Unused rail spur finds life in Delaware County
A railroad spur at the Park One/332 industrial park in Delaware County that was built several years ago but never used will finally bring investment and revenue to the county, officials announced Tuesday. Tennessee-based SRM Concrete has agreed to lease the spur from the county and also plans to build a $9.5 million facility at the site.
The spur was originally built for Brevini Wind, a manufacturer of wind turbine components that invested $36 million to set up shop in Muncie. However, Brevini closed down operations in 2016, and its facility was sold to Muncie Power Products, which did not need the rail spur.
The rail spur, which connects to a nearby rail line, has been used as an off-loading area for Norfolk Sothern Railway equipment.
SRM Concrete, which has nearly two dozen locations throughout Indiana, will lease the spur from the county for seven years with an option to purchase it once the lease is up.
Delaware County Economic Development and Redevelopment says the lease will provide total revenue of $3.5 million over the seven-year period.
“The county rail spur has been a difficult asset to sell and/or lease,” Brad Bookout, director of economic affairs for the county, said in a news release. “I cannot think of a better company than SRM to conduct operations at the spur. Being one of the largest concrete companies in the U.S., their commitment to being good community partners is welcomed.”
SRM’s $9.5 million facility to be built on the site will be used for inbound concrete mix that will be off-loaded into trucks that will then distribute the concrete to SRM facilities throughout the Midwest.
SRM Chairman Mike Hollingshead said the company plans to begin work at the site immediately and will eventually employ up to 15 people at the facility. He added the company donates 10% of profits back to the community annually.
The county said SRM employs more than 6,300 people across 19 states and has an annual revenue of more than $3.3 billion.
SRM did not provide an estimated time frame for the new facility’s completion.