New Market rails against trading farmland for intermodal facility

Jack Kramer sold his farm in Chester County, Pennsylvania, and relocated to east Tennessee for a chance to raise cattle and restore a piece of New Market history. But now Kramer says the way of life that lured him to Jefferson County is threatened by proposals for a Norfolk-Southern intermodal transport facility in New Market.

Kramer's back porch provides a picturesque view of the Holston River and his 125 acre Angus cattle farm. The fact that the 1835 house has a back porch at all is a testament to the energy, money, and almost eight years Kramer has invested in restoring the structure.

"The house was in such bad shape when we bought it, two of the corners on the building were caving in and the floor had crumbled into the crawl space. I had people telling me to just bulldoze it build a replica from scratch because restoring the original would cost three times as much," said Kramer.

Now that the historic house has finally been restored into a home, Kramer said he is distressed by the possibility of having a large rail yard and the accompanying light and noise pollution next door.

"The intermodal seems like it is being slapped in the middle of an agricultural area that is going to be destroyed," said Kramer. "I think this is being rushed and it would be very disappointing to see the whole area disintegrate because of a decision that was not well thought out."

Kramer was one of nearly 200 people who crammed into the New Market Elementary School for a Saturday morning meeting about the proposed intermodal facility. The meeting was the first citizen-organized gathering to oppose building the 1,000 acre terminal on existing farmland in New Market near Highway 11.

"This meeting was all about informing people and dispelling rumors," said Harvey Young, a New Market resident who helped organize the meeting. "We are not opposed to intermodal. In fact, I support it. We just think there are other nearby locations it can go without destroying productive farm land."

Norfolk-Southern plans to build an intermodal facility somewhere in east Tennessee as one stop along its $2.5 billion "Crescent Corridor." A University of Tennessee study funded by Norfolk-Southern and the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce said the terminal could create 15,000 jobs in Jefferson County and its five surrounding counties in the next 15 years.

Norfolk-Southern representatives have said New Market is an ideal location for construction of the facility due to its flat land and long straight stretches of existing railroad tracks.

Residents said ProVenture, a commercial developer based in Brentwood, has offered 22 landowners options on behalf of Norfolk-Southern. The agreements ask residents to agree to sell their property for its appraised value if the railroad moves forward with construction. A spokesperson for the railroad says it will not use imminent domain to claim land for the project.

Saturday's docket of opponents to the New Market location ranged from residents, politicians, environmental activists, to the principal of New Market Elementary School.

In the weeks leading up to this weekend's meeting, most public statements by elected officials expressed support for the intermodal transport facility in New Market. Many officials, including Jefferson County Mayor Alan Palmieri, said they had signed confidentiality agreements and were unable to elaborate in detail on the decision-making process.

Meanwhile, other elected officials said they were completely unaware of the project, fueling frustration among many residents.

Frank Niceley, R-Strawberry Plains, spoke out against the proposed New Market location at Saturday's meeting. Niceley advised residents not to sign any options at this time. Niceley said nearby vacant industrial sites are more logical than destroying green spaces in New Market.

"To not use abandoned industrial brown fields when they are available is borderline criminal." Niceley added, "And to do it while destroying a thriving agricultural area is also borderline criminal. We're not against intermodal, but let's look at all the available alternatives. They can straighten some of these curves out so the tracks work at places like Mascot where there are 2,700 acres of industrial zoned land that already has everything from sewer to gas installed."

Niceley said he first learned of the plans more than a month ago when he was invited by Jefferson County officials to attend their presentation of the project in a meeting with Governor Phil Bredesen.

"When they were done with the presentation, I pulled the governor aside and told him this was not going to be as well-received as the presentation suggested." Niceley added, "That area is some of the best farm land in the history of this state."

Kramer agreed with Niceley assessment of the land.

"We moved here because it reminded us of how our farm in Chester County was years ago," said Kramer. "But eventually we were the only farm left in our township and had to sell. For us to find another tight-knit community where all of our neighbors are farmers was tremendous. We love where we live. It is a beautiful place."