Port users want interests represented on SPA board

CHARLESTON PORT With Bernard Groseclose (below, left) having abruptly resigned Tuesday as chief executive of the S.C. State Ports Authority, port users want to consider tweaking the port’s business model and increasing their representation on the SPA Board of Directors, said Otis Rawl, CEO of the S.C. Chamber of Commerce.

By Scott Miller
smiller@scbiznews.com
Published Jan. 21, 2009

With Bernard Groseclose having abruptly resigned Tuesday as chief executive of the S.C. State Ports Authority, port users want to consider tweaking the port’s business model and increasing their representation on the SPA board of directors, said Otis Rawl, CEO of the S.C. Chamber of Commerce.

Coincidentally, businesses that use the Port of Charleston were meeting with the chamber yesterday while Groseclose was resigning, Rawl said.

Groseclose resigns as head of S.C. State Ports Authority

News of the resignation came in the middle of the meeting, he said. Afterward, the chamber decided it would ask lawmakers to create a blue-ribbon committee with business representation to study the future direction of the port, he said. Chamber members want speedy results, with the committee reporting its recommendations in 90 days.

Port users believe the current model doesn’t need to change much, Rawl said, but new leadership on the board could be needed.

“I don’t think we need to tear the board apart, but, under the normal process for appointing, we need to make sure we have business people on there who understand how to run a port,” Rawl said. “We want somebody who understands what the needs are of the business community. We don’t want to point fingers now.”

Regarding the business model, Rawl said a public-private partnership would attract more private investment at the port.

“Our guys are saying it doesn’t take much for us to recapture where we need to be,” Rawl said. “Maybe a tweaking of fees and rates and changing how we deal with customers, looking at how we chase dollars for investments. We know we have members who would invest in the port. … I think you’re going to see some kind of public-private joint partnerships down in Charleston.”

He added that part of the committee’s findings should include a new branding campaign.

“We really need to figure out if our model is right, and, if it is, we’ve got to sell it around the world,” said Rawl, who said Groseclose deserved kudos for making the Port of Charleston one of the most efficient in the nation.