Council said communication gap has soured promising project
Courtesy Surprise TV
Surprise City Councilmember Patrick Duffy details the reasons he voted to oppose the BNSF plans to build an intermodal rail hub northwest of the city at the Oct. 7 city council meeting.
Courtesy Surprise TV
Arizona LD 29 Republicans Chair Lisa Everett has been leading a petition drive to oppose the BNSF project.
The Surprise City Council expressed some excitement four years ago when rail giant BNSF first approached it about plans to build a large intermodal rail hub off of Grand Avenue northwest of Surprise in Wittmann.
City officials toured the company’s sites in Kansas City and Dallas to learn more about the operation and confirmed what was shaping up as a good partnership.
But BNSF suddenly pulled out of plans to annex into Surprise, yet continued forward on its 4,300-acre rail hub that could bring tens of thousands of vehicles to the congested area of U.S. 60 (Grand Avenue).
When Surprise officials began asking BNSF about what it’s doing about water, traffic and environmental concerns, the company stopped answering their calls.
“We weren’t getting answers,” City Councilmember Chris Judd said at the Oct. 7 council meeting before it unanimously voted for a resolution opposing the company’s plans to build the facility.
Several people in opposition of the project, representing communities in Wittmann, Sun City West and Surprise, told the council that the unanswered questions the city had identified made the project impossible to support.
Nearby residents said they are already bracing for increased traffic along an already congested stretch of U.S. 60.
“We’re not going to pour gasoline on an already growing fire,” said Councilmember Nick Haney, who serves the district nearest to where the facility would go,
The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors will meet Nov. 5 to discuss a comprehensive plan amendment and rezoning for the project together.
BNSF representative Kyle Cooper, the lone speaker in support of the project, told the council the company was concerned about it passing a resolution for a project on unincorporated Maricopa County land. Cooper also said the city didn’t inform the company about its concerns or that it would be discussing the agenda item in the first place. He claimed the company learned about it on Facebook five days before the meeting.
“The lack of communication was especially disappointing given our ongoing collaboration with the city of Surprise on this project,” Cooper said.
Judd and Councilmember Patrick Duffy each took exception to BNSF’s claim that the city hasn’t been transparent in its dealings with the company. On the day of the meeting, BNSF sent the council a letter that complained about the city’s resolution vote and asked the city to remove the item from the agenda.
“They didn’t want to talk about this in public,” Judd said. “I don’t know how much more open and public you get than us coming out here at a public meeting and listing exactly what our concerns are. How much more open and transparent could we possibly make it?”
Surprise Economic Development Director Jeanine Jerkovic told the council that the city historically has had a “strong, positive partnership” with BNSF. She mentioned Surprise was the first Arizona community to successfully participate in the BNSF-certified sites program, which rates optimal rail-served sites.
That sparked the city to market the Railplex area, a two-square-mile, 292-acre industrial park in the south part of Surprise. The proposed BNSF hub would be the equivalent of approximately four Railplexes.
“Despite this investment of our time, four years later, we’re still waiting for a lot of information to make a fully informed decision,” Jerkovic told the council.
BNSF trains go right through the Original Town Site, in Councilmember Johnny V. Melton’s District 4. The district is closest to a 114-acre facility BNSF runs off Grand in El Mirage.
Melton said he always had a good relationship with BNSF until the last 10 months.
“I want them to succeed,” Melton said. “I believe their project makes market sense. They bring goods in from the Continental rail into the Phoenix market. The market needs it.”
The proposed intermodal hub would be about 35 times larger than the current one.
“I’m really concerned that BNSF may not be able to pull this off,” Melton said.
Mayor Kevin Sartor talks with BNSF officials around the time he took office in January resulted in nothing. After the company stopped communicating with the city earlier this year, the mayor said the city called a meeting with county and state officials to plow through the project.
“It’s very frustrating to try to make decisions for the city without any information,” Sartor said before announcing his opposition to the project. ”Our position is not anti-business or anti-growth. It’s pro-responsibility and pro-community. This resolution is about ensuring that the growth does not come at the expense of our residents — their safety, their mobility, air quality and their long-term sustainability.”
Water usage is also a sticking point for the council at the moment. When BNSF pulled out of its annexation attempt into Surprise, the company told the city that it was because it had Type 2 water rights in the Arizona Groundwater Management code, which were incompatible with Surprise’s Type 1 requirements. The city’s policies detail that for every gallon that is pumped out of an aquifer in the city, it has to be replaced with another gallon into the ground.
But with BNSF’s water designation, it can pump water and not have to replenish the amount of water it uses, which would be equivalent to over 500 million gallons of water per year. Judd said the company is using a loophole in the rights that normally apply for agricultural use
“As a very big and successful business, they should know that just because something is legal doesn’t mean you should do it,” Judd said.
Cooper called the rail hub project a $3.2 billion investment in northwest Maricopa County that will bring what he called “generational opportunities” — as well as millions of dollars each year in state and local taxes to support local schools.
The BNSF rep said the company has received more than 10,000 letters in support of the project.
Arizona LD 29 Republicans Chair Lisa Everett, who has been spearheading a petition drive to oppose the project, she has acquired close to 4,000 signatures against it, all from West Valley residents.
“I have yet to speak to someone that says, ‘I am so excited about this project,’” Everett told the council. “And I talk about this project every day.”
Wittman resident Jeffrey August, who is leading a charge to incorporate the area, told the council he was speaking for the community to oppose the project. August said pollution, train fumes, water issues and the disruption of horses in the area make it hard for Wittman residents to throw support behind it.
Haney said he would like the council to receive regular updates on future discussions with BNSF.
“Their plan is to ram this thing in and let the residents and the taxpayers pay for the repercussions,” Judd said. “That, in my mind, is a subsidy. We do not need to subsidize a multi-million-dollar corporation.”
Jason Stone can be reached at jstone@iniusa.org. We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments, pro or con, on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.
Meet Jason Jason Stone joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2019, after a distinguished three decade media career that included stops at the Arizona Republic, iHeart Media/Clear Channel and Beckett Sports Card magazine. He remembers when airports sold newspapers.
Community: He is a big supporter of the Valley's original sports team: The Phoenix Suns.
Education: Northern Arizona University with a BS in broadcast journalism and a minor in sports coaching.
Random Fact: The capital of Nebraska is Lincoln.
Hobbies: Surfing, backgammon and men who aren't afraid to cry.
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