navigation District

In honor of National Truck Driver Appreciation Week (Sept. 12-18), the Port of Brownsville, along with the entire trucking industry in the United States, is thanking the millions of professional truck drivers who work every day to deliver America’s freight safely and securely to provide for our communities.

Nearly every part of our lives is impacted by the work of these highway heroes. The trucking industry is the backbone of our economy, and our professional drivers are the industry’s heart. Visit any grocery store, business, or medical facility throughout the Rio Grande Valley, or any other part of the country, and that becomes immediately obvious. Without them, our workplace, home, dinner table, and everything else in our life would look very different.

America’s professional truck drivers ar

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Port of Brownsville Announces New Deputy Port Directors

BROWNSVILLE, Texas — September 3, 2021 – The Port of Brownsville announces the appointment of two new deputy port directors effective August 9, 2021.

Melinda Rodriguez is the deputy port director of administration and will oversee the port’s Human Resources, Real Estate Services, Finance, Communications and Administrative Services departments.

Rodriguez has worked in a variety of leadership positions with organizations such as NextDecade, Texas Southmost College, Catholic Charities of Central Texas, United Way of Hidalgo County, March of Dimes, Cystic Fibrosis-Central Texas, and United Blood Services. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from the University of Texas, Pan American (now UTRGV), a Master of Arts in Human Services from St. Edward’s University, and she is currently working on a doctorate degree. Her career spans 33 years in administratio

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Continued Investment

Editor’s Note: This article is featured in the latest edition of the Port of Brownsville Directory

The Port of Brownsville began 85 years ago as a major agriculture hub for the region, and 2020 saw the restart of grain exports of regionally grown sorghum destined to China, creating new international market opportunities for South Texas farming families. The port completed the rehabilitation of Bulk Cargo Dock, improving access to the 3 million-bushel grain elevator operated by WestPlains LLC. In 2020, the port received a $14.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to improve railroad, road and ship-loading infrastructure at the Bulk Cargo Dock and further expand WestPlains’ grain-handling operations at the facility.

To keep up with growing demand for additional cargohan

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Public Access to Gayman Channel Restricted

Work Continues to Restore Bahia Grande Basin

BROWNSVILLE, Texas – August 27, 2021 – Access to the Carl “Joe” Gayman channel will be closed to the public beginning Saturday, Aug. 28, 2021, as work continues to increase tidal exchange and restore the Bahia Grande as a major fish, wildlife and waterfowl nursery.

The closure will occur to the south of SH 48, limiting public parking and access to the channel.

The current 34-foot-wide half-mile Gayman channel connecting the Bahia Grande and the Brownsville Ship Channel will be widened to 250 feet and deepened to nine feet. This will increase tidal exchange by a factor of 13x and restore the ecosystem as a major fish, wildlife and waterfowl nursery and habitat. The Bahia Grande is a 10,000-acre coastal ecosystem and wetland complex that includes three shallow basins located within the Laguna Atascosa

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Notice of Meeting to Vote on Tax Rate

Statements required in notice if the proposed tax rate does not exceed the lower of the no-new-revenue tax rate or the voter-approval tax rate, as prescribed by Tax Code Sec. 26.061.

A tax rate of $0.029955 per $100 valuation has been proposed by the governing body of BROWNSVILLE NAVIGATION DISTRICT.

PROPOSED TAX RATE                          $0.029955 per $100

NO-NEW-REVENUE TAX RATE          $0.030285 per $100

VOTER-APPROVAL TAX RATE            $0.029955 per $100

The no-new-revenue tax rate is the tax rate for the 2021 tax year that will raise the same amount of property tax revenue for BROWNSVILLE NAVIGATION DISTRICT from the same properties in both the 2020 tax year and the 2021 tax year.

The voter-approval rate is the highest tax rate that BROWNSVILLE NAVIGATION DISTRICT may adopt without holding an election to seek voter approval o

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2021 Notice of Tax Rates in the Brownsville Navigation District

This notice concerns the 2021 property tax rates for BROWNSVILLE NAVIGATION DISTRICT. This notice provides information about two tax rates used in adopting the current tax year’s tax rate. The no-new-revenue tax rate would impose the same amount of taxes as last year if you compare properties taxed in both years. In most cases, the voter-approval tax rate is the highest tax rate a taxing unit can adopt without holding an election. In each case, these rates are calculated by dividing the total amount of taxes by the current taxable value with adjustments as required by state law. The rates are given per $100 of property value.

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