Funds under this grant award will be used to provide dockage to meet recreational transient boater demand on the ohio river at smugglers cove marina in warsaw, kentucky

The U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service awarded $318,000 to the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources on January 1, 2026, under the Boating Infrastructure Grants (BIG) program (CFDA 15.622). The project will deliver 30 transient recreational boat slips on the Ohio River through renovations to an existing dock at Smugglers Cove Marina in Warsaw, Kentucky. The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources will partner with Smugglers Cove Marina to execute the dock renovation project, which is anticipated for completion by December 31, 2028. The funding will support dock infrastructure improvements designed to accommodate recreational transient boaters operating vessels 26 feet or greater in length.

The Boating Infrastructure Grants program funds construction, renovation, and maintenance of public-access docking facilities for transient recreational vessels through revenues collected from excise taxes on motorboat fuel and fishing equipment. This award represents a Tier 1 project grant, consistent with the program's funding structure that provides up to $300,000 per project with a 25 percent non-federal cost-share requirement. The resulting facilities will support recreational boating access and economic activity along the Ohio River corridor.

The project will include renovations to an existing dock that will result in a total of 30 slips dedicated to transient boaters the kentucky department of fish and wildlife resources will partner with smugglers cove marina to complete the transient dock renovation project.