On Monday, U.S. Senator Jack Reed and U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) Administrator Paul “Chip” Jaenichen toured some of Rhode Island’s key port infrastructure and met with marine shipping leaders in Newport and Providence.
First, Senator Reed and Administrator Jaenichen traveled to Newport Shipyard, where they inspected a new Marine Travel Lift, which was purchased with a recent $744,990 Small Shipyards Grant. They also received a tour of the shipyard from Charlie Dana and Eli Dana, the shipyard’s General Manager and Dock Master. As the Ranking Member of the Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development and Related Agencies (THUD) Appropriations Subcommittee, Senator Reed led the effort to restore federal funding for the Small Shipyard Grant Program in the FY 2016 Omnibus Appropriations law and helped secure the grant money for the Marine Travel Lift in April of this year.
Senator Reed and Administrator Jaenichen then headed to ProvPort in Providence, where they met with Governor Gina Raimondo and port officials at 11:30 a.m. for a press conference to discuss the TIGER Grant Crane and Barge Project and to christen a new, 300 foot $7.4 million barge.
