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Twin Cities update: $10 million rail grant sought, L and R pledges local match
Summary
Tony Floyd told the Mountain Grove council the Twin Cities Industrial Park is pursuing a $10 million rail-related grant to build a rail spur that could add about 75–100 jobs; the council approved a resolution authorizing an EDA application and formalized L and R Industries’ commitment to provide the required 20% local match.
Tony Floyd, the Twin Cities Industrial Park contact, told the Mountain Grove City Council on May 11 that the industrial-park project has used a combination of CDBG and DRA grants to acquire more than 300 acres and is now pursuing a short-timeline rail grant and related planning funds.
"Now the big grant we're going for right now, it'll be about $10,000,000," Floyd said, describing a planning grant and a larger rail-focused application due May 30. He said the work includes water and sewer, road layout and a labor-and-housing study to support anticipated industrial growth.
Floyd said the rail spur plan could reduce trucking costs and support new manufacturing activity. "It will also bring about 75 to a 100 more jobs in this area," he said, adding that bringing rail service to the Twin Cities Industrial Park would make the site more attractive to manufacturers.
City Administrator noted the council later considered Resolution 2026-07, which authorizes submission of an application to the U.S. Economic Development Administration for a disaster-implementation grant for the railroad spur. The resolution specifies a required 20% local match and records a commitment from L and R Industries LLC to provide that match.
"This particular grant requires a 20% match," the City Administrator said during the meeting. "L and R has graciously stepped up and said they're gonna cover every dime of the 20% match," language that the resolution places in writing for clarity on the record.
The council voted to approve the resolution authorizing the application and acknowledging the local-match commitment. Supporters said the rail spur, if funded and implemented, would be a strategic asset for local economic development, enabling heavier shipments directly by rail and supporting industrial expansions, including a proposed slitter operation mentioned by Floyd.
The council did not make a final procurement or construction decision at the meeting; the approved resolution authorizes the city administrator to submit the grant application and documents the local-match commitment by L and R Industries as written evidence for the EDA application.
What happens next: the EDA application process continues on the schedule Floyd described; the city’s application will reference L and R Industries’ written match commitment and the planning work under way. The council approved the resolution by voice and recorded votes at the May 11 meeting.
