SHREVEPORT/BOSSIER CITY, La. — The Port of Caddo-Bossier and leaders from Bossier City broke ground for a new waterline that will supply water to an undeveloped portion of The Port. The new waterline will also provide a secondary source of water for current Port tenants. The ceremony was held at the LSU AgCenter off Highway 71 in Bossier City.
“This is a significant day for The Port of Caddo-Bossier for two important reasons,” said Walt Bigby Jr., President of The Port Commission. “First, this waterline is needed to attract companies to our sites on the west side of Highway 1. Secondly, we like to offer a redundant source to our tenants for water, electricity, and natural gas. This line will offer the secondary source of water for our current tenants.”
The Bossier City Council approved the waterline extension in April 2023. The Port will finance the project, which will run into the tens of millions of dollars, with a low-interest loan. Bossier City would make a profit from the sale of the water to the tenants.
“I truly believe the residents of Bossier City will benefit greatly from this venture,” said Bossier City Councilman David Montgomery. “By allowing The Port to tap into our water system, we will increase city revenue and at the same time create new jobs for our residents.”
Bossier City upgraded its Red River Water Treatment Plant so that it can handle 50 million gallons of water a day. Currently, the city is not using the plant to its full capacity. Even if Bossier City’s population doubled, the water treatment plant would still produce enough clean water to handle The Port’s needs. If the city sells just 3 million gallons of water a day to a new Port tenant, it would make more than $1.7 million. Revenue would increase as the amount of water sold also increases.
The new underground pipeline will connect to a waterline that currently ends at Parkway High School. It will extend to the Red River. A tunnel will be bored 100 feet under the river that will connect the waterline to The Port. While crews are boring under the river, they will add a second pipeline for sewage. Crews will cap the line until there is a need to move waste to Bossier City for treatment.
“This project shows Bossier City’s commitment to The Port and economic development,” said Bossier City Mayor Tommy Chandler. “To improve our community, we need to offer our citizens new opportunities. I believe this waterline will bring new opportunities.”
“This waterline is the first step for The Port to upgrade our new sites for potential tenants,” said Eric England, Executive Port Director. “Our economic development partners Greater Bossier Economic Development Foundation, BRF and North Louisiana Economic Partnership agree that we must have shovel-ready greenfield sites if we are going to attract new businesses and jobs to the area. We plan to add a rail spur, electric substations, natural gas lines and transload facility so that those sites are tenant-ready.”
The 4,000-acre Port of Caddo-Bossier is located at the head of navigation on the Red River Waterway in Northwest Louisiana. An inland multimodal transportation and distribution center, The Port works hand in hand with the port system of Louisiana to successfully link customers throughout the Ark-La-Tex region to domestic and international markets via the Mississippi River (the nation’s largest river system) and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.