[Ang]

Isn't Scott Hamilton the skater?

You're thinking of Dorothy Hamilton.

[Southsider2k12]

http://www.post-trib.com/business/546456,intermodal.article

Transit hub called economic engine

September 7, 2007
BY DANIELLE BRAFF Post-Tribune staff writer

Baseball fields, fire stations, government centers and roads are some of the perks a proposed intermodal could bring to LaPorte County if it follows in the footsteps of the Illinois intermodals, economic development officials said Thursday.
The intermodal also would generate thousands of jobs with average salaries of $40,000 and millions of dollars in tax revenues, Matt Reardon, LaPorte County economic development coordinator, told the Post-Tribune editorial board.

Reardon said he hopes to begin negotiating with real estate development company Grubb-Ellis Cressy and Everett as soon as it makes an offer on property to build the transportation hub.

Northwest Indiana public officials, developers and affected farmers are waiting to hear definitive plans from the company, which is expected to create a 3,000-acre facility in LaPorte County. The intermodal terminal would connect the interstates and ports with a railroad facility designed to make the region the hub of transportation activities.

While the developer has been in talks with LaPorte for 11⁄2 years, it hasn't made any announcements other than optioning land voluntarily sold by some of the farmers living in the designated area.

"We're trying to get to a stage where we can get some information out," John Regetz, executive director of the Michigan City Economic Development Corp., said. Regetz and Reardon have been in regular talks with Grubb-Ellis, but the developer still hasn't given them a timeline of when a deal will be offered.

When that happens, Reardon estimated that the minimum amount of time needed before the intermodal will be completed would be three years.

The developer would have to pass major hurdles, including environmental studies and restrictions and zoning laws. Grubb-Ellis would have to figure out how to expand the roads and determine the impact of the increased amount of trucks and vehicles.

The developer also is facing thousands of angry LaPorte residents who said they don't appreciate the amount of secrecy that has been surrounding the deal.

There are 110,000 people living in LaPorte County, and they will all be affected by the intermodal.

[JHeath]

You're thinking of Dorothy Hamilton.

No, he was right. Scott Hamilton was a male olympic skater...I believe in the 90s.
Dorothy Hammill (check that spelling) was also a skater, though, but in the 70s or 80s.

[Southsider2k12]

Looks like the "Mitch Daniels was Right" club is meeting tonight...

http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...;ArticleID=4301

Anti-Intermodal Group To Meet
SISOC forms in an effort to oppose what it believes are two facilities set for county.

Laurie Wink
The News-Dispatch

UNION MILLS - A recently formed anti-intermodal group will hold a public meeting at 7 p.m. tonight at the Union Mills Conservation Club.

The meeting will discuss the impact the project will have on Union Mills and the nearby rural neighborhood, according to the Web site www.sisoc.net.

A news release announcing the organization of Stop Intermodals - Save Our County said the group is determined to fight the development of what it believes will be two intermodal facilities in La Porte County.

An intermodal is a transportation center where goods are loaded and unloaded from train flat cars to and from trucks for transport by rail and highway. La Porte County is seen by potential developers as a prime intermodal location because three rail lines traverse the area along with major highways and interstates are nearby.

SISOC co-chairs Edward Nunn and Ty Murray are encouraging people to volunteer to gather signatures on petitions.

SISOC said its members intend to "prevent the crushing environmental and social impact" they believe will result from proposed intermodals, according to the news release. The group is concerned with the "social disintegration" of Union Mills and Wellsboro.

The organization has 30 core members who came together after a public meeting in Union Mills about the intermodal attended by about 600 people.

Meanwhile, the first meeting of the La Porte Intermodal Advisory Task Force is set for 6 p.m. Sept. 26, at the County Complex, according to Commissioner President Barbara Huston, D-La Porte.

The 21 members of the advisory group were announced last week, and include some who oppose intermodal development in the county.

The task force is charged with studying intermodal freight terminals and evaluating the pros and cons of developing such a facility in La Porte County.

Named as facilitator for the task force is Donald Anderson, a faculty member in the College of Consumer and Family Sciences at Purdue University in West Lafayette.

Staff named to provide research and investigative support to the group are Shaw Friedman and Robert Szilagyi, county attorneys; Matt Reardon, county economic development director; Ray Hamilton, county building commissioner, and Mitch Bishop, county planner.



Contact Laurie Wink at lwink@thenewsdispatch.com.

[Roger Kaputnik]

SISOC said its members intend to "prevent the crushing environmental and social impact" they believe will result from proposed intermodals, according to the news release. The group is concerned with the "social disintegration" of Union Mills and Wellsboro.




"Social disintegration"?! See, this is the kind of thing that is irking me. What are they against? Are these people just not busy enough? What are the real main issues re the Intermodal? I am having a hard time hearing a negative.

[Southsider2k12]

They are worried only about themselves. They don't seem to care about the fact that LaPorte county as a whole has been depressed for a really long time, and needs this stimulus about as bad as anywhere in the country needs it. This is a great time to menion that LPC fell into the 200 poorest counties in the entire country. The people of LPC need jobs, and it isn't like there has been great leadership exhibited by either parties politicians in this area. Private industry is ready to step in at no cost to the taxpayers, and we have people who want to fight them. I don't understand it.

[JHeath]

Over the weekend, I was discussing this concept witha friend of mine who grew up on a farm. She agreed that farming is a very uncertain industry...and in her opinion, that the intermodal would be much more beneficial to our county.

Come on...EVERYONE ELSE SEES IT. Can we just bring in more jobs?

[Ang]

No, he was right. Scott Hamilton was a male olympic skater...I believe in the 90s.
Dorothy Hammill (check that spelling) was also a skater, though, but in the 70s or 80s.

Ooops. My bad. I don't really follow skating, I just remember I had one of those stupid haircuts because my mom thought it was cute and easy to take care of. Personally I hated it and thought it made me look like a boy.

[Roger Kaputnik]

I think the greatest unfiled class action lawsuit is by sons and daughters against parents for bad haircuts.

[Ang]

I heard about one in MN where a daughter sued her mother because she slipped on ice on the mother's front porch. I can't remember the actual sum she was suing for but it was in the hundred thousands.

[JHeath]

Just in case anyone has an extra $250 burning a hole in their pocket...

http://heraldargus.com/archives/ha/display.php?id=385399

Logistics summit to discuss intermodals

The 5th annual Indiana Logistics Summit is scheduled for Sept. 25 and 26 in Indianapolis. The summit will focus on how to expand the competitive advantages of the state’s transportation, distribution and logistics industry, which includes intermodals.

Purdue University President France A. Córdova is scheduled to make opening remarks to the more than 300 leaders from industry, government, economic development and academia.

Gov. Mitch Daniels also is scheduled to make remarks. Featured speakers will be former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta and Michael Gallis, an expert in large-scale regional development strategies.

The summit, which will be at the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown, 350 W. Maryland St., will examine ways to build the high-growth, high-tech transportation, distribution and logistics industry. The industry creates jobs and supports other key sectors, including advanced manufacturing, information technology and the life sciences.

The schedule for the summit is available online at http://www.indianalogistics.com.

Additional program information is available from Jody Peacock, Ports of Indiana, at 317-233-6225 or jpeacock@portsofindiana.com. Registration, lodging and transportation questions can be directed to Kathy Walters, conference coordinator at Purdue University, at 1-800-359-2968 or kw@purdue.edu.

The summit is organized by Purdue, Ports of Indiana and Conexus Indiana. Sponsors include Duke Realty, Indiana Department of Transportation, Indiana Economic Development Corp., the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service, UPS, First Industrial Realty, National City, FedEx, Charter One Bank, RedCats USA, Northwest Indiana Forum, Relay Express, Duke Energy and AEP Memco Barge Line.

The summit is open to transportation professionals and the general public. The $250 registration fee includes an evening reception on Sept. 25 and lunch on Sept. 26. Registration information is available online at http://www.indianalogistics.com or by calling 765-494-2758.

[Southsider2k12]

A letter to the editor from the mayor himself... As usual, it is pretty non-committal.

http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...&TM=49269.7

It's Too Early To Judge Intermodal
As I read the news coverage of potential intermodal and logistics projects in La Porte County I want my fellow citizens to be mindful that the development of such ventures follows a deliberate, and ultimately public, process. We all need to exercise patience while that progression occurs. The process starts with an entrepreneur identifying a business concept that meets a market demand. The developer must research and select the best locations for the venture and determine the suitability of those sites.

Because of the convergence of freight rail lines and interstate highways, La Porte County has a high potential for intermodal development. The market for these projects is driven by increasing freight traffic in the Chicago consumer market. Such projects also support industry as it brings in assembly components and ships out finished products.

The developer also has to privately assemble commitments with willing sellers. Infrastructure needs are preliminarily identified and cost analysis begins at this stage, where economic and elected officials may be engaged for information exchange. Ultimately, economics will determine if projects will be pursued in a location. To proceed without prompting competition for land for the intended venture, the developer must be secure in the knowledge that information about their concept will not be leaked.

A development plan with project engineering and feasibility is researched before public announcements are made. The developer must investigate zoning requirements and environmental impacts as well as finalizing infrastructure costs with development agencies. Public officials then review project requirements and determine how to best assist and negotiate project performance standards, such as job creation, construction criteria and community improvements.

These aspects of the project undergo specific approval processes by public bodies, complete with public hearings. No binding agreements are made before this point. For intermodal projects, La Porte County has established a citizen's task force that will conduct an additional public review process.

It appears the current development process has yet to complete its private phases and due diligence.

The potential for job creation, infrastructure development, related investment and tax base expansion through out La Porte County is great with intermodal development. I encourage our citizens and elected officials to review proposals, when submitted, before taking positions regarding intermodal development in our county.

Chuck Oberlie, Mayor

Michigan City

[Southsider2k12]

Also here is a great editorial from the ND

http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...&TM=49827.5

Progress In County
Some Fear Change, But Change Is Coming

Editorial

Maybe it's nothing more than the "not in my back yard" syndrome, but the growing protest in La Porte County over proposed development is alarming.

It doesn't seem to matter if it's a condominium project in Michigan City, a commercial development in downtown La Porte or a transportation hub near Union Mills, there seems to be opposition to almost anything new.

Change is always difficult, but the attitude that seems to be imbedded in La Porte County that any change is bad is becoming a roadblock for progress.

One of the members of the anti-intermodal group Stop Intermodals - Save Our County summed up that attitude perfectly: "I'm not in favor of it because the emphasis is on jobs. In La Porte County, we need more than jobs. We need a safe, quiet place to live more than we need jobs. La Porte County has always been a nice place to live. People have gone other places to work."

And that is the reason La Porte County finds itself in the position it is in today. New, high-paying jobs aren't being created for our young people to encourage them to stay in La Porte County. And because many La Porte County residents go elsewhere to work, the county doesn't get the benefit of the taxes those businesses pay to support the vital services we all need.

The fact is change is coming to La Porte County. Our location in Northwest Indiana makes the area a prime target for developers.

Because of that inevitability, La Porte County officials are trying to plan for the future. At a meeting Thursday night at Purdue University-North Central, details of a 75-page development plan for the county from Duncan Associates of Muncie, Ind., were discussed. It is the first step on a new master plan for the county.

The proposal is a common sense approach to development, including the idea that residential development should be near communities with water and sewer, and not out in the county where those developments would need septic systems. Large development in the county, like the proposed intermodal, would be able to install their own sewer system, something that nearby homes could tie into so they wouldn't have to remain on a septic system.

Right now, much of the talk about development is just that. Much planning needs to take place before work starts on any development, but development proposals should not be dismissed merely because things will be different than they are now.

[Ang]

A letter to the editor from the mayor himself... As usual, it is pretty non-committal.

http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...&TM=49269.7

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..................

[mcstumper]

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..................

I agree. I generally am a Chuck supporter, but it really looks like he has his finger to the wind on this one.

[JHeath]

I agree. I generally am a Chuck supporter, but it really looks like he has his finger to the wind on this one.

I was thinking his finger was somewhere else...

[Roger Kaputnik]

I think you are thinking of his HEAD being somewhere else...

[JHeath]

I think you are thinking of his HEAD being somewhere else...

Say it however you'd like, Roger...either way, they're probably in the same general vicinity.

[JHeath]

http://www.heraldargus.com/archives/ha/display.php?id=385882

County economic developers create intermodal Web site
09/25/2007, 11:47 am

Donovan Estridge, 1-866-362-2167 Ext. 13865, destridge@heraldargus.com


Officials say site is only informational

LA PORTE COUNTY -- An informational Web site about the status of rail intermodal facility negotiations was launched Monday by economic developers from Michigan City, La Porte and La Porte County.

The Web site, www.lcintermodal.info, was launched in hopes of distributing more information to the public. While the Web site outlines the potential benefits of an intermodal facility in the county, John Regetz, executive director of the Michigan City Economic Development Corp., said it is intended only as a source of information, and not as an endorsement of an intermodal.

“Right now it isn’t pro or con,” Regetz told The La Porte County Herald-Argus this morning. “I don’t think it says pro or con anywhere on the site.”

Some of the information on the site trumpets the injection of high-paying jobs and the “halo effect” of spin-off businesses in the county that could result from an intermodal. Additionally, it cites La Porte County as a premier site for logistical development due to the number of rail lines crisscrossing the area.

“This is a way to get basic information to the public,” Tim Gropp, executive director of the Greater La Porte Economic Development Corp., told The Herald-Argus this morning.

As for the site supporting an intemodal, Gropp quickly discounted such a notion.

“It is fairly neutral,” he said. “You have to look at the benefits. We happen to be pro-business here, but this Web site is strictly informational.”

In addition to basic intermodal information, the site will also offer updates on the status of intermodal talks, in hopes of debunking the many myths and rumors that Regetz said have been circulating in regard to a possible intermodal facility in the county.

“This (Web site) gets the concepts about the progress out there,” Regetz said. “Hopefully this will help people better understand the process.”

[JHeath]

http://www.heraldargus.com/archives/ha/display.php?id=385883

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.