Plan for giant railroad yard stirs turmoil

The development of Norfolk Southern Corp.’s $112 million intermodal yard on a former cattle ranch in Fayette County has polarized the community for more than a year. Proponents are excited about the project’s economic opportunities, while opponents fear it will ruin their rural community forever.
But both sides of the divide have one thing in common: Their objectives rely on time and money, both of which are at a premium.
The Norfolk, Va.-based railroad is striving to manage a complex schedule that calls for the 570-acre Memphis Regional Intermodal Terminal to open in early 2012 on the Twin Hills Ranch recently annexed by Rossville.
That means fulfilling the requisite environmental permits, preparing the site for construction and completing the immense infrastructure where cargo containers will be transferred between trains and trucks.
But the railroad also has funding concerns. Although Norfolk Southern received $105 million in federal stimulus money, half of that money is pegged for an intermodal facility in Alabama.