(The following report by David Ingram appeared on the Charlotte Observer website on April 25.)
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Norfolk Southern is asking for a tax break worth about $18 million to help pay for a new trucking-railcar hub in Charlotte. The company and other boosters of the project say it would ease the flow of goods in and out of the Charlotte region and help create new jobs. Norfolk Southern says its current, 40-acre hub on North Brevard Street is over capacity, handling 150,000 loads in 2006 when it was designed to handle only about 115,000 loads.And freight shipments are on the uptick. Such facilities allow companies to transfer shipments between trains and trucks relatively easily.
The new facility would cost $93 million and would be at Charlotte/Douglas International Airport. The airport would own the land and lease it long-term to Norfolk Southern.
A federal grant is expected to cover $14 million of the cost, and the airport is also helping with grading and site cleaning, said Rob Martinez, a Norfolk Southern executive, at a meeting with state lawmakers Tuesday morning. A state tax credit worth about $18 million would help the company pay the rest, he said.
Mecklenburg County-based lawmakers have already filed legislation for the credit. No formal committee hearing has been scheduled.