Plans for intermodal terminal in Crete draw a crowd

Feb. 11--A few years ago, when plans for an immigrant detention center were proposed in Crete, Concetta Smart helped organize Concerned Citizens of Crete in a bid, ultimately successful, to keep plans for what opponents referred to as a 700-bed "prison" from being realized.

The group, still intact, is now focusing its energies on trying to block plans by a subsidiary of Florida-based CSX Corp. to build an intermodal terminal in that village, picking where another developer had proposed a similar freight handling complex.

Proponents of the project say it will create jobs and spawn other development that will benefit Crete, while residents of that community, such as Smart, are worried it could hurt property values and bring additional truck traffic into their neighborhoods.

Dozens of people attended an open house the company held Thursday in the library at Crete-Monee High School, where several CSX representatives were on hand to answer questions about the project, which is in the very preliminary stages.

CSX has an option to buy up to 1,100 acres, with the initial phase of the terminal using about 350 acres and, depending on how successful the first phase is, a second phase encompassing another 120 acres, according to Louis Renjel, vice president of infrastructure investment with CSX Transportation, a subsidiary of CSX Corp.

Another CSX subsidiary, CSX Intermodal Terminals, would develop the facility, which the company expects would cost $230 million to build and create 200 permanent jobs once operational.

The company hopes to have necessary approvals to proceed in hand by the end of this year, with construction starting in the first quarter of 2018 and the terminal operational by sometime in 2020, Renjel said.

The site is bordered by Crete-Monee Road on the north, Goodenow Road on the south, and is about a half-mile west of Illinois Route 1.

Krystal Hollars, who said she left work early to attend the open house, said she and her husband recently moved to Crete from Joliet, with plans to raise a family in "the quiet town of Crete." She said her home is less than half a mile away from where the intermodal facility would be built, and that she couldn't, from the information available at the open house, yet gauge what impact it would have on her and her neighbors.

"We can't get definitive answers," she said.

Renjel said CSX plans to hold other informational meetings for residents, and is created a website, csx.com/creteintermodal to provide updates.

"We are going to be doing these (public meetings) almost quarterly through the rest of the year," he said.

Smart said she lived in nearby Chicago Heights most of her life, and moved to Crete in 1992, in part because of its tranquil, more rural feel.

"People came here (to Crete) to get away from industrialization," she said.

Another Crete resident, Michael Anthony, said the project would be an "environmental disaster," a "traffic disaster" and harm residents' property values.

In information provided to residents, CSX maintains the terminal would be "among the cleanest, most efficient terminals in the country."

It will have a total of 10 tracks, each more than a mile in length, and seven zero-emission electric cranes to hoist containers. It will have the capacity to handle a half-million container "lifts" each year, and space for 2,600 shipping containers, the company said.

The site will be graded to "screen sights and sounds" coming from the terminal, and directional lighting will be employed "to limit offsite impacts," according to the company.

The property is west of the former Balmoral Park harness racing track, which is being renovated to host horse-jumping competitions starting this spring.

Several people at the open house crowded around a map of the intermodal facility, which shows truck traffic going into and out of the terminal using a section of Illinois Rt. 1 and connecting with Illinois 394 southeast of the terminal.

The land CSX wants to buy and build on was annexed by Crete several years ago when CenterPoint Properties proposed to develop an intermodal terminal there, but those plans did not move to completion. CenterPoint is the developer of a massive 6,400-acre intermodal facility in Elwood near Joliet, where 15 million square feet of warehouse and distribution space has been built, according to the company's website.

Renjel said that the proposed CSX terminal also could spur warehouse-distribution development in the area.

Reggie Greenwood, deputy executive director of economic development for the South Suburban Mayors and Managers Association, said at the open house that he sees only benefits from the CSX project. He said there is potential for synergy between the facility and the proposed third airport, which would initially focus on handling cargo.

Greenwood said he can "respect people's opinions" about their opposition to the development, but that CSX would be making an "incredible investment" that would further secure the south suburbs' position as a rail freight handling hub, citing Union Pacific's intermodal yard in Dolton and Canadian National's intermodal terminal in Harvey.

The Concerned Citizens of Crete plan to hold a meeting regarding the CSX proposal at 1 p.m. Feb. 25 at the Crete Public Library, 1177 N. Main St., and in a separate but related matter, Will County Board member Laurie Summers, D-Crete, said she is forming a Citizen Advisory Board for Regional Infrastructure for District 1, which she represents. In a release, Summers said that the announcement of the CSX project, "it is imperative for the citizens' voices to be heard." District 1 residents interested in being on the board can email Summers at [email protected]

[email protected]

___

(c)2017 The Daily Southtown (Tinley Park, Ill.)

Visit The Daily Southtown (Tinley Park, Ill.) at www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/daily-southtown

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.