Guest column: Project 34 jumpstarting a greener economy

Kristin Decas
·4 min read

The Port of Hueneme ranks as one of the top six ports in the United States for automobile imports and exports, supporting a trade that touches nearly every American. As an integral hub in the supply chain, we put our community first. Working with the City of Oxnard, the Port is currently proposing the development of a temporary staging site, locally known as Project 34, to promote commerce, improve efficiency, create jobs, and help the environment.

Governor Newsom mandated sales of all new passenger vehicles be zero-emission by 2035. If approved, Project 34 supports this goal by making it easier for manufacturers of electric vehicles to manage their supply chains and bring these vehicles to the market through the Port of Hueneme, making us an integral hub in a zero-emission future.

Auto shipments are forecasted to increase in the aftermath of pandemic driven supply shortages. By facilitating vehicle storage for our partner, Glovis, who imports Hyundais and Kias, some of the most in demand low and zero emission cars on the market, the Port is helping to ensure Glovis keeps its business here in Ventura County where the good paying jobs it provides are essential to many in our community. Glovis supports 167 employees of which 87 or 53% live in Oxnard.

Trade through the Port of Hueneme is responsible for 4% of Ventura County’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and provides employment for 6% of Ventura County’s workforce with more than 20,000 jobs. Oxnard residents make up 52% of trade-related direct jobs, Port of Hueneme residents account for 12%, and 95% of Port-related direct jobs support residents of Ventura County. This project would create 14 direct and more than 16 indirect jobs for the life of the Project, while adding $2.2 million in local salaries annually. On top of these direct types of jobs, it would also create more work for hundreds of union, stevedoring and other logistics workers at the Port, as well as generate local construction jobs for the trades under our Project Labor Agreement.

The Facts about Project 34:

  • ­Light Industrial Zoning — Strategically located along the Port Corridor on Hueneme Road, about one mile from the Port’s entrance, the proposed project site sits on privately owned land zoned as light industrial.

  • Low Impact Auto Transport — The proposed vehicle storage site would provide vehicle storage capacity. On a typical day, a maximum of 30 cars per hour could be driven to and from the site, ten at a time, six days a week.

  • Temporary Use — The permit request is for a temporary use, allowing the Port’s customer, Glovis, to operate on the property for three years with two one-year extension options, for a maximum of five years.

  • Keeping the Land Within Reach for the Greater Community Vision — The proposed project would preserve the land for a potential community or different future use, but this is incumbent on working with the private owner. We have bought some time to make such a vision possible and we are here to help with that conversation. As for the long-term, we are looking at several other sites for a prosperous future of trade and commerce, and in that endeavor are committed to an open and transparent approach with robust community involvement, environmental analysis, and permitting. Join us as partners in this effort.

Car shipments find their way to and from the Port of Hueneme from numerous countries all around the world, including our nation’s allies of Mexico, South Korea, Japan, Germany, Italy, and France. Many of the vehicle exports manufactured in the U.S. get to the docks by rail, one of the cleanest transportation modes. Imported vehicles are driven directly from the docks to distribution centers outside the Port’s gate, where they then get put on car carriers for transport to dealerships in approximately 15 western states.

With community at top of mind, this auto logistics plan – one with no auto carrier trucks leaving the Port, only cars going directly from the Port to local distribution sites — was designed at the onset with the specific intent of reducing truck traffic through adjacent neighborhood streets. Project 34 proposes to put the same community-friendly business model to work. Cars would be driven, not trucked, from the Port to the temporary site. From there, the cars would be driven to an automotive distributor and ultimately be railed or trucked to their final destinations. This type of transport method is unique to the Port of Hueneme. Other ports put cars on carriers and truck them from their gates to distribution centers. We reduce truck traffic through our local communities, protect our air, and avoid congestion moving cars the “Hueneme Way.”

With initiatives like Project 34, we can support business, keep jobs local, improve our environment and working together, cultivate a community vision.

Kristin Decas is the Port Director & CEO, Oxnard Harbor District, Port of Hueneme.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Guest column: Project 34 jumpstarting a greener economy