Eddyville Riverport Set for Major Expansion With Grant Support

Within the next month, the Eddyville (Ky.) Riverport and Industrial Development Authority expects to finalize grant funding that will allow for a major expansion, with work beginning this fall.

A 2022 federal Port Infrastructure Development Program grant allowed the riverport to add an inlet to expand available contiguous water frontage at the port at Cumberland River Mile 43 on Lake Barkey. According to details in the PIDP grant application, the new inlet will be approximately 300 feet long by 110 feet wide and at least 30 feet deep.

Additionally, funding through the Kentucky Public Riverport Construction and Maintenance Program has paid for four new mooring dolphins. The port currently has three loading cells and eight fleeting cells.

The expansion will mean the port can at least double if not quadruple the amount of barges handled at one time, said Amanda Davenport, executive director.

“This funding comes at a perfect time to help us, along with our customers, to expand the port,” Davenport said.

The mooring dolphins will provide additional barge capacity for both the port’s existing six tenants and possibly others, she said, while the inlet is key in attracting new business.

Davenport said the port has seen significant interest from new tenants wanting to locate at the inlet. She credits the port’s location. Barkley Dam provides relatively stable water levels, she said, and the industrial park that is part of the same entity is served by rail. Additionally, both Interstate 69 and Interstate 24 cross within a few miles.

“Any direction you want to go by any mode of transportation other than air, we can accommodate,” she said.

The port offers easy to access Nashville, Tenn., which is also on the Cumberland River, by water or land, Davenport said. She also touted easy transportation options to Memphis, Tenn., and St. Louis. Additionally, Davenport said, the community is an affordable place to do business and has a “business-friendly board that is willing to work outside of the box.”

First Executive Director

Davenport, 36, became the Eddyville Riverport and Industrial Development Authority’s first executive director last July after spending more than six years in regional economic development. She is originally from Denton, Texas.

Jamie Wynn continues to serve as the port director, handling many of the day-to-day operations, but Davenport said the addition of an executive director has allowed a focus on grant management, business development, long-term planning and work with legislators and other officials.

While she continues to learn more about waterborne transportation, Davenport worked with the port on industrial projects in her previous economic development role, in which she had served since 2018. That work included developing sites at the industrial park as well as a master plan for both the port and industrial park.

“Being able to focus on one organization that had two very different assets was very appealing to me,” she said.

Davenport lives just across the county line in Caldwell County, Ky., with her husband, Joe Duncan, and their 5-year-old daughter, Cora.

Davenport said she is grateful to port directors and others within the industry who have helped to guide her as she adjusts to her new role. She is especially enthusiastic about doing so during a period of major expansion for the port.

She said, “I think it is such an exciting time to be a part of this industry and to learn.”

Featured photo caption: The Eddyville Riverport and Industrial Development Authority, Cumberland River Mile 43, expects to break ground on a major expansion in the fall. (Photos courtesy of the Eddyville Riverport and Industrial Development Authority)