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Schumer continues to push for developments at the Port of Oswego

Corey Seeman
/
Flickr

Over the past several years, Sen. Charles Schumer has been able to secure federal money to help with upgrading facilities, including the improvement of rail lines and even dredging the Port of Oswego. He calls the upgrade of the port one of his "pet projects."

Schumer has been advocating modernizing the port for several years and says when all is said and done, he expects the job impact to be in the thousands.

"The economic impacts are way beyond just all the jobs of people loading and unloading the grain and the aluminum, and the other goods that will come there," Schumer said. "When you have a transportation nexus like this, and loads of ships come from across the Great Lakes and come to the Port of Oswego, companies will locate there, too."

Schumer says these jobs will become reality as soon as the pieces of the port come together.

"Everything looks like it's a go. And we're doing everything we can to make the port into a thriving port, which can create hundreds or even thousands of jobs," Schumer said.

The senator says the fact that Oswego is the easternmost port on the Great Lakes makes it a prime location to take advantage of other international projects -- like the deepening of the Panama Canal, which means an easier route for goods from Asia and then to the east coast.

Ellen produces news reports and features related to events that occur in the greater Syracuse area and throughout Onondaga County. Her reports are heard regularly in regional updates in Morning Edition and All Things Considered.