CN Bringing Hundreds of Jobs to Gary, Indiana

[MrFSS]

Canadian National Railway Co. (NYSE: CNI) has announced plans to relocate some of its operations from Markham, Illinois to Gary. The company says it will redevelop the Kirk Yard rail facility and create up to 251 jobs by 2015. CN is planning to invest $163 million to expand the railroad yard and build a locomotive maintenance facility.

The Indiana Economic Development Corporation is offering the company nearly $3 million in performance-based tax credits. The IEDC says the project is the largest in Gary in terms of new jobs. CN's relocation marks the seventh company this year to announce plans to move operations from Illinois to Indiana.

FULL STORY

 

[Bob Dylan]

Its a good place to work but who'd want to Live in Gary, Indiana??

Seriously, sounds like Indianas' Business Development people are eating Illinois' lunch! Thought President Obama was from Illinois, Presidents are supposed to take care of the Homeboys! :lol: ! We need more NEW jobs, not Stealing from each other IMO!!! (not to mention bringing 'em home from Overseas, especially rail related business!!)

 

[MikefromCrete]

Sounds like a reshuffling of the deck, rather than creating new jobs. The people working at the former IC Woodcrest Shop at Markham Yard in Homewood would probably just move to the new loco shop at the former EJ&E Kirk Yard in Gary. It looks like CN would expand the existing intermodal yards at Markham. CN's U.S. headquarters are now in Homewood, don't know if they would be affected.

It's doubtful than any new jobs would be involved in this. CN obviously getting some kind of tax break from Indiana. More corporate socialism.

 

[GG-1]

Its a good place to work but who'd want to Live in Gary, Indiana??

The Music Man :giggle: :lol:

Aloha

 

[Ispolkom]

Its a good place to work but who'd want to Live in Gary, Indiana??

The Music Man :giggle: :lol:

Aloha

But remember, Harold Hill wasn't a graduate of Gary Conservatory...

 

[amtkstn]

Live in a nice part of Chicago and ride the South Shore to work.

 

[MikefromCrete]

From reports in the local press, it looks like the 250 jobs are locomotive shop related. I would imagine most of the workforce lives in the Illinois South Suburbs or Northwest Indiana, so it would just mean a change in commute. The Woodcrest Shops and related locomotive yards are easily visible from public streets, so railfans can easily see what locos are headed for the scrap yard or up for sale. The CN's Chicago-based business car fleet is also stabled here and you can see them come and go. Kirk Yard is located in an area of Gary near the U.S. Steel Works that is not accessible to the public. In all my many years of railfanning (and a one-time EJ&E employee), I've rarely seen a photo of Kirk Yard, much less visited there.

CN's U.S. headquarters will remain in Homewood. CN says is will market the site for industrial purposes, so the Homewood mayor isn't too concerned.

It's interesting to note that CN is building a new connection between the old IC and EJ&E at Matteson, IL. It's a big project since the IC is elevated quite a bit above the EJ&E grade. Lots of dirt pushed around, concrete structures (adjacent to the Matteson Metra Electric station) and very tall sound walls along a nearby subdivision.

They've been working on it for the better part of a year. All the better to redirect trains to Kirk Yard, I imagine.