| Tanner announces port TIGER grant green light |
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Posted: Wednesday, October 20, 2010 12:35 pm
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U.S. Rep. John Tanner announced the Northwest Tennessee Port and Industrial Park will receive a federal TIGER grant in the amount of $13 million to finish construction. When completed, the port will bring up to 2,300 jobs to the region, according to analysis from the Business and Economic Research Center at Middle Tennessee State University.
Tanner was notified by U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood that the Department of Transportation will officially announce the award Oct. 20.
“This is great news for continued work on the biggest economic development initiative in Northwest Tennessee for generations,” Tanner said.
“With this site’s prime location, our area’s workforce and the potential to recruit new industry, our region is poised to be a real economic force in our country, and Tennessee’s working families will benefit.”
The port, on the Mississippi River at Cates Landing in Lake County, is a slack-water harbor, where a steady level of still water makes for easier cargo loading and unloading than in parts of the river with fast-moving currents. The site is also near other important shipping routes:
• Approximately 25 miles from Interstate 155, which has direct connections to I-40, I-55, I-24 and Purchase Parkway
• Approximately 28 miles from future route of I-69, which will itself serve 17 of the nation’s top 25 seaports
• Approximately 30 miles from railroad lines connecting Canada to the Gulf of Mexico
“I want to thank Senators Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker, Governor Phil Bredesen and his administration, State Senator Roy Herron, State Representative Judy Barker and local elected and business leaders for their hard work,” Tanner said.
“By working together, we have made this project a reality.”
The competitive TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) grants are authorized under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, sometimes referred to as the “stimulus bill.”
“The TIGER program is an important one to invest in the creation of private-sector job growth, and we are pleased that others realize the important role Northwest Tennessee plays in our country’s economic future,” Tanner said.
Tanner represents the 8th Congressional District in West and Middle Tennessee. Co-founder of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Democrats, Tanner serves on the Ways and Means Committee, where he chairs the Trade Subcommittee, and on the Foreign Affairs Committee.
A veteran of the U.S. Navy and the Tennessee Army National Guard, Tanner chairs the U.S. delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and is serving as NATO PA President.
WCP 10.19.10
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