Slashed funds for river ports could set back Heartland Port

In this April 30, 2019 photo, a sand barge operator turns to deliver a load on the Missouri River at Jefferson City.
In this April 30, 2019 photo, a sand barge operator turns to deliver a load on the Missouri River at Jefferson City.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Development of the Heartland Port planned for Jefferson City could take longer than expected after the Missouri Senate made initial changes to port funding.

The Missouri Department of Transportation offers funding to Missouri's 14 public river ports through grants. The two chambers of the state Legislature disagree on funding for the grants as the constitutional deadline to pass the state budget approaches Friday.

The House version of the state budget provided $50 million for MoDOT to provide grants to port authorities around the state.

The Senate Appropriations Committee cut the $50 million in half and designated the other half solely for the Jefferson County Port Authority. The funding in both plans would come entirely from federal COVID-19 relief dollars.

Harry Otto, chairman of the Heartland Port Authority of Central Missouri Commission, said the Heartland Port Authority is looking for funding where it can get it, and MoDOT is certainly an option. Otto said the reduced funding for port grants could impact the planned port in Jefferson City as it could be in line for some of MoDOT's port grants.

Under the House budget, all 14 public river ports in Missouri would be eligible to apply for a share of the $50 million set aside for port grants. Under the Senate plan, the 14 ports would be competing for $25 million in grants.

But the budget isn't final, Otto noted, because lawmakers have until Friday to approve the budget and port funding. The House and Senate planned to conference over their differences in the budget Tuesday and today.

Part of the cost of establishing a port is acquiring the property, Otto said, and that's the stage the Heartland Port Authority is at.

Otto said the Heartland Port Authority is working through an engineering study on a proposed location on the south side of the river, which should be complete by June 30, and it's also looking at more sites on the north side of the river.

"If there was $50 million and the Heartland Port got its 'share' of that, it could go to the conveyance price of Algoa (southern site) or it could go to a sales price, acquisition purchase price of something on the north side of the river," Otto said.

The state has been authorized to convey the southern location to the Heartland Port Authority, Otto said, but it hasn't been authorized to give the land away.

"We haven't even discussed with the state a proper fee or price," Otto said. "Just that they have the authority to convey, but they don't really have the authority or the Office of Administration doesn't appear to have the authority to give it away."

The state could choose to sell, lease, transfer or gift the conveyed land, Otto said.

"But this $50 million would have made other things potentially possible," Otto said. "I assume that the dozen or so public ports in Missouri would be vying to get their share of that additional amount."

If the port authority proceeds with a location on the north side, Otto said it would require engineering studies and development of access routes from paved roads to the location.

Without the additional funding for port grants, Otto said it would probably take longer for Jefferson City to have an operating port.

"When this $50 million first appeared as an idea or possibility, it probably encouraged us to think that it could be done sooner than otherwise, prior to the discussion of the extra $50 million," Otto said.

He said the Heartland Port Authority is still hoping to get a share of the regular multimodal grants MoDOT offers, even if the additional funds aren't approved.

The proposed $50 million for port grants is an addition to the roughly $10 million MoDOT receives for multimodal grants annually.

Linda Wilson Horn, communication director for MoDOT, said the department uses an application process for its regular multimodal grants that include port grants, but the department would wait for guidance from the Legislature on how to administer the ARPA-funded port grants.

Sen. Mike Bernskoetter, R-Jefferson City, said the port funding is important for his district and the state.

"They've always said that it's a pretty long stretch from the Kansas City area ports to the St. Louis area ports, and so having one in Jeff City would be really ideal for the span that they have to make now," he said.

The port authority doesn't have a firm timeline for the Heartland Port project, but Otto said building a port is a marathon, not a sprint.