Port pumps $200M into region
Port Hueneme, a major entry point for cars and bananas in Ventura County, generates about $202 million in economic output and supports 1,516 jobs, according to a study released today.
The report, issued by the Center for Economic Research and Forecasting at Thousand Oaks-based California Lutheran University, analyzed the port, which is the only deepwater harbor for cargo ships between Los Angeles and San Francisco. The port’s economic impact largely stays within Ventura County, the report said.
“The vast majority of the economic output created by the port and related businesses occurs in Port Hueneme and Oxnard,” economist Bill Watkins wrote in the report. “Most, if not all, of the port’s customers have offices in the area.”
In 2011, the publicly administered port and its private-sector customers spent about $123.2 million directly. The remainder of the impact comes from a multiplier derived from indirect and induced effects, such as business-to-business purchases made by port customers and money spent by their employees.
A similar multiplier was used to estimate employment. The port itself, for example, has 28 employees but supports 72 jobs because of its spending, the report said.
Port Hueneme paid $15,000 for the study.
