City of Salem and Crowley Wind Services Announce Historic Community Benefits Agreement for Wind Terminal Project

The City of Salem and Crowley today announced the details of a Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) worth nearly $9 million in direct funding assistance to the community, as well as other non-financial benefits. Crowley, through its Wind Services business unit, is developing the Salem Offshore Wind Terminal on Salem’s deep-water port as part of a public-private partnership to support the growth of renewable, offshore wind energy.

“I am incredibly grateful to Crowley and the many community organizations who helped make this CBA possible and to the City staff who worked so hard to get it done,” said Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo. “This is a historic document, not only because of the value and support it will bring to so many critical city efforts – infrastructure, jobs, education, resiliency, and public safety, just to name a few – but because it represents a powerful commitment by all parties to advance this project with an equity focus. This agreement reflects that Salem is an environmental justice community and one that has lived for generations with the legacy of fossil fuel power generation and heavy industry impacts on our port and our neighborhoods. Now, we’re ready to do our part to ensure a clean energy future for our community, our Commonwealth, and our country through the potential offered by offshore wind.”

“We are proud and grateful to successfully work with the City of Salem and its residents to provide a generational impact as partners and mutual stewards for the community’s benefit. The Community Benefits Agreement resulted from diverse inputs and engagement across the city in recognition of the economic investment we will create together. Through this partnership, we can leverage the power of this milestone project supporting renewable energy to make people’s lives better,” said Graham Tyson, vice president, Crowley Wind Services.

“We are encouraged by today's agreement that codifies a number of essential community-based and environmental justice considerations, including the incorporation of workforce development metrics for local, women, and minority hires and training opportunities, stipulations to minimize impacts on neighborhoods, and a path forward to ensuring transparency and accountability,” said Jim Mulloy of the Salem Offshore Wind Alliance. “Community voices have been and will continue to be vital in the creation of an offshore wind hub in Salem that can transform our local economy and put us in a position to make Salem a model for the Commonwealth’s equitable clean energy transition. We look forward to our ongoing partnership with the City as we collaborate to see this work through.”

The terminal will be a logistics and operations center for wind turbine pre-assembly, transportation, staging activities and storage of assembly components and include redeveloping the former Salem Harbor Station site, previously a coal fire power plant.

Highlights in the CBA include the following, over the duration of the agreement:

Commitments and funding for workforce and economic development

$400,000 in scholarships for offshore wind or maritime-related career paths and educational opportunities, with a preference for Salem residents.
$187,500 for bilingual outreach and educational programs to increase access for community members to the jobs available in the offshore wind industry, with a particular focus on leveraging the existing Career Technical Institute (CTI) at Salem High School.
$45,000 in seed funding to launch a regional initiative to support clean energy and the blue economy on the North Shore, administered by the Essex County Community Foundation.
A commitment by Crowley to utilize local supply chain sourcing for the project to the greatest extent feasible.
Crowley will target new hires from typically marginalized populations, including people from environmental justice communities, veterans, those living with disabilities, those experiencing housing insecurity, and the formerly incarcerated, and will work with seaport users to do likewise for their hiring. Crowley will additionally prioritize certified and qualified workers from the Salem High School Career Technical Education (CTE) program.
Crowley commits to pursuing measurable benchmarks in terms of specifically hiring local workers (from within Essex County), BIPOC and immigrant workers, women, and union employees, with target percentages established at 3-years, 5-years, and 10-years of terminal operation. Unions working at the terminal will have apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs available for members of local environmental justice communities and Salem Public School graduates.

Commitments and funding for sustainability

At least $500,000 to support a new Climate Adaptation Fund to fund City sustainability and resiliency projects. Beginning in 2030, the annual contribution amount by Crowley will increase each year if shore power targets are not achieved.
$250,000 to support alternative fireworks for community celebrations.
$10,000 to fund tree planting in the neighborhood adjacent to the terminal site.
A commitment by Crowley to incorporate electrification and shore power technologies at the port as they become technologically feasible, with a goal of achieving 100% port electrification by 2040. This commitment will be monitored and reported on publicly by a working group that includes representatives from the company, the City, and community members.
A commitment by Crowley to achieve the maximum verification level feasible through the Envision Project Verification framework issued by the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure (https://sustainableinfrastructure.org/project-verification/verify-a-project/).
A total of 10 electric vehicle charging stations will be installed onsite for employee use.
A commitment to preserve the offshore wind interconnections with the adjacent National Grid switchyard and substation.

Commitments and funding for housing and infrastructure

$850,000 for an improvement project to the Essex Street/Webb Street intersection.
$25,000 for a rental assistance program for workers at the port, for housing within the City of Salem.

Commitments and funding for impacts to City services

$1,250,000 for additional personnel in the Harbormaster’s Department due to the maritime operation of the terminal.
$550,000 for specialized equipment and training for the Salem Police Department due to the terminal’s construction and operation.
$540,000 for specialized equipment and training for the Salem Fire Department due to the terminal’s construction and operation.
$250,000 for interpretation, translation, and other language-related services during the terminal’s construction and on-going operation.
$100,000 to reimburse the City for legal and consultant expenses incurred negotiating and finalizing all the project agreements.
Extensive coordination with the Salem Police Department regarding camera and radio access and interoperability.
Joint drills and exercises with the Salem Harbormaster, Police, and Fire Departments to ensure safe operations on the terminal site.

Commitments and funding for Salem Public Schools and other education needs

$1,250,000 for the Salem Public Schools Pre-K Partnership.
$1,250,000 for operational support for Salem Public Schools CTE/CTI programs.
$1,000,000 for capital costs, infrastructure improvements, training aids and facilities, and other related needs for the Salem Public Schools CTE/CTI programs.
$200,000 to fund educational programs and curriculum for Salem Public Schools regarding Indigenous history and culture of the area.
$15,000 to fund educational signage and exhibitions regarding the terminal and Salem’s maritime history.
Crowley employees will participate in Salem Public Schools through guest speaking engagements.
Crowley will donate equipment from the terminal and from its broader operations around the globe for use as training and educational aids for Salem Public Schools CTE/CTI programs.

$187,500 for other CBA commitments

$187,500 to support the efforts of the CBA working group for monitoring and compliance of the CBA terms.
A commitment to support any similar agreements negotiated between the City and seaport users.
All annual payments in the CBA are indexed to inflation.

In all, the CBA’s value is about 3% of the total estimated project cost. For comparison, Salem’s two other most recent CBAs – with Footprint Power for the natural gas power plant and with Salem Hospital for their expansion project – were 0.5% and 0.8%, respectively.

Oversight of the CBA’s implementation will be carried out by a working group including representatives from Crowley, the City, the community at large, the Salem Harbor Port Authority, and Salem Public Schools. The working group will meet quarterly and receive annual CBA reports from Crowley, which will be published publicly.

The commitments in the CBA are in addition to other requirements, including related to public access, construction practices, and operational rules that were recently approved by the Salem Planning Board (https://www.salemma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif12836/f/uploads/67_derby_st._pb_decision.pdf).

About Crowley

Crowley is a privately held, U.S.-owned and -operated maritime, energy and logistics solutions company serving commercial and government sectors with $3.4 billion in annual revenues, over 170 vessels mostly in the Jones Act fleet and approximately 7,000 employees around the world – employing more U.S. mariners than any other company. The Crowley enterprise has invested more than $3.2 billion in maritime transport, which is the backbone of global trade and the global economy. As a global ship owner-operator and services provider with more than 130 years of innovation and a commitment to sustainability, the company serves customers in 36 nations and island territories through five business units: Crowley Logistics, Crowley Shipping, Crowley Solutions, Crowley Wind Services and Crowley Fuels. Additional information about Crowley, its business units and subsidiaries can be found at www.crowley.com.

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