Proposal would allow rail yards on farmlands

A proposal that would allow construction of railroad freight stations on farmlands around Spokane County seems on the fast track for approval.

But critics say the plan violates zoning laws and needlessly threatens the region’s rural landscapes, though those opponents aren’t farmers.

Spokane County commissioners could decide Tuesday whether to accept a zoning change to allow intermodal railroad freight stations – similar to the one owned by BNSF Railway located north of the county fairgrounds – to be built on farmlands near state highways. Dwight Hume, a private practice real estate planner, took the proposal to the Spokane County Planning Commission last month representing private interests who have tentative plans to build a 50-acre yard near Spangle, he said.

Building the stations in areas outside downtown would increase freight traffic on state-owned short line rails that can’t be supported by grain shipping alone, Hume said.

“Agriculture freight isn’t enough,” Hume said. “They need more stuff.”

Many farmers agree. Cooperative Agriculture Producers Inc. supports the proposed change, despite the potential loss of farmlands to million-dollar train facilities in the county. Dick Hatterman, general manager of the farmer-owned cooperative based on the Palouse, told planning commissioners in a letter supporting the zoning change that freight variety on the short lines is vital to their continued operation.

“The Washington and Idaho Railway needs the opportunity to expand into nonagricultural areas,” Hatterman wrote. “This diversity will help them level out the ups and downs of the agricultural economic and seasonal scene.”

Planning commissioners recommended the zoning change unanimously in February, with the caveat that potential rail yard owners must obtain a conditional use permit before building. That process requires a public hearing and input from surrounding landowners.

Though farmers and rail operators are on board, the proposal has drawn some high-profile opponents, including the Washington Department of Commerce and Fairchild Air Force Base. Jeffrey Johnson, director of the base’s Encroachment Management Team, said the language of the proposal would allow overbroad development in areas west of town, presenting potential hazards to Fairchild’s mission.

“The proposed language change, in our opinion, is saying to us that an intermodal facility can be built anywhere in rural and resource land zoning classifications on parcels near the base and that is not in the best interest of Fairchild AFB,” Johnson wrote in February. He said this week he had not seen the most recent proposal and could not comment.

The city of Cheney and land conservationist group Futurewise also oppose the plan. They argue railroad stations are nonpermitted uses of rural lands under the state’s growth management laws and that development of these sites should occur in ample industrial areas available for development in the county.

“There’s so much light industrial and industrial zone land in the county,” said Kitty Klitzke, Eastern Washington program director for Futurewise. “It doesn’t make any sense to put these stations in rural areas.”

Klitzke pointed to a Spokane County study produced in 2010 that said there was more than 5,400 acres of vacant industrial land in the county. On industrial zones, the stations likely would be closer to emergency services and roads that could support heavy trucks carrying freight from rail yards, she said.

“When it’s out there in agriculture lands, it doesn’t have water, sewer or services like fire,” Klitzke said. “If a fire breaks out, all you have is a volunteer fire department there.”

But Hume said the prohibitive costs associated with constructing a rail yard would keep intermodal stations from popping up all over the county.

“It’s not going to be a Pandora’s box,” he said. “These are multimillion dollar facilities.”

County commissioners can choose Tuesday to accept the planning commission’s approval, reject it, or hold their own public hearing at a later date to collect input on the proposal. Commissioner Al French, who represents the district surrounding Fairchild, said it’s likely commissioners will ask for additional testimony before making its decision. But he said he agreed with Hume’s argument that more freight needs to move on short lines in the area.

“That would certainly provide some additional life on our short lines,” French said. “We’re aggressively trying to find additional users of that line, not only as it supports individual jobs on the West Plains, but also expansion of aerospace uses out at the airport.”