(The following story by Tom Bower was published in the January 14 online issue of the San Antonio Express-News.)
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — In hopes of attracting Toyota Motor Corp. to South San Antonio, Bexar County rail district board members on Monday hired a Washington-based law firm to help with regulatory approval to build a competing railroad spur to the proposed plant site.
The Bexar County Rural Rail Transportation District board also hired a consulting firm to advise the district in day-to-day operations.
Commissioners Court set up the rail-financing district in November after local economic development officials learned a site in South Bexar County was being considered by the automaker for a $750 million plant.
San Antonio is said to be in competition with Marion, Ark., for the plant, and one of Toyota’s requirements is that the site be served by at least two competing railroads.
County and rail district officials began aggressively pursuing a new rail spur to the proposed site after Union Pacific Railroad officials rebuffed efforts to allow its San Antonio-to-Laredo track to be used by the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe Railroad.
The proposed Toyota site includes property acquired by the city for the never-built Applewhite reservoir and is closest to those tracks. The district is considering several spur routes to link the site with former Southern Pacific Railroad tracks currently carrying Burlington Northern trains.
Kelvin Dowd, a lawyer with the Washington firm of Slover & Loftus, which was hired by the district, said approval of the spur by the U.S. Surface Transportation Board is virtually assured because it will promote competition. Officials expect the contract with the firm to cost between $75,000 and $100,000.
The rail district also is counting on help from Community Rail Development Corp. based in Granbury. The consulting firm is being hired on a month-to-month basis for a $5,000 monthly fee to provide advice on the development, planning, analysis, structure, design, implementation, administration, operation and management of the district.