Duluth Revives Century Old Pier as Great Lakes’ Premier Heavy Lift Hub After $10.5 Million Rebuild

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The first vessel in decades docked at the newly rebuilt Berth 10 on the Clure Terminal Expansion pier in Duluth, Minnesota, this week, marking the completion of a $10.5 million reconstruction that adds 1,200 lineal feet of steel dock wall and two new berths to the Great Lakes’ largest heavy lift port.

The tugboat Meredith Ashton and a 240 foot deck barge loaded with project cargo arrived at the 667 foot northeast facing berth late Wednesday, opening a facility that traces its origins to a grain terminal built in 1907. The milestone caps a redevelopment spanning more than three decades and positions the Port of Duluth Superior to capture growing demand for breakbulk and dimensional cargo shipments across North America’s midsection.

The pier, formerly known as Garfield C&D, once housed a Peavey/Cargill grain elevator that closed in the 1980s and sat idle through the following decade. The Duluth Seaway Port Authority acquired the 26 acre site and demolished the grain elevators in 1997, beginning a phased transformation.

A turning point came in 2013, when the Port Authority secured a $10 million TIGER grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. Construction began in 2015 on a comprehensive rebuild of the cleared land. By 2016, the authority had completed a modern truck and rail served roll on, roll off dock, restored the southeast facing Berth 8 and Berth 9, and formally renamed the property the Clure Terminal Expansion.

Those earlier berths hold historic significance. Berth 8 and Berth 9 hosted a ceremony in May 1959 for the Ramon de Larrinaga, the first oceangoing vessel to reach Duluth Superior through the newly opened St. Lawrence Seaway.

The reconstruction of Berths 10 and 11, completed in March 2025, brought the pier’s total to four heavy lift capable vessel berths, supported by new bollards and reinforced concrete decking. The facility now offers 26 acres of cargo laydown space and on dock rail service connecting to four Class I railroads.

Duluth Cargo Connect uses the pier for dimensional and heavy lift cargo handling. The terminal has also attracted the first oceangoing vessel calls of the season in both 2025 and 2026, underscoring its role as a gateway linking mid-continent shippers to global markets through the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway System.

“The transformation of this pier from abandoned relic into a thriving, modern hub for heavy lift and project cargo transport spanned more than 30 years, so it’s satisfying to see it redesigned, rebuilt and reinvigorated,” said Kevin Beardsley, executive director of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority.

Beardsley credited past Port Authority leadership and financial backing from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration and the Minnesota legislature for making the project possible.

The expansion reinforces Duluth Superior’s position beyond its traditional identity as a bulk natural resources port. The Port Authority describes the facility as the Great Lakes’ heaviest lift port, a distinction gained when the original Clure Public Marine Terminal opened.

“Duluth Superior will probably always be known first as a bulk natural resources port, but it also became the Great Lakes’ heaviest lift port when the Clure Terminal opened, and the expansion pier redevelopment enhanced our port’s capability as a breakbulk cargo handling hub for North America’s midsection,” Beardsley said.

The port sustains more than 7,000 jobs and generates $1.6 billion in annual economic activity, serving as North America’s farthest inland seaport and the Great Lakes’ all-time tonnage leader. With four Class I rail connections and free flowing highway access, the expanded terminal is positioned to handle oversized industrial components, energy infrastructure, and other project cargo that requires specialized berth capacity and heavy lift equipment.