Cunard Centre Opens
Halifax, Nova Scotia (June 1, 2006) - On June 2, 2006 the Cunard Centre officially opened. The newly renovated cargo shed at Pier 23, features 53,000 square feet of multi-purpose space. The primary use for the facility is cruise and the developing home porting business. "This is a great addition to our cruise facilities and will help us in attracting more ships to consider Halifax as their home port," said Cathy McGrail, Manager, Cruise Development.
Being a home port basically means that passengers embark and disembark in Halifax. Increasing home porting activities in Halifax provides significant economic benefits for the local economy. Passengers would not just be in Halifax for a day, but may arrive a few days before their cruise, utilizing hotels, restaurants and the airport. In addition the vessel also takes on provisions prior to the cruise such as food, supplies and bunker fuel.
This year marks the first time that Hapag Lloyd's cruise ship the MS Hanseatic will be using Halifax as its home port. One complete turnaround took place in May and another in June. The Polar Star is also scheduled to use Halifax as its home port in September. When not in use for cruise, the facility can be used for special events, such as dinners, weddings and trade shows. Its first event was the Nova Scotia Liquor Commission's Summer Beach Party.
The Halifax Port Authority is a government business enterprise mandated by the Federal Ministry of Transport. The HPA leads in the development of the Port of Halifax, serving as a catalyst for the local, regional and national economies and has a mandate to be financially viable. The Port of Halifax has a total annual income impact of almost $700 million and an employment impact of over 9,000 direct and indirect jobs.
The Halifax Seaport is a 20 acre redevelopment project to expand and enhance cruise ship Port of Call facilities and to establish a permanent Homeport facility. In addition to cruise facilities the Seaport redevelopment will enhance the existing Arts District encouraging further growth through tenants in the creative and cultural industries ultimately creating the Seaport as a new waterfront destination.
