Philadelphia Regional Port Authority recently unveiled an outlined a new 15-year plan that will lead to exponential future growth, writes Andrew Seidman for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

The plan includes deepening the Delaware River, buying up more land, and a potential joint venture with the developer behind the Bellwether District.

Officials noted that the projects identified in the plan would result in nearly 9,000 new direct jobs, such as warehouse positions, thousands of additional indirect jobs in industries linked to the port, and $170 million in new annual state and local tax revenues within the next 15 years.

“Implementing the plan allows us to continue supporting the countless businesses that rely on the port for timely and cost-effective delivery of their cargo while simultaneously maintaining and growing critical living wage jobs in the region,” said PhilaPort CEO Jeff Theobald.

PhilaPort ranked 17th in terms of container cargo volume in 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. However, Philadelphia is considered one of the top ports for refrigerated cargoes such as produce.

The plan will help add 550,000 square feet of warehouse storage, increasing available space by 17 percent, and would triple the port’s capacity to handle containers from 1 million units now to 3 million by 2040.

Read more about PhilaPort’s growth plans from now to 2040 in The Philadelphia Inquirer.

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