Mid-America Port Commission

Hannibal, MO. – Corey Mehaffy, Executive Director of the Hannibal Regional Economic Development Council (“HREDC”) announced today that his office was notified that the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission (“MHTC”) has approved the Marion County Port Authority’s request to establish the Marion/Ralls Regional Port Authority.

On July 28^th 2020, the Marion County Port Authority Board of Commissioners in cooperation with the Marion and Ralls County Commissioners, executed an Intergovernmental Cooperation Agreement to establish a Regional Port Authority. Approval of the new Port Authority is subject to MHTC review, as provided in Chapter 68 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri, as amended (the “Port Authorities Act”), which governs port authorities. The “Marion/Ralls Regional Port Authority,” is a separate political subdivision of the State of Missouri and it authorized to exercise port functions within its boundaries, the territorial limits of Marion County and Ralls County.

According to Mehaffy the new Regional Port Authority will promptly file for a fictitious name. “As we did with NEMO Economic Development Council, the Marion/Ralls Regional Port Authority will apply for the fictitious name of Hannibal Regional Port Authority. “The Hannibal brand is strong and known around the world,” he added. “The Commissioners intend to leverage the strength of that brand moving forward.”

“I am grateful to our Port Board of Commissioners and to the Ralls and Marion County Commissions for their vision, and willingness to partner in this endeavor. I am also grateful to the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission for their approval of our request,” said Mehaffy.

The Marion County Port Board of Commissioners includes Corey Mehaffy, Brian Caldwell, Brock Fahy, Gerry Maas, Rusty Adrian, Doug Krigbaum, Gordon Ipson and David Lomax. To learn more about the Marion County Port Authority, visit their webpage at https://hredc.com/marion-county-port-authority/

HREDC works to promote financial investment in Hannibal and Palmyra; and Marion and Ralls Counties. For more information on the organization, please visit their website at www.hredc.com.

Marion and Ralls Counties are located in the recently USACE designated Mid-America Port Commission Port Statistical Area.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has announced the approval of the Mid-America Port Commission (MAPC) Port Statistical Area (PSA). This is the largest port statistical area on the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. It includes 189 miles of the Upper Mississippi River and 69 miles of the Illinois River. The Mid-America Port Commission is the only 3-state port commission in the U.S. It includes six (6) Iowa counties, nine (9) Missouri counties and eleven (11) Illinois counties. The MAPC includes over 59 public and private terminals on the two (2) rivers. Public port authorities within the MAPC include the Southeast Iowa Regional Economic and Port Authority, Lewis County (MO) Port District, Marion/Ralls County (MO) Port District, Pike/Lincoln County (MO) Port District and the Mid-America Intermodal Authority Port District (IL). In addition to the help received from the Navigation Data Center of the Corps of Engineers, the Inland Rivers Ports & Terminals Association provided strong support.

A port statistical area is primarily a way the Corps of Engineers helps rank ports based on the amount of cargo shipped or received. Based on a recent 5-year average, the MAPC ranks in the top fifty (50) U.S. ports. This ranking will give the economic development organizations throughout the MAPC legislative boundary a major new marketing tool.

While the port statistical area is not used by the Corps of Engineers to prioritize navigation infrastructure and operations and maintenance projects, it assists the region improve its rankings for operating and maintenance funding of river projects by helping the Corps of Engineers gather more accurate shipping data throughout the MAPC area. One responsibility of the port statistical area is to inform the Corps of Engineers of changes in terminal ownership along with new or decommissioned terminals and docks.