T

ucked into a sleepy hamlet of Polk County in the Florida heartland are the beginnings of an industrial project that could forever change the landscape of distribution in the Sunshine State.
   The 1,250- acre (506- hectare) CSX Integrated Logistics Center in Winter Haven – the first such facility in the southeastern United States – is being planned by the Jacksonville- based rail giant to accommodate Florida's exploding population and demand for consumer products.
   Upon build- out, the facility would create 8,500 full- time jobs in Polk, generate more than US$10 billion in economic development activity and add $900 million in local, state and federal tax revenue over 10 years.
   The ILC eventually will include 3 million sq. ft. (278,700 sq. m.) of warehouse space, another 1.5 million sq. ft. (139,350 sq. m.) of industrial sites and 500,000 sq. ft. (46,450 sq. m.) of office space. The total annual payroll of the new jobs would be $282.2 million.
   "Florida's continued economic growth appears certain," says Charles McSwain, who oversees all development activity for CSX Transportation Inc. "The coming population explosion will require a tremendous volume of construction materials, and the resident population will require a huge supply of consumer goods. CSX Transportation has a significant transportation infrastructure to provide rail service in Florida and is partnering with the state to develop a more multi-modal set of freight-movement solutions. Using multi- modal solutions, a great percentage of Florida's freight can be moved on barge or rail."
   McSwain calls the development of the ILC in Winter Haven "a significant step" in the diversification of transportation modes in Florida and one that can "minimize the conflict between freight movement and quality of life."
   In fact, it is that tension – between the need to keep up with the demands of Florida's population explosion and the need to preserve the quality of life that attracts people to Florida – that is at the heart of projects such as the Polk ILC.
   McSwain and his colleagues at CSX Real Property Inc. believe that continued investment in intermodal transportation is the best solution to that challenge.
   Intermodal transport – the movement of consumer products and parcels using a combination of truck- to- rail- to- truck transfer – is the fastest growing sector of the railroad industry. A single intermodal train can do the work of 300 trucks.
   Several advanced intermodal facilities have been or are being developed around the country. The most notable one to date is Alliance, Texas, where 20,000 jobs and $23 billion in economic impact were generated over a 13-year period on 2,500 acres (1,012 hectares).
   The Winter Haven ILC will be only half that size, but it has the potential to do for freight movement and the Florida economy what Alliance did for Texas.
   CSX Corp. first proposed the land acquisition on Jan. 18. While the transaction with Winter Haven is 18 months away, the necessary rezoning and change in land- use restrictions on the first 300 acres (122 hectares) are under way.
   Annexed by the city last year, the property is still classified under Polk's "institutional" zoning. The city will soon change the designation to industrial. Once that step is completed, the land-use change must go before the state Department of Community Affairs for approval.
   City officials said they expect to close on the $21.8-million sale of the property to CSX near the end of next year.
   Rick Hood, assistant vice president of CSX Real Property, was quoted in The Ledger, a daily newspaper in Lakeland, as saying, "Winter Haven was chosen because it is centrally located in Florida near a number of consumer markets. There's potentially 1,250 acres [506 hectares] available under a single ownership. The entire 1,250 acres is also along our main rail line."
   The planned logistics complex will include a truck, rail and warehousing hub and terminal for the transfer and storage of containerized consumer goods. The Winter Haven site is attractive to CSX for its linear layout; the site allows two miles (3.2 km.) of rail frontage.
   "This is an ideal location to serve the rapidly growing Florida market," said Clarence Gooden, chief commercial officer of CSX. "We are committed to integrating our facility plan with Winter Haven's standards and needs."
   The complex is located north of Old Bartow-Lake Wales Road and west of the CSX Transportation railroad tracks, near the largely migrant farm-worker communities of Eloise and Wahneta.