Mason now chairs Ports Authority
as Savannah facility named for his uncle
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher
Gwinnett Forum.com

SAVANNAH, July 30, 2001 -- On the day when a major new facility was named for his late uncle, Keith Mason of Duluth was sworn in as chairman of the Georgia Ports Authority here this morning.

The James D. Mason Intermodal Container Transfer Facility is a mouthful, and no doubt Jimmy Mason, like many of the speakers today, would have at least slowed down, if not stumbled, over such a mouthful. But Jimmy, had he still lived, would have beamed with pride as he told the world of this new facility to benefit Georgians.

Gov. Roy Barnes spoke, then clipped the ribbon, as Keith and members of the Georgia Ports Authority, a large contingent of Mason family members, a throng of Gwinnettians, and hundreds of Georgians looked on.

And though a rain shower passed nearby, the skies were dry during the ceremony at the facility, just yards from the Savannah River.

The new "intermodal container transfer facility" is essentially four 2,500 foot long rail tracks used to accept those 20 (and 40) foot shipping containers directly from ships at the nearby harbor docks. Altogether, the new facility at its build-out, will be on 150 acres, and include 40,000 feet of track for container storage and train assembly.

The new facility will ensure overnight shipment to (and from) Atlanta and other points.

The containers come directly from ship to train (or vice versa), and in the process eliminate the terms "marshalling" and "drayage" from shipper's vocabulary. No longer will these containers sit for hours (or days) in a terminal yard, awaiting movement. That means no drayage or marshalling costs, plus quicker shipment.

And everyone knows that time means money. Jimmy, himself a former Ports Authority chairman, would have immediately recognized this advantage. It is what he would have used to tell people all around the world about another benefit of them using the Georgia ports, had he still been a member of the Authority. Can't you picture in your mind's eye the ever smiling and happy Jimmy using this state-of-the-art facility, the only one of its kind on the East Coast, to promote Georgia?

Now this mantle moves to the shoulders of one of Jimmy's pride, his nephew Keith. He inherits that same zeal for improving Georgia that his Uncle Jimmy showed, his zest for making Georgia a better place that his daddy, Wayne, still enjoys.

Keith Mason is poised in perfect position to make things happen at the ports. He'll be good for the Ports Authority and for Georgia.

* * * * *

The guest list from Gwinnett read like a who's who of the power crowd. Assorted Masons dotted the sprawling white tent under which the ceremonies were held, as was Martha Byrd, the first voice you hear when you called the Mason brothers' office. Former County Commissioners Tommy Hughes, Judy Waters and Bill Atkinson were there, as were Sen. Billy Ray, former Sen. Steve Reynolds and Chamber President Richard Tucker. Snellville was well represented by former Mayor Emmett Clower and ex-Councilman Wayne Odum. From Grayson came Mayor Doug Wilkerson. Former School Supt. J.W. Benefield was present, as were John D. Stephens, Barbara King, ex-Chamber President Tom Andersen, ex-banker Jim Pack, as well as developers Tim Connolly, Rudy Bowen and Millard Bowen.

A painting of Jimmy Mason now hangs in the lobby of the Intermodal Terminal. Jimmy would have been proud!

FEEDBACK:
More carrots needed for transportation

July 30, 3001:
Editor, the Forum:

Alphabet soup in Gwinnett County. It's CTP (Comprehensive Transportation Plan). An article in the Friday edition of Gwinnett Daily Post, lists the proposed expenditures for $1.1 billion. The smallest item on the list is mass transportation. Seems to me that since getting autos off the road is touted as the way to clean up the atmosphere, a larger carrot on the end of the stick needs to hang in front of the buses or trains..

-- E.F. Stuart, Norcross

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