VIDALIA — The recent purchase of a portion of Scotland Plantation has expanded the size of the Vidalia port to beyond 100 acres.

The port — the first phase of which is currently under construction — is located on approximately 35 acres on the Mississippi River across Louisiana 15 from Vidalia’s second industrial park. The new purchase — 69.53 acres downriver — butts up to the port site on the river side of the levee.

“We are excited we got some additional property for future growth and expansion,” Concordia Economic Development Executive Director Heather Malone said.

“Louisiana Economic Development wanted to be sure the future of the port was secure and there was ample room for expansion because we are working on getting some property certified through the state for industrial purposes, and this was a key part of getting that certification.

“It definitely allows us to secure the future of the port and allows us to continue to grow and add more terminals as the industrial park and port grow.”

The total purchase price for the land, $875,000, was part of a negotiated total that included $12,000 an acre and an additional $40,000 the property owners — James Biglane and the Charlotte Biglane Nobile Trust — asked for, Malone said.

“The appraised value was for $12,000 an acre, so that was the offer, but the additional $40,000 was a negotiated rate where the property owners negotiated up and we ultimately decided to go with it to avoid getting tied up in any possible litigation later,” she said.

Bob Gavin Appraisal Service of Natchez completed the property appraisal.

The funds for the purchase came from state-allocated capital outlay that included real estate acquisition as part of the port project, Malone said. The City of Vidalia started receiving funds for the outlay application in question in 2012.

As part of the purchase, the city has also been given the so-called right of last look for the adjacent property next to the new purchase, which essentially means the city will be afforded an opportunity to purchase it first if the current property owners get an offer from another potential buyer.

“There definitely is potential for the port to continue to grow,” Malone said. “We can continue our relationship with property owners on both sides of the port, and both property owners have been great to work with.”

The port does not have immediate plans to expand onto the new acreage.

“We are still finalizing construction on phase I and we have plans to expand on the other 35 acres that we had purchased before, so this would be following that unless there is any reason we see where we need to flip it and go to the other use of the property later,” Malone said.

The current phase of construction at the port includes building an embankment and a road connecting Louisiana 131 to the Mississippi River. It will also include the installation of utilities and a conveyer system.

The second phase of the port project will include digging the slackwater slip.

The total estimated cost for the port as proposed is approximately $20 million.