Primary Department: Economic Equity and Opportunity
Primary Department Head/Elected Official: Estella Gonzalez, Executive Director
Secondary Department: N/A
Secondary Department Head/Elected Official: N/A
Regular or Supplemental RCA: Regular RCA
Type of Request: Financial Authorization
Project ID (if applicable): N/A
Vendor/Entity Legal Name (if applicable): N/A
MWBE Contracted Goal (if applicable): N/A
MWBE Current Participation (if applicable): N/A
Justification for 0% MWBE Participation Goal: N/A - Goal not applicable to request
Grant Indirect Costs Rate (if applicable): N/A
Justification for 0% Grant Indirect Costs Rate (if applicable): N/A - Not a grant item
Request Summary (Agenda Caption):
title
Request for approval of a Payment in Lieu of Taxes Agreement (“PILOT Agreement”) between Harris County (on behalf of itself, Flood Control District, and Hospital District) and Stolthaven Houston Inc. with respect to its application for Foreign-Trade Zone (FTZ) sites and issuance of a Letter of Non-Objection to the designation and/or activation of the proposed FTZ site located at 15602 Jacintoport Blvd., Houston, Texas 77015 in Harris County Precinct 2 and within the Foreign-Trade Zone #84.
end
Background and Discussion:
Stolthaven Houston Inc. (the “Company”), a Texas company, has applied for the designation and/or activation of 18 parcels of land totaling 164.8373 acres for an FTZ site within FTZ #84. The site is located at 15602 Jacintoport Blvd., Houston, Texas 77015, in Harris County Precinct 2. Stolthaven Houston Inc. owns the site and will operate it.
For any FTZ application, Harris County requires an applicant to execute a Payment in Lieu of Taxes (“PILOT”) Agreement, wherein the applicant commits each year to pay the County and certain of its taxing entities an amount equivalent to 100% of the taxes that would be owed for all FTZ inventory stored at the FTZ site. When the applicant executes the PILOT Agreement, the proposed FTZ site is then deemed to be in the public interest because the County would not lose revenue. The County may then provide a Letter of Non-Objection to facilitate designation of the site by the FTZ Board of the U.S. Department of Commerce and activation by the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Presently, it is requested and recommended that the Commissioners Court take two actions with respect to the Company’s application for the Foreign-Trade Zone site within FTZ #84:
• Approval for the County Judge to execute the attached PILOT Agreement between the Company and the County, with the County acting on behalf of itself, Harris County Flood Control District, and Harris County Hospital District; and
• Authorization for the County Judge to issue a Letter of Non-Objection to the foreign trade zone site to the Port of Houston Authority as consideration for the Company’s execution of the PILOT Agreement benefiting the County taxing entities.
Stolthaven Houston Inc. is part of Stolthaven Terminals, a global storage provider based in The Netherlands that delivers storage and handling solutions for chemicals, clean petroleum products, liquefied petroleum gases, biofuels, vegetable oils, alternative fuels, and feedstocks. Stolthaven Houston Inc. is one of two Stolthaven Terminals in the U.S. The other is in New Orleans, LA.
Stolthaven Terminals is one of the businesses that comprises Stolt-Nielsen Limited, a leading integrated logistics business with investments in LNG and an innovative aquaculture business. Stolt-Nielsen was founded in Norway in 1959 but is now headquartered in London, U.K.
Stolthaven Houston Inc. is located on the Houston Ship Channel. The terminal operates both as a domestic bulk facility and international distribution hub, with direct access to Interstate-10, Beltway-8, and Texas 225. The Company also has an advanced biological wastewater treatment facility and offers highly specialized tank cleaning services, including those requiring advanced cleaning techniques with vapor control.
Expected Impact:
An approved FTZ PILOT Agreement with the Company safeguards revenue for County taxing entities and supports international commerce.
Alternative Options:
Non-approval of the PILOT Agreement may result in lost revenue for County taxing entities.
County Strategic Plan Goal: 3. Make our economy more inclusive.
County Strategic Plan Objective: M: Ensure that Harris County remains the best place in the region to start and grow a business, with a focus on equitable economic growth.
Justice/Safety Initiative (Goal 1): N/A
Infrastructure Initiative (Goal 2): N/A
Economy Initiative (Goal 3): N/A
Health Initiative (Goal 4): N/A
Climate/Resilience Initiative (Goal 5): N/A
Housing Initiative (Goal 6): N/A
Additional notes related to the Strategic Plan:
While the revenue source related to annual FTZ PILOT payments is not tied to a specific goal(s) enumerated in the County’s strategic plan, safeguarding such revenue sources enhances the County’s ability to effectuate its stated initiatives and goals.
Prior Court Action (if any):
|
Date |
Agenda Item # |
Action Taken |
|
|
|
|
Location:
Address (if applicable): 15602 Jacintoport Blvd., Houston, Texas 77015
Precinct(s): Countywide
|
Fiscal and Personnel Summary |
|
Service Name |
Economic Development |
|
|
|
Current Fiscal Year Cost |
Annual Fiscal Cost |
|
|
Labor |
Non-Labor |
Total |
Recurring Expenses |
|
Funding Sources |
|
|
Existing Budget |
|
|
|
|
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Existing Budget |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Additional Budget Request (Requires Fiscal Review Request Form) |
|
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Additional Budget Request |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Funding Sources |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Grants - Proposed Budget (To be filled out by Grants staff only) |
|
|
Labor |
Non-Labor |
Total |
No. of Grant Years |
|
Local Match Source - Existing Budget: Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
|
Local Match Source - Additional Budget Request: Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
|
Grant Funds Applied for/Awarded (Total) |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
|
Personnel (Fill out section only if requesting new PCNs) |
|
|
Current Position Count for Service |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
Additional Positions Request |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
Total Personnel |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Anticipated Court Date: 5/8/2025
Anticipated Implementation Date (if different from Court date): N/A
Emergency/Disaster Recovery Note: Not an emergency, disaster, or COVID-19 related item
Contact(s) name, title, department:
Estella Gonzalez, Executive Director, Economic Equity and Opportunity
Judit Haracsek, Director, Economic Development Division, Economic Equity and Opportunity
Attachments (if applicable):
1. PILOT Order and Agreement with Stolthaven Houston Inc. and corresponding Exhibits (FTZ site located at 15602 Jacintoport Blvd., Houston, Texas, Harris County Precinct 2)
2. Non-Objection Letter for Stolthaven Houston Inc.