Surprise City Council Gives Unanimous Thumbs Down To Massive

Western Maricopa County Rail Hub (SURPRISE, Ariz.) The Surprise City Council has unanimously passed a resolution opposing the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) rail hub in western Maricopa County.

The 4,300-acre rail hub proposed for nearby Wittmann would be the largest intermodal facility in the nation and would cause tons of hazardous materials to move through western Maricopa County. The rail hub would create increased crime, traffic, noise and air pollution in addition to 18 million square feet of ugly warehousing space. It would also drain shared groundwater reserves.

The project would impact Wittmann and surrounding communities such as Surprise, Wickenburg, Sun City, Sun City West, Morristown, and others.

That’s why the Surprise City Council unanimously passed a resolution October 7 th opposing the project which is before the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors.

Councilmembers also cited a lack of communication from BNSF when they started asking tough questions.

Among the long list of concerns outlined in the resolution is BNSF’s failure to come up with a public safety plan. The resolution states in part: BNSF has not provided a plan to mitigate emergency service impacts. If a plan is not developed, the facility would create a public safety coverage gap, divert critical resources, and negatively affect service levels Citywide.

Nor has BNSF addressed groundwater concerns according to the resolution: BNSF has not yet collaborated with the City of Surprise or the Arizona Department of Water Resources (“ADWR”) to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the potential well impacts associated with its proposed water solution.

Wittmann resident Kirby Anderson who is leading the opposition to the rail hub said, “To borrow a phrase, what we have here is BNSF’s failure to communicate. Where’s the public safety plan? What about water supplies. These folks excel at talking while not saying anything.”

Surprise City Hall was filled with rail hub opponents as the council debated the resolution. The crowd burst into applause after it passed. Click here for a copy of the resolution.

This controversial project has inspired a real-life documentary. The first two episodes of “The Lost Cowboys” have generated more than 160,000 views and a third episode will be released shortly. Follow this link to see episodes one and two.

Media seeking interviews or additional details are asked to contact Mike Scerbo at [email protected] or call 602 615 6523.