(The following story by Stan Maddux appeared on the Post-Tribune website on May 20.)
LaPORTE, Ind. — With riverboat gambling funds in hand, LaPorte County is rallying around an effort by farmers to acquire a 56-mile stretch of rail used to transport crops.
The line is slated for closure.
LaPorte County Commissioners this week granted a request for $75,000 to help in the effort to buy a stretch of track in LaPorte, Starke and Porter counties that will cost $1.7 million.
Money earmarked for the acquisition will be derived from the county’s share of riverboat funds.
“There’s only a few times when local government can have a positive impact on family farmers and this may be one of them,” said LaPorte County attorney Shaw Friedman.
LaPorte County Farm Bureau Co-Op, which utilizes the rail line to deliver shipments from its grain elevator in Union Mills, is spearheading the attempt to buy the CSX railroad track. Twenty-three miles of the track is in southern LaPorte County.
If the rail is abandoned, farmers served by the line will have to utilize trucks to get their grain to market, a more costly transportation, particularly during skyrocketing gas prices.
“It’s a lot more expensive,” said Jim Keller, location manager at LaPorte County Farm Bureau Co-Op branch in Union Mills.
Grain from the two Co-Op elevators in Union Mills now are shipped by rail to North Carolina and other southeastern states for feeding hogs and other farm animals, said Keller.
Without rail, the grain would be delivered by trucks to different markets from Chicago to South Bend.
Despite shorter distances, the cost of transporting to those locations by truck would be higher and grain in markets closer to home usually commands a lower price, he said. The difference in profit would amount to a dime a bushel. To a farmer with several hundred or more acres, the loss easily could be thousands of dollars.
“That’s a lot of money. It’s a substantial difference,” Keller said.
Considering agriculture is still a major component to the vitality of the area, LaPorte County Commissioner Marlow Harmon said. “It’s a plus for economic development and I think that’s where we’ve got to go with this thing.”
A $1 million grant is being sought from the Indiana Department of Transportation to cover the brunt of the acquisition price.
Other revenue is being sought from Starke and Porter counties, and the town of North Judson has pledged $5,000 toward the purchase, along with use of equipment needed to help operate the line.
If it’s acquired, North Judson Town Council President Guy Gardin said a private company would be contracted to operate the line.