Council considers land transfer to BNSF

Springfield City Council met this morning for a first reading on a bill to transfer property to BNSF Railway Co. for a new connection track.

The transfer of 2.5 acres at Nichols Junction in northwest Springfield would be the final step in the $3.3 million West Wye project, which is designed to give coal trains easier access to City Utilities’ John Twitty Energy Center in southwest Springfield, according to a news release. A wye is a triangle of railroad track used to turn trains.

Currently, trains must travel to the main yard near Kansas Expressway and Division Street for reconfiguration and then backtrack west on a different track to reach the power plant. The new connection would allow trains to bypass most of the city.

In exchange for the land north of Chestnut Expressway and east of Interstate 44, the city would receive an estimated $752,000 credit toward future land purchases or construction work from BNSF. The credit would be roughly equal to the city’s expenditures for the purchase of the property and its construction. Federal funds account for $2.4 million of the project, with the state paying $150,000.

It also would free up space for Jordan Valley Park’s West Meadows area, giving more development room in central Springfield, according to the release.

“The rail relocation program will create a safer pedestrian and vehicular environment through the center of the city; improve coal delivery to the power plant; and enhance economic development opportunities for residential, business and recreational facilities within the center city,” said Sarah Kerner, Springfield’s interim economic development director, in the release.