Nebraska International Port of the Plains discusses progress of port development project

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (KNOP) – The Nebraska International Port of the Plains Authority held their regular monthly meeting Tuesday afternoon at the Lincoln County Courthouse.

Although four members were absent from the meeting, those present proceeded in reviewing what progress has been made so far for the port development project.

In attendance at Tuesday’s meeting were members of the Nebraska Department of Economic Development Ben Goins and Jessica Anderson. Goins and Anderson clarified questions from members about the recent $5 million grant the authority received from the department.

Also at the meeting was Gary Person from the North Platte Area Chamber and Development. Person reported on the many conversations he had with local businesses and the Union Pacific Railroad as a plan starts to finalize for the port project.

Port Authority Vice President Patrick Keenan said all of the cooperation between groups involved has made the port project advance extremely well, but that the project will take time to finish

”There are a lot of people working hard to make this happen, and we appreciate the patience, like any big project,” Keenan said. “Nothing happens easy and nothing happens too quickly, so bear with us, there’s a great learning curve, but we have a lot of good people working hard.”

The port project will bring intermodal traffic to an area of land just east of Hershey along Highway 30. With the port’s location near the Union Pacific Bailey Yard, Lincoln County will become one of the largest areas for rail traffic in the country. Vice President Keenan expressed his excitement for the growth of the area.

“Anything we can do to add volume and add more activity through the area is a good thing,” Keenan said.

The next regular meeting for the Port of the Plains will be on Monday, July 22, 2024 at 2 p.m. in the Lincoln County Commissioner’s office at the Lincoln County Courthouse.

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