The Duluth Seaway Port Authority is moving its offices to Lincoln Park this summer as it makes way for the expansion of Altec Industries on the waterfront.
On Wednesday the port's board voted to lease space at 2305 W. Superior St., the former home of ZMC Hotels. The port said it would share the space with another tenant and move in by July.
"We're excited to stay in the port district and to be part of the exciting things happening in the Lincoln Park neighborhood," Kate Ferguson, the port's director of business development, said in a statement. "This location keeps us close to our terminal operations and to the rest of the working waterfront."
The move opens up the space at 1200 Port Terminal Drive, where Altec intends to expand as the aerial lift rig manufacturer adds 100 employees.
"Altec offers us the opportunity for sustained growth and presence here in Duluth," Ray Klosowski, president of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority board of commissioners, said earlier this year. "When you look at their salary structure, the employees it currently has (220) and those it intends to add, it was evident we needed to make this happen for the economic benefit of the city and region."
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The Port Authority signed a two-year lease at the new 7,500-square-foot offices on Superior Street. Although the board could extend the lease at a later date, the offices are meant to be a temporary home. The port board held a closed session Wednesday to discuss potential real estate transactions but took no action afterward.
"There will be ongoing discussion about permanent options," port spokeswoman Adele Yorde said.
Yorde said the Port Authority had called the building at Port Terminal Drive home since 1962.
The port's lease with JAK III LLC starts June 1 and costs about $6,650 per month. The property was listed by Greg Follmer Commercial Real Estate.
