Channahon, Minooka residents get glimpse of Chicago Logistics Hub plans

People from around the Channahon-Minooka area got their first glimpse at Canadian National’s plans for the Chicago Logistics Hub, an intermodal hub it hopes to have open in 2028.

The logistics hub would have Route 6 as its southern border, the CSX track as its northern border, the Canadian National track as its eastern border and Sand Ridge Road as its western border.

Entrances would come off McLindon Road to the far northeast of the property and on the north side of Route 6 to the south. The McLindon Road entrance is a sticking point for the village of Minooka.

Minooka Mayor Ric Offerman said he hadn’t found anyone in his village that had their mind changed by the open house. Minooka filed a lawsuit back in June to see if it could enforce already-existing weight limits on McLindon Road. Canadian National sent a letter to the village noting that it believes the ordinance was preempted by federal law, according to a June article published in The Morris Herald-News.

This issue hasn’t been rectified, Offerman said.

“They’re still talking about 20% of a million – that’s 200,000 trucks extra on Ridge Road and I-80, which is our most accident-prone area,“ he said. ”That’ll just add to the problem with the school buses and trucks that we already have, and the problem is it sits 93% in Channahon. We have no control over it, which we shouldn’t. It’s Channahon’s land."

Channahon Mayor Missey Moorman Schumacher said everybody is concerned, and it’s more change.

“Change is inevitable,” Schumacher said. “Like I said to someone yesterday, 50 years ago I was a third grader at Pioneer Path School, and it was the only one we had. Our population was less than 3,000. Now we’re 14,000, and it has changed dramatically in my lifetime.

“Change is inevitable, and we are going to keep it in appropriate places so we can protect our residential areas and keep the industrial and commercial on the outskirts.”

Schumacher said the farmer sold the property, and Channahon doesn’t really get a say in that. The area has been annexed and zoned industrial for 25-plus years.

Jonathan Abecassis, the media and public affairs director for Canadian National, said they’re taking all feedback.

“Some is positive,” he said. “Some is a bit more concerned and has more specific questions related to traffic, related to the presence of trucks, related to the impact, and we’re happy to take those and answer them and, based on that feedback, we take it back and we see how we can make the project better.”

Abecassis said Channahon is a good location for the hub because of its proximity to two highways, it’s location between the CSX and Canadian National railroads, and it’s proximity to the rest of the Chicago area.

As the region continues to grow, there will be more people making Channahon and Minooka a permanent residence, more big-box stores and more businesses that need to get their goods, Abecassis said.

Canadian National has a website with information on the Chicago Logistics Hub available at cnchicagologisticshub.com, and it explains the benefits the hub would bring to the area. According to the website, it would bring about 600 construction jobs immediately and about 6,5000 permanent jobs after the project is finished. It also would generate about $20.9 million in tax revenue for surrounding cities.

State Sen. Rachel Ventura, D-Joliet, said in a news release Tuesday night that she’s upset with the lack of public comment allowed for the project.

“It’s extremely disappointing to me that Canadian National is bringing this massive intermodal facility without giving the opportunity for the public to comment, nor are they listening to the concerns of the very residents this plan will affect directly,” Ventura said. “The area is already heavily impacted with increased truck traffic that causes accidents and unsafe driving conditions. I am vehemently opposed to this project, as additional trucks on the road will add the ongoing problem of air pollution, and many of these jobs are low-wage jobs hurting our economy.”

Ventura said she is concerned with how it would affect retail shops, how it would increase traffic accidents and how it would create environmental problems through air and noise pollution.

“As any resident in the 43rd District could tell you, truck traffic has been a major concern for the area over the last few years – especially with additional warehouses put in residential areas – not just how it affects daily commuting but also the environment," Ventura said. “If the project is moving forward, then serious consideration needs to be given to the fairness of Minooka.”

She said the project will add 3 million more trucks to Interstate 80, and Canadian National needs to use Brisbin Road as the lone exit for truck traffic.

Offerman pointed out that Brisbin Road is only a couple of miles away with no stop lights or reduced speed limits between the hub and I-80.

Train congestion also is a concern for Offerman.

“We’re looking at a possible 15 miles of trains coming every day and leaving on one single track, and we’ve only got two roads north out of town,” Offerman said.

Offerman said one train can block Wabena, Holt and County Line roads all at once, and this hub would have eight trains coming through town per day.

Abecassis said he thinks more cargo traveling by train would mean fewer trucks.

“It’s in our interest to have a very fluid project,” Abecassis said. “We don’t want truck traffic that doesn’t help us move goods, right? We want things moving, flowing clearly and quickly.”