A new cruise port could be established in the Tampa, Florida area, opening up the region to cruise traffic on the largest modern cruise liners for the first time.
Seattle-based SSA Marine has published a draft proposal for a new cruise port and terminal facility in Manatee County on a 300-acre site known as the Knott-Cowen tract.
Tampa Bay Bridge Limits Cruise Ship Size
This would give the largest cruise ships an option to dock in the Tampa area. Currently the height clearance of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge doesn’t allow the largest cruise ships access to Port Tampa Bay.
SSA Marine is touting the project as a gamechanger for the region’s cruise tourism. “Our new port will complement existing cruise activities in the region,” the company says.
“It would be able to service the newer, larger, low-emissions cruise vessels that would otherwise be unable to visit due to the height restrictions of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge,” says Stefano Borzone, president of SSA Marine’s Cruise Division.
SSA Marine, which already has a presence at Tampa Port and other port facilities across Florida, is working with the land’s owner Slip Knott LLC to develop the new facility.
Slip Knott says the project is expected to generate around 31,000 direct and indirect jobs and “boost labor earnings by approximately $1.6 billion.”
“Cruise activity brings visitors, supports small businesses, and generates employment across a wide range of sectors, from hospitality and transportation to logistics and maritime services,” the company added on its website.
The project is still at the early planning stage with no specifics shared about what a finished cruise port and terminal would look like.
“A project of this magnitude will have many layers of review and due diligence,” said Jacki Dezelski, president of the Manatee Chamber of Commerce. Along with the construction and dredging work, the timeline for completion would likely be around the end of the decade at least.
