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New path to a new frontier
Fulton trade corridor, which could open by early 2007, may bring thousands of jobs to the area
By Matthew Sturdevant/Caller-Times
Once a road-and-rail corridor is built on the north side of the Port of Corpus Christi, it will provide access to more than 1,000 acres for industrial development, which may create thousands of jobs, local trade officials say.
State transportation officials are reviewing plans for the $49.7 million Joe Fulton International Trade Corridor, and the project will go out to bid soon, said John LaRue, executive director for the Port of Corpus Christi.
Construction is expected to start in April, and the corridor should be ready for traffic by the first quarter of 2007, port officials have said.
The economic impact of the project is substantial, according to LaRue and Ron Kitchens, president and CEO of the Regional Economic Development Corporation.
The jobs factor
Not only will the north side of the port be opened for industrial development, it also would be a better route to the north side than the current Tule Lake lift bridge, LaRue said.
The cost of maintaining the bridge, to provide limited rail access to the north side of the channel, is about $1 million annually, he said. By removing the bridge, the cost of maintaining it would be gone, and the back part of the ship channel would be permanently open to tall ships that can't pass through the channel without having the bridge lifted.
If the bridge is removed, ships wouldn't be stalled in the middle of the channel, waiting for trains and trucks to cross the bridge, Kitchens said.
With the lift bridge gone and better access to the north side of the ship channel established, the Port of Corpus Christi will be able to operate more quickly and fully, LaRue said.
Kitchens estimated that the land opened up for development could bring in 8,000 to 10,000 jobs.
"We can guarantee we will never get those jobs if we don't open the corridor," Kitchens said. The economic development team has already shown the future sites to petrochemical companies that may be interested in opening shop, he added.
Efficient linkup
Port Commission Chairman Ruben Bonilla said the north side of the ship channel would be a prime space for businesses like offshore platform fabrication, ship building or other light industrial uses.
The corridor will connect U.S. Highway 181 to Interstate 37, thereby linking the port more efficiently to San Antonio, Laredo and the Rio Grande Valley, according to port officials.
The project will be funded by a variety of local, state and federal agencies. The federal government will contribute about $10.3 million in federal dollars that were committed through a transportation bill passed in the late 1990s, called T21. The Texas Department of Transportation will pay $11 million, the Corpus Christi Metropolitan Planning Organization will pay $3 million, according to port officials. The port will pay the remaining half through loans, by selling bonds, or with some other source, LaRue said.
The port expects that developing the land on the north side of the ship channel will bring in $250 million in new facilities.
Contact Matthew Sturdevant at 886-3778 or sturdevantm@caller.com
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