$500,000 in grants to four Kentucky riverports

FRANKFORT, Ky. — $500,000 in grants have been awarded to four Kentucky riverports for needed infrastructure and equipment upgrades to improve operations and access to riverports.

The funding was legislatively appropriated and must be locally matched and was awarded for six separate projects at four riverports. Kentucky Transportation Secretary Jim Gray approved the awards at the recommendation of the Kentucky Water Transportation Advisory Board, which reviewed the applications.

The following projects received grant funding:

Eddyville Riverport and Industrial Development Authority:

• $184,061 toward purchasing a CAT 330 excavator to provide redundancy for material loading/unloading and to help expand operations.

Owensboro Riverport Authority:

• $115,859.60 toward the purchase of a 25,000-pound forklift to handle aluminum and steel loads.
• $31,399.83 toward purchasing a new and more efficient compact track loader for handling material.
• $16,159.57 toward a new 10,000-pound forklift for unloading aluminum and steel from barges and railcars.

Henderson County Riverport Authority:

• $122,000 toward a new truck scale and widening and adding access drives to allow more efficient truck movement.

Paducah-McCracken County Riverport Authority:

• $30,510 toward replacing two deteriorated entranceways and aprons to increase access to storage yards.