Paul Matthews rose rapidly by the administration ranks of two Louisiana ports earlier than taking the helm of the Port of South Louisiana, the place he’s angling to tug off the probably transformational, and controversial, $445 million buy of the previous Avondale shipyard website.

On the Port of New Orleans and the Port of Plaquemines, he left a document of securing federal grant {dollars} for infrastructure tasks and interesting with federal officers to increase Louisiana port enterprise abroad.

Additionally trailing his tenure in Plaquemines Parish is a tangle of lawsuits, allegations of “appraiser procuring” and frayed relationships with some port commissioners after the souring of two main enlargement tasks he tried.

Some officers and advocates who knew Matthews throughout his time as second-in-command on the Plaquemines port say the Avondale deal — which shocked Gov. John Bel Edwards and has upset some elected officers and enterprise leaders — appears like deja vu. Complaints a couple of lack of transparency, controversial contracts and suspect value determinations all ring acquainted, they mentioned.

For his half, Matthews mentioned the accusations surrounding his time at Plaquemines are “nonsense,” and he insisted the offers he has championed adopted legal guidelines governing public conferences and public data.

He added that he has had unbelievable relationships with commissioners at each port he’s labored at.

A quick rise

Matthews, 39, grew up in New Orleans. After graduating from Tulane College and getting an MBA from the College of Louisiana Lafayette, he labored in banking in Pineville earlier than getting a job on the Port of New Orleans.

He reduce his tooth there for 4 years, serving to to create a group affairs division and main an “efficient group engagement program working with highschool and school educators, maritime employers and workforce growth officers,” a Port of New Orleans spokesperson mentioned.

The Port of Plaquemines employed him in 2017 to function the No. 2 to Maynard “Sandy” Sanders, the port director on the time. And final yr, he turned the first Black port chief in Louisiana when he took over as head of the Port of South Louisiana.

It was quickly after taking the job that Matthews started considering the huge acquisition of Avondale from its present proprietor, T. Parker Host. In 2018, the personal port operator purchased the previous shipyard from Huntington Ingalls for $60 million, and has acknowledged struggles turning the power right into a transit hub.

When the acquisition of the location by the Port of South Louisiana was introduced in January, it shocked elected officers and leaders of different ports, together with the Port of New Orleans, which counts the Avondale website in its territory. The port purchased the location for greater than seven instances what a non-public operator, T. Parker Host, paid for it somewhat greater than 4 years in the past. 

To convey the deal throughout the end line, Matthews will want help from the state Bond Fee, which is able to possible meet someday this spring to contemplate issuing bonds to fund the deal. 

It is the second deal in Matthews’ time as head of the port that has drawn scrutiny. Environmental advocates who’ve tangled with Matthews have accused him of skirting public transparency legal guidelines, main to a different latest lawsuit over the controversial Greenfield grain terminal. 

Plaquemines offers

At the very least two different main offers that Matthews championed at Plaquemines have been scuttled amid complaints from members of the port’s board, which doubles because the Parish Council.

Paperwork from Matthews’ time in Plaquemines present his efforts to safe land for a proposed oil export terminal, and a separate container terminal, drew opposition from a number of port commissioners. Some accused Matthews and Sanders of hiding info and “appraiser procuring” on the oil terminal deal to justify the worth of a property the port was making ready to purchase with a purpose to make the deal work.

Matthews championed a proposed container terminal in Port Sulphur, securing land and inking an unique contract with a non-public developer. That deal, which concerned three completely different value determinations, in line with paperwork, additionally upset some port commissioners.

Benny Rousselle, a former member of the Plaquemines Parish Council who was among the many port commissioners who have been skeptical of Matthews and Sanders, mentioned he had a tough time getting info from them concerning the deal.

“Transparency just isn’t one thing (Matthews) practiced,” Rousselle mentioned. “It made it onerous to conduct our enterprise.”

Stuart Guey, a member of the Parish Council and ally of Matthews, attributed the issues to “philosophical variations” with commissioners. Whereas Sanders didn’t have his contract renewed, Guey mentioned the port continues to be in search of to get the container terminal deal throughout the end line, although the land just isn’t secured.

“There have been some character conflicts there,” Guey mentioned. “There have been accusations of an absence of transparency. Personally, I did not see any lack of transparency. They defined all the pieces to me.”

‘The place are we on that?’

Emails obtained by The Instances-Picayune present the strain between Matthews and a few of the board members rose to the extent of Matthews alleging a hostile office. In the meantime, a number of council members complained that Matthews and Sanders have been violating open conferences legal guidelines.

The 2 port leaders made a controversial determination to rent Louisiana 23 Growth Co. because the port’s unique personal companion to search out firms to assist develop infrastructure help companies. That association led to a authorized mess. The corporate is dealing with a lawsuit by Lanier & Associates alleging it’s owed almost $300,000 in unpaid invoices. One other agency that partnered with Louisiana 23 is suing its principal, Christopher Fetters, in Texas courtroom, alleging it was additionally stiffed.

A lawyer for Louisiana 23, which is now not the port’s companion, declined to remark.

The trouble to land an oil export terminal drew allegations that Matthews and Sanders went “appraiser procuring” to spice up the worth of the land they have been in search of to purchase. Emails and paperwork, first reported by the Lens, present the location was appraised at $23.5 million in 2017. The port nonetheless moved forward with a purchase order value of $30.5 million, which was adopted by a second appraisal that justified that price ticket.

Wholesome Gulf, an environmental group against the deal, filed complaints with the Legislative Auditor and Louisiana Board of Ethics, arguing the inflated buy value was unlawful. Emails obtained by the group present that after the deal was made, in 2018, the board’s lawyer wrote to Matthews that they “want an appraiser who can get the appraisal from $24MM as much as $30.5MM.”

“You beforehand talked about having an appraiser that may be capable to give us an appraisal that justifies the buying value,” Matthews then wrote to Drexel Hamilton, one of many personal companions on the mission. “The place are we on that?”

Tangling with ‘King Kong’

In an interview, Sanders mentioned he and Matthews have been merely making an attempt to execute the port’s strategic plan, and he mentioned it was commonplace follow to get a number of value determinations for vital land offers. He mentioned a bunch of port commissioners who didn’t perceive the plan fought them at each flip. 

Sanders mentioned his defeats typically got here on a 5-4 vote, and his victories did too. He blamed the unusually tense relationship with the port’s board on the bizarre construction in Plaquemines. In actual fact, throughout Sanders’ tenure, the port sued its personal board, asking a choose to declare that the parish constitution didn’t apply to the port. The choose dominated in opposition to the port, sustaining the council’s authority.

In response to allegations by port commissioners that Sanders and Matthews have been hiding info from them, Sanders countered that his strikes have been being “telegraphed” to “a port up the river that I used to be in competitors with,” hinting on the Port of New Orleans.

He obliquely referred to the New Orleans port as “King Kong,” and mentioned its leaders are simply indignant that Matthews is competing with them.

“You realize you’re over the goal while you’re taking flak. Paul Matthews is taking flak,” Sanders mentioned. “He’s not asking, ‘Do y’all thoughts if I do that?’”

“Paul Matthews is doing one thing that they need to have completed,” mentioned Sanders. “You broke up with that woman, and now I’m taking her to the homecoming dance, and now you’re pissed off.”