Central New York’s 1st inland port to be built in DeWitt
Ellie Coggins | Contributing Writer
Part of the $19 million being awarded to the project will go toward modernizing DeWitt’s current rail yard.
Central New York is getting its first inland port, the New York State Department of Transportation announced last month.
The port, which will be built in DeWitt, comes after years of collaboration between the NYSDOT and CSX Corp., a rail transportation company.
An inland port will create a rail link between DeWitt and ships in ports on the Atlantic coast, according to Syracuse.com. Officials said that Syracuse could see job creation and economic growth as the project is completed.
Since the rail yard already exists in DeWitt, Samuel Gordon, director of planning and zoning for DeWitt, said that construction will be limited to the area that is already under CSX’s jurisdiction.
The $19 million grant will go toward modernizing the existing rail to make it capable of handling non-wheeled international containers, improving security and technology and making new areas to stack containers.
Honora Spillane, deputy commissioner for the Department of Neighborhood and Business Development for the city of Syracuse, said that while the project isn’t happening directly in the city, it will still create jobs for residents.
“Jobs should go to the people who can get them, so city folks,” she said in a town hall meeting in Eastwood on July 26.
The project aims to improve transportation of goods between upstate New York and the ports of New York and New Jersey, according to the NYSDOT release. Project planners also hope to decrease the number of large trucks on Interstate 81, CNYCentral reported.
Freight tonnage is expected to increase by more than 50 percent in the next 20 years, per the release. The project strives to keep shipping costs low so that central New York can remain as economically competitive as possible.
Officials anticipate saving $500 per container. With an expected 30,000 containers handled at the DeWitt port annually, its construction could potentially save $15 million per year, per the NYSDOT release.
DeWitt was chosen as the port’s location because it could build on the rail yard that already exists, increasing connectivity to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, said Christopher Smith, director of strategic infrastructure with CSX. Rail is also the most environmentally friendly method to transport cargo, he said.
Stephanie Webb, a public participation specialist with the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation, said officials have not yet received permit applications for this project, which are needed to ensure construction doesn’t violate public health or environmental safety regulations.
The construction’s effect on nearby wetlands is among the potential environmental issues the DEC would take into consideration.
Doug Daley, an associate environmental resources engineering professor at SUNY-ESF, said that potential issues include runoff and run-on away from the surrounding wetlands, transportation of pollutants due to storm water or chemical spills. Even minor but continued degradation can degrade the overall ecosystem, he added.
Gordon also said that as of now, the town does not have information on how traffic will be affected by construction in DeWitt and elsewhere, including the city of Syracuse.
Kerin Rigney, a DeWitt town councilor, said that if all goes as planned, meaning collaboration between rail and other transportation methods, the export market will be virtually limitless.
“That’s good for everyone,” she said.
Published on August 7, 2018 at 6:56 pm
Contact Ellie: ercoggin@syr.edu
