Erie County Executive Davis: County has cleared a hurdle to welcome cruise ships

Erie County Executive Brenton Davis says a significant hurdle has been cleared that might allow cruise ships to dock in Erie as soon as this coming summer.

A growing number of cruise lines have been visiting Great Lakes ports in recent years, bringing with them passengers and tourism dollars.

For subscribers: Why don't Great Lakes cruise ships stop in Erie? An overview of a tourism challenge

Erie has had a cruise ship terminal since 2002, but it hasn't been getting any of that business.

Both Davis and Brenda Sandberg, the former executive director of the Erie-Western Pennsylvania Port Authority, talked this past summer about what it would take to gain the attention of cruise ship companies and what would be needed to certify the cruise ship terminal.

While there is still work to be done, progress is being made.

According to a statement from the Davis administration, "Erie County has received the OK from the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Buffalo to welcome cruise ships into its port."

So what does that mean?

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Security plan

A security plan developed with the assistance of the Pittsburgh-based Valentis Group, a security company, has been approved after a number of meetings with the U.S. Coast Guard, said Chris Carroll, a spokesman for the county.

"We had to have a facility security plan approved in order to operate that facility as a port of call," Carroll said. Upgrades would include gates and fencing that would permit unauthorized people from boarding. He didn't say what the upgrades might cost.

What sort of port

He said those upgrades would allow the terminal to operate as a port of call that could accept passengers who have previously cleared customs to enter Erie without having to clear customs again.

Eventually, Carroll said, there might be thought given to Erie being designated as a passenger-clearing terminal, which would have U.S. Customs and Border Patrol on site.

That's a bigger hurdle to clear.

"I am not going to rule it out. It's going to take a lot of time and it's definitely down the road," Carroll said. "For now, we are looking at getting boats in and out of here."

The Port Authority recently announced Martin LaMar is its new executive director, but he doesn't start his new job until Monday.

More:Erie Port Authority names new director with a specialty in economic development

Sandberg, his predecessor, met this past summer with officials from Port Milwaukee, to see what she could learn about bringing cruise ships to Erie.

In addition to concerns about the need for upgraded security, Sandberg said at the time that Erie wasn't ready to clear passengers.

"Given the current requirements for customs and border patrol, as far as the facility needs to clear passengers, the current building no longer meets those requirements," she said.

Security upgrades still need to be made, but Carroll said Erie County is now in a position to begin talking about bringing business to Erie.

"We get the right people in the room at the right time. We made it happen," he said.

Carroll said the Coast Guard plans to visit Erie later this month for a final walk-through of the building.

Highlighting Erie's virtues

Davis said in a statement that the county's Economic Development Department has been talking with cruise lines for months about adding Erie as a stop.

“We have brought these executives to Erie to highlight all that we have to offer," he said. "We have received some good feedback and are hopeful that we will see our first cruise ship arrive as soon as this summer."

Contact Jim Martin at jmartin@timesnews.com.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie County Executive Davis hopes cruise ships could dock in Erie soon