Casa Grande Dispatch
After years of waiting, Union Pacific Railroad officials may finally see some light at the end of the tunnel for a planned switching yard in south-central Pinal County.
A release issued Tuesday by the state Senate Republican Caucus announced a one-year study period to investigate the sale of state trust land for use by Union Pacific for a switching yard just north of the community of Red Rock.
The project was first proposed by Union Pacific in 2006 and would entail the purchase of 950 acres adjacent to the Union Pacific Railroad tracks. The switching yard would involve the separation and classification of cars that had been loaded onto trains at the port of Long Beach, with project backers saying it would have the potential to create both new tax revenue and jobs in spades.
Some of the key concerns throughout the process have been protecting access to Interstate 10 and nearby state lands as well as drainage and flood plain mitiga- tion. The decision on whether to auction the land could come as early as next year.
Sen. Bob Worsley, R-Mesa, got involved with the project negotiations last year in an attempt to bring the affected parties to the table. Worsley called the meetings “positive and productive.”
State Land Commissioner Vanessa Hickman said her department wants to make sure any decision is made with the best interests of all affected parties in mind.
“The State Land Department has a constitutional obligation to ensure that all transactions are in the best interest of the State Land Trust, which provides funding to Arizona’s public schools, universities and other institutions,” Hickman said in a press release. “The scope of the process we have collectively defined is critical to establishing the framework which could make the sale of this property a win for the trust.”
The Pinal County Board of Supervisors passed a resolution in January calling for action from the State Land Department within six months. Board of Supervisors Chairman Steve Miller said he was glad to see the parties lined up to work together closely.
“Pinal County is determined to do everything possible to ensure the project’s success, and to ensure that the concerns of nearby land owners and residents are fully addressed,” Miller said in a release.
