Galveston directors to consider Royal Caribbean terminal proposal
The agenda included a proposed Icon-class facility and a Margaritaville at Sea operating license at the Port of Galveston.
Galveston Wharves directors were scheduled to consider a proposal for a Royal Caribbean Icon-class cruise terminal. The port had been in exclusive talks with Royal Caribbean Group about developing Cruise Terminal 14 between Royal Caribbean’s Cruise Terminal 10 and the planned location for Battleship Texas.
The proposed amendment to an existing memorandum of understanding would require the port to fill the slip east of Pier 14, construct a pier and berth for Icon-class vessels, and modify Cruise Terminal 16 so ships would dock west of their current location.
Royal Caribbean would develop and construct the terminal under a ground-lease structure similar to the arrangement for Cruise Terminal 10. The company would receive seven-day preferential berthing. The proposed lease would have an initial term of 20 years, followed by four optional extensions of 10 years each. The facility was envisioned to handle approximately two million passenger movements annually.
Although the memorandum would generally be non-binding, it would require Galveston Wharves to prioritize capital funding for the project over other new cruise terminal development funded by or through the port until its assigned work was completed. No completion date was stated, and the project’s budget and schedule had not been agreed. Directors were also scheduled to consider a Margaritaville at Sea operating license.
