Port Tampa Bay Marks Historic Deepening Of Big Bend Canal

TAMPA, FL -- - After decades of planning and 2 1/2 months of dredging, Port Tampa Bay and its public and private partners will mark the milestone project in a Tuesday, Jan. 15, 12:20 p.m. ceremony at Port Redwing.

Deepening and widening the Big Bend Channel will allow for larger ships to call at terminals. This will ultimately bring thousands of goods through the Interstate 4 corridor, the fastest-growing part of the state.

"This is the largest project we have worked on at Port Tampa Bay," said Port Tampa Bay President/CEO Paul Anderson. "This is a legacy project that will create benefits at the port for generations to come."

Port Redwing is approximately 270 acres of Port Tampa Bay property in southern Hillsborough County, which port officials envision to be a major area for warehousing and distribution in the next decade.

This area is served by the Big Bend Channel, which connects to the main channel in Tampa's harbor. The channel also serves separate private terminals for Mosaic and Tampa Electric.

The dredging project, underway since October, is deepening the Big Bend Channel from 34 feet to 43 feet, and widening it from 200 feet to 250 feet.

Funding for this project is supported by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Florida Department of Transportation, Port Tampa Bay and two of the port's largest tenants: Mosaic and Tampa Electric.

The company doing the dredging is Great Lakes Dredge & Docks Co.

Image via Port Tampa Bay

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