Business View - October 2015 45
port and export, across our docks. We don’t receive any
taxpayer support from the city, so we have to be run like a
business. I need to generate enough revenues to pay for
my expenses and do capital improvements to my facili-
ties.”
In order to generate those revenues, the Port of Galves-
ton must offer the types of services that will help its busi-
ness partners, who lease space in the Port’s facilities, to
succeed. “We survive based upon our ability to attract
businesses here,” says Mierzwa, who believes that the
Port provides an excellent combination of attractive ame-
nities. “One of the beauties about the Port of Galveston,”
he explains, “is that it’s a smaller port that’s easy to get
to. It’s an easy-on, easy-off port. It’s a user-friendly port
from a shipper’s standpoint - our proximity to the Gulf of
Mexico and the ability of a ship to get into the port quickly
and get turned around quickly is a big selling point. And if
you do have cargo to be moved by rail, we’re serviced by
two Class One railroads, the Union Pacific and the BNSF,
that can reach anywhere west of the Mississippi River
and up into Canada.
“We are also serviced by a short line railroad, connected
to the two Class One railroads. The two Class One’s will
bring cargo down to the port, or will take cargo away from
the port via their network, and the short line railroad, the
Galveston Railroad, owned by Genesee & Wyoming, will
go and get those cars and bring them out to port tracks
that we own but lease to the Galveston Railroad.” Mier-
zwa adds that a portion of the Port’s income is based
upon the movement of these railroad cars.
Being close to the Gulf of Mexico is also a reason that
three major cruise lines have chosen the Port of Galves-
ton as their home base (as opposed to docking in Hous-
LOGISTICS
