Illinois bi-county agency grants option on 400 acres to shortline

Written by jrood

The Jo-Carroll Depot Local Redevelopment Authority agreed to give Riverport Railroad a three-year option to buy a 400-acre industrial park at the former Savanna Army Depot 20 miles north of Thomson Correctional Center, Executive Director Diane M. Komiskey, local media report.

The shortline railroad
and switching company with an interchange on the BNSF may exercise the option
on tracts of no less than 40 acres. The LRA put in place conditions to assure
that development was about to occur on a tract before it would be sold to
Riverport.

"It is the LRA’s hope
that by granting the option, the LRA and Riverport Railroad cooperatively will
succeed in encouraging Rescar and other rail-related industries to grow in the
Savanna Depot Park," Komiskey said.

The LRA is an agency
created by Jo Daviess and Carroll counties to receive property from the Army
and convey it for economic development. The Savanna Depot Park is a 3,000-acre
multiuse development.

Rescar is the largest
employer in Depot Park, with 27 of 62 jobs. Riverport Railroad is the largest
owner and investor in the development.

"The LRA would like to
see Rescar’s business continue to prosper here alongside other companies so
that more jobs will be available in northwest Illinois to people of the region,"
Komiskey said.

Riverport, U.S. Rep. Don
Manzullo, R-Egan and the Illinois Chamber of Commerce announced Riverport’s "railcar
mall" concept for the park on Jan. 18. Riverport, which stores, loads and
repairs rail cars, wants to create a place where railroad companies can have
their cars refurbished, repaired, cleaned or scrapped. It’s a project that
could create more than 380 jobs, officials have said.

Although the company isn’t
putting a timeline on the expansion, officials said they want to have the
necessary infrastructure – water, gas and sewer lines – in place in the next 18
months.

To make the project a
reality, Riverport has invested $8 million over the past 11 years, including
putting in new rail lines to handle heavier rail cars, and it plans to invest
$10 million more. Rescar plans to invest $17 million.

While Riverport explores
private-sector financing for its railcar mall, the LRA will be seeking grants
and other funds that must flow through a government agency for infrastructure
improvements, Komiskey said in the release.

For the concept to become
a reality, the LRA must receive title to property from the Army so it can
convey the property to Riverport. To date, though, the LRA has received only 35
percent of the property designated to be transferred. With the 10-year
anniversary of the closing of the depot approaching in March, the LRA has
launched a campaign to expedite transfer of the rest of the property.

In addition, Democratic U.S.
Sen. Dick Durbin’s staff is working alongside Manzullo’s to fund the cleanup
and cut through the red tape delaying the transfer of property, the release
said. Manzullo also has offered to seek $1 million in federal funds for
infrastructure improvements.

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