Half-Hearted Measures Won’t Change Hearts And Minds As County Considers Massive Rail Hub In Western Maricopa County
By Kirby Anderson
Now that Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) has requested a third delay to present its proposed 4,200-acre rail hub in western Maricopa County before the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, let me be the first to say that the third time is not the charm.
I am not surprised by the delay given the massive and growing opposition to the project; what does surprise me is BNSF’s half-hearted attempts to address the concerns of those living in and around the hub’s proposed location, the community of Wittmann.
As it seeks to delay the Maricopa County Supervisors’ vote from August 20th to November 5th, BNSF is offering to create some additional setbacks and buffers. Those changes would accomplish nothing. The project is still a six and a half square mile monstrosity and a threat to Wittmann and the surrounding communities.
My name is Kirby Anderson, and I am one of the many residents and ranchers who live in Wittmann. As the community rallied to oppose the rail hub, we were joined by our great neighbors in Sun City, Sun City West, Surprise, and Wickenburg, just to name a few.
BNSF’s proposed changes won’t change hearts and minds because the hubs size and scopes will remain unchanged. It would create 18 million square feet of warehousing space and increase traffic by about 22 thousand vehicles a day. This would put a strain on emergency services not only in Wittmann but for the surrounding communities. The area would live under the threat of hazardous waste spills and be forced to live with noise and air pollution, increased crime and traffic, and the destruction of the area’s cowboy culture.
It doesn’t have to be this way. If you have ever driven to the Palo Verde nuclear power plant, you will notice the facility is miles away from any homes. It’s common sense. If APS could figure it out, why not BNSF?
Our local school district gets it. The Superintendent of the Nadaburg School District, Dr. Aspasia Angelou, submitted a letter in opposition to the project stating in part, “This is not a matter of routine development-it is a matter of protecting children from quantifiable, preventable, and disproportionate harm.”
No one is buying BNSF’s attempts to dress up this project. The project is so unpopular BNSF resorted to a questionable email campaign seeking support. However, a closer inspection of email addresses in support, obtained from Maricopa County, reveals questionable or downright raunchy email addresses with a vast majority of zip codes outside Maricopa County District Four, where BNSF wants to build the rail hub.
Clearly, BNSF’s plans have gone off the rails. It’s time for this billion-dollar company to face reality and move the hub to a more remote location, well away from homes and communities. It worked for Palo Verde. But if BNSF management fails to move from stubborn to sensible, I hope our elected leaders have the good sense to stop this boondoggle in its tracks. We will find out November 5th, unless BNSF seeks a fourth delay.