Courtesy illustration - See More Photos A rendering of Magic, Carnival Cruise Line’s newest and largest vessel. Magic will begin sailing from Galveston in November next year, Carnival said. The Port of Galveston’s governing board has approved renovations to accommodate the ship.

Port getting ready for Magic

By Laura Elder
The Daily News
Published September 21, 2010 GALVESTON — The Port of Galveston’s governing board has approved spending nearly $11 million for renovations and equipment at the Texas Cruise Ship Terminal on Pier 25 to accommodate Magic, Carnival Cruise Line’s newest and largest vessel.

The seven-member Wharves Board of Trustees on Friday unanimously approved awarding Houston-based Webber LLC $7.4 million to make renovations that include moving the screening area for embarking passengers from the terminal’s second floor to the first floor, expanding waiting areas, and adding restrooms and more seating.

Improvements also include a system allowing passengers to check in and obtain room assignments, then explore downtown during fog delays.

Repairs to the terminal are expected to begin next month but aren’t expected to disrupt services, Port Director Steve Cernak said.

In separate action, the wharves board gave the nod for port staff to enter into a lease/buy agreement with Trelleborg, Sweden-based FMT to install a new gangway at the terminal by Aug. 31. The wharves board approved the agreement with the stipulation that costs not exceed $3.5 million.

The port earlier this year used insurance proceeds to repair the gangway after it was struck by Carnival’s Ecstasy.

A vessel the size of the Magic, which displaces 130,000 tons and carries 3,960 passengers, requires a larger gangway, Cernak said.

Florida-based Carnival Cruise Lines announced it would bring two new vessels to Galveston next fall. Carnival said Magic would begin sailing from the island port in November next year and a sister ship, Triumph, would be moved to the island from its New Orleans base a month before that.

Magic and the 101,500-ton Triumph, with a passenger capacity of 2,758, are larger than the ships homeporting on the island now. They will bring the largest-ever capacity commitment by a cruise line to Texas, with more than 450,000 passengers expected to sail yearly.

Also next year, Royal Caribbean International plans to replace its Voyager of the Seas with Mariner of the Seas, one of the world’s 10 largest liners.

The port has some cash available to pay for the improvements, Cernak said. Larger ships bring more passenger and parking revenues, which also will help to pay for renovations, he said.

Passenger fees from cruise business and parking revenue from port-owned lots generate about $5 million a year for the port.