PORT GRANT WOULD ADD INDUSTRIES

SCOTT CITY -- Approval of a $1.2 million federal grant for the Southeast Missouri Regional Port Authority could add nearly 200 jobs to the area, the port's director, Allan Maki, said Wednesday.

Maki recently applied for the Economic Development Administration grant to fund a number of improvements at the port.

"The application indicates that based on these improvements, we've identified 188 jobs that will be created and a total private investment of just over $100 million," he said.

Maki said the investment figure is based on a total of 10 businesses situated at the port. There now are five, with five additional firms committed to the port if the improvements are in place.

"We have a letter of commitment from all these people, but for some of them to come it's going to take some more work from our end," he said. "But we could certainly see a $10 to $20 million investment and 120 jobs in the next year. That's what we've got in hand."

Maki said the grant would be matched with nearly $800,000 in local funds for a total project cost of $2 million.

The Southeast Missouri Regional Planning and Economic Development Commission last week endorsed the grant application.

Maki said the grant is divided into three main project areas: rail, public dock and utilities.

He said some of the funds would be used to help complete an 8,800-foot railroad spur from an existing Union Pacific branch line to the port's public dock.

"Some of that money also will be used to assist in acquisition of the Union-Pacific branch line," Maki said. "The key to that is that we would be able to then make our own connections with all these other railroads."

The grant also would include construction of an interchange track that would enable the port to interchange cars with Union Pacific cars.

The second part of the grant would fund public dock improvements that would increase crane lift capacity on the dock.

"We want to add a 250-ton lift capacity crane," Maki said. "That would enable us to handle specialized products from truck or rail to barge."

The third category of projects in the grant application is utilities upgrades. The first utility project calls for extension of a Texas Eastern pipeline into the port. A Texas Eastern facility is situated about 6,000 feet southeast of the port.

Maki said the pipeline link would provide the port access to natural gas and liquid petroleum needed by the port's tenants.

"Twenty-three percent of national transportation is accomplished by pipelines," he said. "That's quite a bit, and the addition of this pipeline would really complete our intermodal concept of transportation.

"There are three pipelines at Texas Eastern, so we're just a lick away from tapping into three products not within a couple miles, but a couple hundred years."

The other utilities projects include acquisition of reserve electrical generator systems and an extension of a 10-inch water line to complete a "water loop" through the port for fire protection and water security, Maki said.

The port director said he thinks the projects are ideally suited for the federal economic development grants.

"I think we've made a good case for it," he said. "It's not based on smoke and mirrors; it's based on written commitments. These are exactly the types of projects these grants are intended to address.

"I'd like to think it's a good grant because the jobs are there and we've done our homework like you're supposed to. It's not a done deal because we've just applied for it, but I'm guardedly optimistic."

Maki said the improvements, coupled with the added tenants, would be a boon for the port facility, which has grown significantly in the past year.

"I feel we've really turned the corner and are now starting to deliver some of the jobs and products that were a logical result of building the port," he said.

Maki said that at least two of the prospective businesses might finalize plans to locate at the port as early as next week.

"In the last year alone, we will have added five new tenants by Monday and leased 40 or 50 acres," he said.