Company to propose takeover of Port of Virginia

Company to propose takeover of Port of Virginia A Chicago-area real estate developer plans to make a proposal to purchase the right to operate the terminals of the Virginia Port Authority.
   CenterPoint Properties, is expected to make the proposal under the State of Virginia’s 1995 Public-Private Transportation Act, which allows private entities to enter into agreements to construct, improve, maintain and operate transportation facilities.
   Paul Fisher, president of CenterPoint, is also expected to hold a media briefing on the proposal today in Hampton Roads.
   CenterPoint Properties is based in Oak Brook, Ill., and is owned by CalPERS, the nation’s largest pension fund.
   Last August, CenterPoint said it would invest $325 million to construct a 900-acre integrated logistics center off Route 58 in Suffolk, Va. CenterPoint owns and/or manages more than 42 million square feet of warehouse/distribution space throughout the country and is the nation's leading inland port developer.
   Virginia Port Authority’s operations include marine terminals in Newport News, Norfolk and Portsmouth and an inland terminal in Front Royal.
   CenterPoint’s proposal would be just the beginning of a process in which the state would consider whether privatization would be positive and which would also invite competing bids. ' Chris Dupin