Rail Spur May Have New Momentum

The Rail Spur project, which has been in the works for eight to ten years, may have new life according to Economic Development Director Larissa Binod.

“I’m working on a strategic marketing strategy. I’m working with CRS Advance. They are the engineering firm that we are working with now. They have a marketing component and recruitment component to their profession. Before, we were just working with an engineer,” Binod said.

According to Binod, CRS Advance could be crucial to getting the rail spur project and industry park off the ground.

“They’re talking to people all the time. So if there was a marketing strategy that they could bring to their clients or to recruitment events, they will bring Kimball to these people. They will share what you can do at Kimball, what’s available, what’s our workforce, and what kind of quality of life we have,” Binod said.

One of the bigger benefits that the rail spur could bring to Kimball is the opportunity to be part of trans-loading, which is moving a product off a rail and putting it on a truck or moving from truck to rail.

“I’m looking at broadening our tax base and opening up job opportunities. Transportation is a huge opportunity that Kimball has. What do we do about pulling that trans-load opportunity off,” Binod said.

The emphasis on the trans-loading aspect of the project stems from a likely shift in semi traffic in the coming years from I-25 through Denver to US-71 which passes right past Kimball.

“States want to move some of that truck traffic off I-25 through Denver that is going from the Mexico border to the Canada border and move it onto 71 and some of the other smaller roadways. They’re turning them into 4 ways and super 2s. Taking all of those components is what makes this industry park a viable option for Kimball,” Binod said.

Binod is also confident that the rail spur would attract business to Kimball, because of Kimball’s proximity to bigger cities.

“It’s a transportation method. Components can be moved in to manufacture and then taken back out. Companies are looking at where people are going to consume their products and where are the components to make their product. There is a certain definitive point, this many miles from a major market like we are from Denver. What does it look like for commodities to be moved into Kimball and trucked to Denver,” Binod said.

Though the project shows great promise for Kimball, it has seen many setbacks since its conception.

“I have to work with the components I have on my desk, and the current plans, design and state of economy. That changes every few years, every election. The companies that we work with are working on a one to two year fiscal plan, so when it doesn’t happen in the time frame that they think it’ll happen; they fall off and move their business somewhere else,” Binod said.

The reason for the slow start for the rail spur project can also be attributed to the many components of the project. Every aspect must be approved by Union Pacific through a meticulous process. The benefits, however, make the lag time worthwhile to the city.

“I know what it can do. I know what that opportunity can bring. It opens us up to industry like we’ve never been opened before. It provides a distinction that many don’t have. How many people get to have a rail spur off of the main line corridor of the Union Pacific Railroad? Not many,” Binod said.