CEMEX Davenport is celebrating its 100th anniversary. For many generations, the Davenport plant has served as an economic hub of the community and the plant has enjoyed close working partnerships with Davenport, Bonny Doon and Santa Cruz County. On an annual basis, the CEMEX cement plant at Davenport provides about 125 jobs totaling more than seven million dollars payroll and over two million in taxes and regulatory agencies fees revenues as Santa Cruz County's leading property taxpayer.

Click the topics below to learn more about our Community Partnerships.

• Partner with Local Schools & Non-profits
• Water Treatment for Davenport
• Sewage Treatment for Davenport

Partner with Local Schools & Non-profits
Locally, CEMEX Davenport is a partner in Davenport and Bonny Doon schools and plays an important role in supporting the fire department and community organizations, contributing about $50,000 in donations to at least two dozen nonprofit community groups annually.

Bonny Doon School Says "Thank You"
Students and their families kicked off the school year at Bonny Doon Elementary's 'Back to School Night' in September. They also took time out of the busy evening to say thank you to CEMEX for its longstanding support of the school. In recognition of CEMEX's ongoing contributions to Bonny Doon, teachers and families met in the school's multi-use room to unveil a new sign for the upper campus that proclaims: "CEMEX: Proud to be an Official Business Partner since 1997."

At the informal ceremony, School Superintendent Gail Levine summed it up by saying, "We are very appreciative for the generosity of CEMEX, and we look forward to continuing our relationship with them for many years to come." Ken Kannegaard, Administrative Supervisor for the CEMEX plant in Davenport, was there to help members of the student council put up the new sign. "We at CEMEX truly believe that our schools are the heart of the community. The more we can do to help our schools and students thrive, the stronger our community will be," he said.

CEMEX has contributed $5,025 to fund classroom aides who spend up to three hours per day helping students at all grade levels, enabling teachers to provide more individualized instruction for students. A total of more than $31,000 has been raised through a matching funds program since 1998, in which CEMEX donates 50 cents for every dollar donated to the school by parents. In addition, CEMEX provided $10,000 in seed money to open an endowment fund, and provides materials and personnel for numerous campus projects. "CEMEX stands apart as Bonny Doon's major benefactor, and for that we are very grateful," Superintendent Levine said.

Click here to download the Autumn Issue of "North Coast News"

Satish Sheth with Lea Haratani

CEMEX Grows Partnership With Pacific School By Lea Haratani, Pacific Schools Trustee Davenport's own Pacific Elementary School has had the privilege of enjoying a business partnership with CEMEX for nearly a decade. Ken Kannegaard, Administrative Supervisor for the CEMEX Davenport Plant, is a well-recognized smiling face at Pacific School: celebrating the holidays, monitoring recess, repainting graffiti, and assisting in a wide range of maintenance projects.

The Davenport plant also provides the school with reliable, facilities-based support. Principal Sharon Smith said, "We can always count on CEMEX to help us in times of need." CEMEX's partnership with Pacific School began in 1996 as the brainchild of CEMEX Vice President Satish Sheth, who has long recognized the value of community building. When the Davenport plant was purchased by RMC Pacific Materials, Inc. the property taxes were reassessed at millions less, lowering the local tax revenue local schools depend on. To help make up this difference, the plant provided seed money to establish an endowment fund to support school programs. In 2003, the endowment fund money was used to fund the music program for the school. For his leadership in this effort, Mr. Sheth won the prestigious Elena Baskin Award by Schools Plus and was recognized by the California State Senate in 1999.

Today, there are plans for a Pacific School kite-flying contest at CEMEX to celebrate "Clean Air Day" and the funding CEMEX is providing for the new Pacific School library. The CEMEX and Pacific School partnership is making a difference in Davenport, guiding us into a brighter future and teaching our children the value of giving back to the community.

Click here to download the Summer Issue of "North Coast News"

Water Treatment for Davenport
The CEMEX cement plant has also played an important role in providing water to the community of Davenport since the inception of the town in early 1900s. In the early 1980s, the plant and the County of Santa Cruz built a water treatment plant on CEMEX property to improve water quality. CEMEX (Lonestar was the owner at the time) provided the land and the funding to construct the treatment plant. Since then, the Davenport plant has provided water free of charge, pays 50% of treatment costs ($80,000 annually) and has contributed $25,000 a year in capital improvements - even thought the plant has not drawn any of the water it was entitled to use. Now, CEMEX is stepping up to assist in securing a low interest loan for the new water treatment facilities in partnership with the County Public Works Department to better meet the water needs of Davenport.

Sewage Treatment for Davenport
In the mid-1980s, CEMEX assisted the County in the construction of a new sewage treatment plant. Since then, CEMEX has paid 50% of the costs for treatment plant operations & maintenance totaling about $80,000 annually. The most important aspect of this project is that the wastewater from the treatment plant is recycled into cement manufacturing process in the evaporative cooling towers. As a result of this innovative treatment no wastewater is discharged into the Monterey Bay Marine Sanctuary.

Contact us by e-mail at davenport.plant@cemexusa.com