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Dearborn County Excited About New Port

Ports of Indiana
Dearborn County could eventually have a port like this one in Jeffersonville after it goes through a brownfield clean-up.

Indiana Michigan Power has agreed to sell its 700 acre coal plant in Lawrenceburg to a brownfield redevelopment company.

The property along the Ohio River will be redeveloped as a port according to Dearborn County Commissioner and OKI President Kevin Lynch. He says it will create an economic boom for southeast Indiana.

Rich Cooper, CEO for the Ports of Indiana says, "We will be evaluating the site's viability for attracting new business to the Cincinnati metro area and to spur further economic development in the Tri-State region."

The Tanners Creek coal electric generation facility was retired last year. It was one of the largest electric utilities in the U.S., serving nearly 5.4 million customers in 11 states.

St. Louis-based Commercial Development Company, Inc. and its affiliates will work with the Ports of Indiana to determine if the property can be developed as the state's fourth port.

"Pursing the development of a new port in southeast Indiana will help drive growth for our 21st century, agriculture and advanced manufacturing sectors and attract continued business investment to our state," said Lt. Governor Eric Holcomb. "The Ohio River has always provided strategic advantages for the region."

Indiana's closest port to Lawrenceburg is the Port of Indiana-Jeffersonville, which opened in 1985 and is 100 miles from Dearborn. 

Ann Thompson has decades of journalism experience in the Greater Cincinnati market and brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her reporting.