Port Of South Louisiana Unveils New Headquarters, Branding

The Port of South Louisiana (PortSL), just over a month after announcing plans to purchase the site of the former Avondale Shipyard on the west bank of the Mississippi River in Jefferson Parish, continues to reinvent itself with the grand opening of a new headquarters and the launch of new branding.

The port held a ribbon cutting for the new headquarters building, located in Reserve, on March 1. The headquarters, the port said in announcing the new facility, is located at its Globalplex Intermodal Terminal, making it “centrally located in PortSL’s three-parish jurisdiction” of St. Charles, St. John the Baptist and St. James parishes.

“It’s a new era at the Port of South Louisiana,” PortSL CEO Paul Matthews said. “As the nation’s leading grain exporter and the second-largest port in the Western Hemisphere, PortSL is home to some of the nation’s most recognizable companies that employ more than 86,000 Louisiana workers. On top of that, through waterborne commerce, more than 3,500 vessels call on our port annually.”

The headquarters covers about 30,000 square feet, arranged across three stories, including about 20,000 square feet of office space. With a price tag of $11.6 million, the headquarters project benefitted from $9.6 million of capital outlay funds from the state of Louisiana.

“The dream of constructing a new headquarters building is something that predates my time on the commission and has been a priority of three port CEOs,” said Ryan Burks, chairman of the port’s board of commissioners. “This will be the first time in the port’s history that the entirety of our administration will be housed under one roof. I am elated that PortSL’s fresh, modern look will no doubt make our port more attractive to foreign and domestic investment and will attract jobs for the families of the river parishes and the state of Louisiana.”

Coinciding with the grand opening of the port’s new headquarters was the launch of new branding. The port’s commercial and communications departments worked with Red Six Media to develop the new branding. The multi-colored logo highlights the four modes of transportation the port offers: shipping, trucking, rail and aviation. The port’s new slogan is “a better way to cargo.”

“With this world-class facility and a fresh look and message, Port of South Louisiana is sending a signal across the globe that we are feeding and fueling the world, and for anyone looking to do business with PortSL, we are ‘a better way to cargo,’” Matthews said.

In addition to the recent expansion and messaging news, the port last year recorded its first year-over-year tonnage increase in five years. For 2022, the Port of South Louisiana saw a total of 239,257,758 short tons moved, compared to just under 229.8 million short tons in 2021, marking a 4.1 percent increase.

Caption for top photo: PortSL CEO Paul Matthews (center) cuts ribbon to ceremonially open new headquarters building. (Photo courtesy of Forest Photography LLC)