(The following story by Jodi Pospeschil appeared on The Journal Star website on January 18.)
MACOMB, Ill. — Developers of a potential $25 million agricultural project between Macomb and Bushnell are seeking benefits from the McDonough County Enterprise Zone.
Western Grain Marketing, a partnership between the three local Farm Service companies and GROWMARK of Bloomington, is contracting with Burlington Northern Santa Fe railway to locate a grain shuttle in McDonough County. The facility would be at the junction of Illinois Route 41 and U.S. Route 136 north of Adair.
The facility, which would handle about 50 million bushels of corn annually, would be almost straight off the “T” of the junction and adjoin the existing railroad tracks. The hope is to break ground in March.
The project would result in six permanent full-time jobs, said GROWMARK vice president Davis Anderson. He made a presentation Thursday to the Macomb/McDonough County Enterprise Zone Board.
The three Farm Service companies involved in the project are Two Rivers in Schuyler and Brown counties, Riverland in Galesburg and West Central in Macomb.
Plans call for a 7,600-foot loop of railroad tracks on 143 acres. Western Grain Marketing has already contracted for the purchase of the majority of land and homes needed.
GROWMARK asked the board to expand the enterprise zone to include the project area. The request would require extension from either Macomb or Bushnell.
After two hours of discussion, board members voted to put off a decision for three weeks. That allows time to gauge public response to the project and to the zone request.
Board members also expressed concern any final decision on expanding the zone couldn’t be received from the state by the time the company wants to begin work.
Anderson said a 4-million bushel storage facility is part of the project. He added the decision to locate in McDonough County opens a new local market. “Logistically there is a (grain) hole here,” he said.
He also said the facility would be more convenient for local farmers than hauling their grain to such cities as Beardstown, Havana and Peoria. A locomotive and 110 connected train cars of corn would rotate on the loop of track. Two concrete silos and three steel storage bins would be on the site.
Filling the train cars would take an estimated eight to 15 hours. The train then would head for Galesburg and ultimately for the ethanol and animal feed markets of Texas.
Project financing is “tight,” Anderson said, with increasing costs for materials such as steel and concrete.
Businesses in an enterprise zone are eligible for a variety of incentives including sales tax exemptions, job tax credits and certain<0x00A0>property tax abatements.
GROWMARK said the zone would mean about $500,000 in one-time sales tax savings and between $150,000 and $200,000 in annual property tax savings.
The enterprise zone board’s next meeting will be Feb. 7. If board members vote to seek the expansion on the zone, all the affected taxing bodies would have to weigh in on the filing.