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Economic driver: Jasper port agreement may hit governor's desk in two weeks

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BEAUFORT -- A tentative agreement between South Carolina and Georgia to build a shipping port on the Savannah River in Jasper County could land on Gov. Mark Sanford's desk in about two weeks, according to a top state official.

A two-state task force has been working on the deal since April, sorting out issues such as how much each state will pay for permitting and who will operate the port.

The agreement outlines "all the mechanics to get from a piece of dirt to an operational port," Tom Davis, Sanford's chief of staff, said Tuesday.

"It's critically important to diversify our economic base," he said. The port will be "a whole new economic driver for Beaufort County."

Davis, who is on the port task force, was in Beaufort speaking to the Beaufort County Association of Realtors on Tuesday.

After the governors of both states review the deal, the task force will ask for input from legislators and business leaders and then forward the document to the Georgia and South Carolina legislatures for approval.

The agreement puts in motion a project that was stalled for years due to legal battles between Jasper County and the S.C. State Ports Authority over who should build and operate the port, which would be on 1,800 acres owned by the Georgia Department of Transportation.

In the spring, the S.C. legislature blocked Jasper County from developing the port for the next three years, allowing time for the two states to solve their differences. Jasper's plans included a $600 million deal with Seattle-based SSA Marine to run the port.

Sanford and Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue had agreed to work together to build the shipping terminal and potentially form a joint authority to oversee it, an authority that would be independent of the states' existing ports agencies. But Davis, who previously served on the S.C. Ports Authority's board, said Tuesday the governors would prefer a private company to operate it instead.

Referring to rumors that Sanford might be tapped to join a Republican ticket as vice president or the White House as a cabinet member, one Realtor asked if Davis would go to Washington along with his friend since childhood.

Davis told the crowd he wouldn't, adding later: "There's only one person I would go to Columbia with, and that's Mark. When his term as governor is up, I'm coming back home to Beaufort."

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