Intermodal facility being explored |
Intermodal facility being explored |
Aug 20 2007, 01:01 PM
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Spends WAY too much time at CBTL Group: Admin Posts: 16,426 Joined: 8-December 06 From: Michigan City, IN Member No.: 2 |
http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...amp;TM=54065.42
QUOTE Co. Committee To Look At Intermodal Officials to start advisory task force to ensure ‘transparent’ process in development. Laurie Wink The News-Dispatch LA PORTE - An advisory task force is being created to help county officials evaluate prospective developers and sites for an intermodal freight terminal in La Porte County. County Commission President Barbara Huston said in a press release Friday the commissioners are developing an "orderly and fair process" that would involve public input. The task force will have 15 to 20 members. The convergence of rail lines, coupled with closeness to major interstate highways, has positioned La Porte County as a prime location for a facility that could create jobs and boost economic development. It would serve as a place where cargo is transferred between trucks and trains. Two railroad companies are said to be eying locations here, but are saying little publicly about their plans. Some property owners have said they have been approached by a real estate company that has been buying options on farmland in southern La Porte County. "We will put a very public, transparent process in place to evaluate developers and sites before we ever give approvals to anyone," Huston said. Huston said the county has received multiple inquiries from real estate firms, venture capital groups, railroads and real estate investment trusts interested in prospective county locations. She said county attorney Shaw Friedman and county economic development coordinator Matt Reardon will coordinate contacts and issue a request of interest to identify serious proposals. Her own preference is to use the Kingsbury Industrial Park as the site of the intermodal facility, but she and the other commissioners are open to all possibilities, she said. |
Sep 25 2007, 11:56 AM
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Really Comfortable Group: Moderator Posts: 2,315 Joined: 10-February 07 From: Michigan City Member No.: 43 |
http://www.heraldargus.com/archives/ha/display.php?id=385883
QUOTE Officials say out-of-county intermodal workers could still provide economic benefit 09/25/2007, 11:49 am Donovan Estridge, 1-866-362-2167 Ext. 13865, destridge@heraldargus.com GRUNDY COUNTY, ILL. -- Although the possible location of an intermodal facility in La Porte County has economic development officials in the county excited about the potential for job creation and an increased tax base, it appears surrounding counties could benefit as well. That has reportedly been the case with Grundy County, Ill., which borders Will County, home of the Elwood, Ill., intermodal. “There have been employment opportunities around the intermodal, primarily from the warehousing industry,” Nancy Ammer, chief executive officer of the Grundy County Economic Development Council, told The La Porte County Herald-Argus Monday. “So yes, there have been employment opportunities.” Of the jobs created in Grundy County, Ammer noted that most have been in the warehousing field. While the jobs aren’t what Ammer would consider top-tier, she said the benefits of the nearby intermodal are certainly tangible and outweigh the negatives. “It helps the tax base,” Ammer said. “The jobs aren’t good but they aren’t bad. Typically they start out at $12 to $13 an hour. I would say the jobs are fair.” A big argument against the location of an intermodal facility in La Porte County is the possibility that jobs at such a facility could be filled by out-of-county workers. However, local economic developers pointed out in a recent meeting with The Herald-Argus editorial board that even out-of-county employees would benefit the county economically because they would pay the county income option tax, which contributes to the county’s general fund. “It still creates jobs,” Greater La Porte Economic Development Coordinator Tim Gropp told The Herald-Argus Monday. “Hopefully they will eat here and spend money here.” John Grueling, president of the Will County Center for Economic Development, told The Herald-Argus Monday that the Elwood intermodal has resulted in a boom in industrial development in the county and surrounding areas. However, Grueling said he was unsure how many of the jobs created by these developments are occupied by Will County residents. “All I can say is there has been tremendous industrial real estate development,” he said. “As for the amount of people from out of town, that is hard to say.” Gropp pointed out that out-of-town workers might consider relocating to the county, thus becoming full-time taxpaying citizens of the county. More importantly, he said, an intermodal facility would provide an opportunity for the county’s under-employed to move into better-paying jobs that are more suited to their skills. |
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