Americas News
David Beckham's MLS Plans Could Hurt Miami's Post Panamax Advantage
Plans by retired professional football player David Beckham to develop a Major League Soccer (MLS) stadium complex at the Port of Miami have come under fire from the maritime sector, Reuters reports.
The newly formed Miami Seaport Alliance say the $200 million development project, which includes a 25,000 seater stadium, shops, hotels, and offices, threatens the city's plans to capitalise on the expansion of the Panama Canal.
Once completed, the expanded Panama Canal is expected to increase vessel traffic and allow larger "post panamax" vessels to use the waterway, a fact that the Port of Miami hopes to capitalise on with $2 billion in planned infrastructure upgrades.
"We cannot jeopardize well-paying jobs, like crane operators, longshore workers, and mechanics, for low-paying stadium jobs, such as concession sales," the group said Monday in advertisements placed in the Miami Herald and the El Nuevo Herald.
But Neisen Kasdin, an attorney for Akerman Senterfitt and adviser for the Beckham group, said: "The plan doesn't interfere with port operations.
"It will likely generate more revenue for the port in the shorter term than other concepts that have been discussed."
Miami Seaport Alliance is led by John Fox, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line's former head of governmental affairs, and includes a number of other maritime interests including two chapters of the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) and two stevedore companies.
Jamaican bunker supplier West Indies Petroleum (WIP) said in November it hoped the widening of the Canal would help Jamaica "realize its potential as the logistics hub of the Caribbean."
