New Minnesota, Ontario port of entry construction contract awarded

GRAND PORTAGE, Minn. (FOX 9) - A Native American-owned business has been awarded a contract to help construct a port of entry between Grand Portage, Minnesota, with Neebing, Ontario, to help process vehicles, pedestrians, and commercial traffic.

Following the Infrastructure Law passage last legislative session, the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) has awarded a contract of $6.8 million for construction management and commissioning services to Oneida Engineering Solutions (OES).

According to its site, OES is an approved Native American-Owned Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) and 8a Small Business Enterprise (SBE) engineering and environmental services company owned by the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin.

According to the announcement, the project will assist the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and will offer five lanes and officer booths for each lane, enhance officer safety and security and enable CBP to process border traffic more efficiently. 

The new facility will meet the federal government’s mission requirements, enhance safety and security, and improve customer service to travelers, according to the announcement, and replace the existing facility with the construction of the new land port of entry. OES will also serve as the local point of contact for the tribal community, Minnesota State Park personnel, and the local utility company. 

"In the first year of this project, we have made a great deal of progress," said GSA’s Great Lakes Region Public Buildings Service Commissioner Angel Dizon in a statement. "We are proudly building strong relationships and working closely with the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. We are in the process of learning and understanding the unique aspects of this project while establishing fruitful government-to-government engagement."

GSA anticipates issuing the design-build solicitation in fall 2023, with construction slated to be completed in 2029.

The Infrastructure Law includes a total of $3.4 billion for GSA to build and modernize land ports of entry on the country’s northern and southern borders.