Coos Bay Tunnel Project Moves to Phase Two

By Karen Robes Meeks

The first phase of the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay’s railroad tunnel rehabilitation project has been completed. The $19.9 million project, which began in May 2018, is scheduled in two phases. The initial phase – which cost $5 million – called for finishing structural improvements to ensure the long-term safety and reliability of nine tunnels along the Coos Bay Rail Line, a significant mode for cargo transport in the region.

Meanwhile, work on the second phase has already begun, which entail improvements to drainage and track in six tunnels. Phase Two is expected to be done in the first quarter of 2021.

“Thanks to the financial support from federal and state agencies and hard work of our contractors, Phase I of the Tunnel Project was a success,” said Project Manager John Buckley. “We are excited to have begun Phase II and see this project to completion for the benefit of our rail customers and regional economy.”

New Infrastructure Director at Coos Bay

By Karen Robes Meeks

Jake Jacobs is the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay’s Director of Infrastructure Support Services. In this newly created role, Jacobs will be overseeing procurement processes, contract management, grant management and the Project Management Department.

“I am excited for this new opportunity at the Port of Coos Bay and looking forward to making a positive impact by supporting economic development in southwestern Oregon,” Jackobs said.

Before joining the port, Jacobs worked as the Supervisory Contracting Specialist at the United States Army Mission Installation Contracting Command in Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash. Prior to that, he was the Branch Chief of Supplies and Services, Procuring Contracting Officer with the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

Coos Bay Rail Bridge Repairs Complete

By Karen Robes Meeks

Repair and rehabilitation work on 37 timber bridge structures along the Coos Bay Rail Line has been completed by Scott Partney Construction, it was announced Tuesday by the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay, which owns and operates the rail line.

The Port’s contracted bridge engineering firm, Stantec Inc. will conduct the final inspection of the $2.3 million project, which calls for finding and replacing timber bridge bent caps, installing ballast at timber bridge approaches and surfacing and tamping of track at timber bridges, according to the port. Funding came from an Oregon Lottery-backed bond grant awarded in 2013 to the port.

Keeping the bridge infrastructure along the rail line is vital to the region. Ten shippers use the rail line to move goods on a daily basis.

“This project is important to not only the rail line, but to the economic health of the Southwest Oregon region,” says Project Manager, Rick Adamek. “It takes a team to pull off large rehabilitation projects such as this. We thank Scott Partney Construction and Stantec for helping to ensure the continued success of CBRL.”

Coos Bay Bridge Reopens

By Karen Robes Meeks

After being closed for a year because of structural failure, the Coos Bay Swing Span Bridge has been reopened by the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay.

In mid-April 2018, two center support columns failed, making the bridge inoperable. Finishing this major repair allows rail to relink from the North Spit to Coos Bay, a vital trade connection for the region.

With assistance from Jordan Cove LNG who provided the transload site (truck to rail), port officials were able to establish a transload facility on the North Spit, giving rail shippers south of the bridge the option to continue to use rail to transport their goods to market, the port reported.

The repairs include replacing the center structural columns and bracing and fixing the electrical mechanical system. The port took over ownership of the Coos Bay Swing Span bridge in 2010.

Coos Bay Prioritizes Infrastructure

By Karen Robes Meeks

The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay is making steady progress in pushing sustainable development while improving the state’s economy, according to the port’s recently published 2017/18 Annual Report.

The report looks at the port’s accomplishments and operational efforts for the last fiscal year. It touts the Coos Bay Rail Line as an advantage for regional shippers for sending goods domestically and overseas in a sustainable way, and the port’s location and full multi-modal transportation system as fertile for maritime development in the future.

The report also says that the port – through its various completed and in-progress projects – has been prioritizing the development of infrastructure and rehabilitation of its multi-modal transportation network.

“Infrastructure plays an enormous role in port operations,” said Port Commission President Dave Kronsteiner. “We are the stewards of a multi-modal transportation network including the Charleston Marina, the Coos Bay Rail Line and the Coos Bay harbor navigation channel.”

Visit https://www.oipcbannualreport18.com for a copy of the full report.

Coos Bay Rail Bridge Still Down

By Karen Robes Meeks

Efforts by the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay to repair the Coos Bay Swing Span bridge back to rail service continue in earnest.

After choosing a construction firm and steel parts fabricator to finish the needed repairs to the structure and seeing that preliminary construction plans are done, the port is working with contracted engineering consultants on design plans for “a temporary shoring and jacking system…to preserve the surrounding components of the bridge during repairs,” according to the port.

The bridge, a vital link that connects Oregon products to the National Railway Network and the port, has been closed to rail traffic since April following a structural failure. It is expected to reopen this fall.

Coos Bay Bridge Fix on Track

By Karen Robes Meeks

With a completed analysis of what went wrong, Oregon International Port of Coos Bay officials and engineering consultants are finalizing a construction plan to fix the Coos Bay Swing Span Bridge that has been out of service since April 13 when the bridge did not completely return to the open-to-river navigation position.

Fixing costs have not yet been determined but the port said it hopes to finish repairs in a three-month period.

In the meantime, Jordan Cove and local rail shippers are helping to make sure Coos Bay products move by linking local shippers to the national rail network. Jordan Cove has made space available to allow the use of an intermodal transfer area while the bridge is being worked on.

New Rail Spur for Coos Bay

By Karen Robes Meeks

More export opportunities and vessel calls could come to the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay, thanks to a newly completed rail spur that will be able to handle inbound freight in North Bend. A new rail spur will enable K2 Exports to move logs by rail from its K2 Exports yard on Ko-Kwel Wharf property directly to its export terminal, according to the port and the Coquille Economic Development Corporation (CEDCO).

“CEDCO has been interested in linking our industrial development property to the rail line ever since rail service returned to our communities,” said CEDCO CEO Judy Duffy-Metcalf. “After receiving a request to create a rail link and analytics to support the project from their customer, K2 Exports presented us with a business case for building a spur on the wharf property. We were happy to coordinate the effort with Coos Bay Rail Link,” she added.

New rail spur would make logging operations in the Willamette Valley more efficient. According to the CEDCO, an estimated 350 rail cars could handle the same log volume as 1,250 trucks.

Coos Bay Grant

By Karen Robes Meeks

Business Oregon has awarded the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay a $50,000 grant to complete a feasibility study that would help expand trade opportunities. The study will look at infrastructure needs and develop a cost analysis for building a multi-use rail that would serve marine terminal operations on the North Spit.

The port, which owns about 400 acres of marine industrial use-zoned land on the North Spit, has the chance to expand its state’s import and export capacity with a marine terminal that has access to rail.

Moving goods through Coos Bay's channel would help Oregon-based shippers get their produce to customers more quickly and economically. According to a EcoNorthwest for Business Oregon study, close to 40,000 40-foot containers of agricultural goods coming from the mid- and southern Willamette Valley, Southern Oregon, and the Oregon Coast are sent to the ports of Seattle and Tacoma to be shipped overseas, creating congestion and lag time.

Garibaldi Port Maintenance

By Karen Robes Meeks

The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay has deployed its staff to the Port of Garibaldi to dredge its marina and boat launch.

Annual maintenance dredging of navigational channels is conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which performs yearly dredging maintenance to keep shipping channels safe and navigable, but this year’s dredging doesn’t include launch ramps and marinas.

The work poses a financial hardship for smaller ports and has led to “significant amounts of shoaling within marinas along the entire Oregon Coast. The result of this shoaling jeopardizes the ability of commercial and recreational fishing fleets to moor, yielding catastrophic economic impacts,” according to the port.

In 2015, the state of Oregon bought The Laura, an Ellicot-360SL swing ladder suction dredge, to help in that effort and asked the Port of Coos Bay in late 2016 to operate and manage The Laura.

Last year, Port of Coos Bay staff went to the Port of Alsea to finish marina dredging. This year, they headed to the Port of Garibaldi, where vessels are currently sitting on bottom at low tide, preventing them from getting underway when the tide is out, according to the port.

“We are a small but growing port,” said Michael Saindon, Port of Garibaldi Manager. “Keeping the boat basin dredged is critical for the safety of all mariners and can make the difference to our many small business’ ability to be successful. With the help of the Port of Coos Bay and the state-owned dredge, we can keep the port dredged at a reasonable cost and not have to incur debt to keep the port running.”

The Port of Coos Bay staff is expected to return from the Port of Garibaldi on Dec. 21.

“We appreciate the staff’s willingness to spend time away from their homes and families for this project in order to ensure the strength and future of our sister ports,” said John Buckley, Charleston Marina Harbormaster.

Port of Coos Bay Honored

By Karen Robes Meeks

The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay will be honored on October 4 by the American Association of Port of Authorities (AAPA) for its outstanding communication programs.

The port will accept its award at the AAPA’s 51st annual Communications Awards Program luncheon in Long Beach, California, where AAPA is also hosting its annual convention.

The port, which submitted the Coos Bay rail line Railroad Centennial project in the Special Events category, earned an Award of Excellence in AAPA’s Communications Competition. Coos Bay was among 18 recipients who received an Award of Excellence.

“Ports play an integral role in the economic development of their region and part of that role is to tell the story of the Port to our community, business leaders and policy makers,” said Coos Bay CEO John Burns. “The Coos Bay rail line Railroad Centennial was a platform for us to celebrate this region’s history with our community as well as look towards further economic development in the future. We want to thank the AAPA for recognizing these efforts, the stakeholders who made this event possible, and to all the attendees who came and celebrated with us.”

Port of Coos Bay Gets New COO

Kathy Wall, the marine facilities manager and harbormaster at the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay is being promoted to the position of chief operating officer, according to the port’s new CEO, David Koch.

Koch, who confirmed the news with Coos Bay World newspaper July 30, said that since joining the port in 2006, Wall has held a variety of positions that make her “uniquely suited” to the COO job.

During her six years with Coos Bay, her duties have included economic development and marketing of industrial and marine industrial properties, along with project management in dredging and waterway permitting issues.

She has also served as the port’s representative regarding ocean policy issues including marine reserves and wave energy and has worked with port management on infrastructure projects, marketing, dredging issues and waterway permitting.

She inherits her new job from Koch, who was officially promoted to CEO in June. He joined the port as COO in October 2010. Prior to joining Coos Bay, he was one of the port’s contract attorneys with the Stebbins & Coffey law firm.

He had been named the port’s interim CEO in December 2011, replacing Jeff Bishop, who resigned last November after seven years in the position in order to accept a position as city manager of the town of Blanchard, Oklahoma.