By Jeff Stagl, Managing Editor
To spur volume growth and provide more supply chain solutions to shippers, CSX is working with partner NorthPoint Development to establish a logistics park adjacent to its Northwest Ohio intermodal terminal in North Baltimore, Ohio.
Logistics Park Ohio will be strategically positioned between Chicago and the Northeast, just three miles from Interstate 75 and near a heavy-haul corridor that will connect the terminal to park warehouses, CSX officials say. The partners broke ground on the park in mid-2020 and expect the first tenant facility to be completed by the end of first-quarter 2021.
Home to several buildings ranging in size from 500,000 to 1 million square feet, the nearly 2.5 million-square-foot master planned logistics park is being developed to take advantage of the Northwest Ohio terminal’s strengths.
The intermodal facility features such leading-edge equipment and technologies as zero-emission wide-span cranes, modern crane, gate and terminal operating systems, and “a driver experience” that reduces turn times, CSX officials say.
Logistics Park Ohio also will exploit premium and expanded intermodal services provided by the Class I and BNSF Railway Co. for freight heading to East Coast ports, southern and northern California, and the Pacific Northwest, says Maryclare Kenney, CSX’s vice president of intermodal and auto. The interchanged moves help strengthen CSX’s commitment to more sustainable intermodal capacity.
“Haulage service with BNSF from the West Coast allows shippers to bypass the congested Chicago interchange — streamlining shipments, lowering emissions and reducing the number of trucks on the highways,” says Kenney.
The Northwest Ohio intermodal facility features such leading-edge equipment and technologies as zero-emission wide-span cranes, modern crane, gate and terminal operating systems, and “a driver experience” that reduces turn times, CSX officials say. Credit: CSXLogistics Park Ohio ultimately will benefit the railroad, its partners and customers, CSX officials believe.
“We are excited about this partnership and the vast opportunities, including enhanced intermodal service available to domestic and international shippers,” says Kenney.
Established in 2012, NorthPoint Development is a private real estate development firm specializing in Class A facilities. The company also is working with Kansas City Southern to develop Wylie Logistics Park in Wylie, Texas, adjacent to its David L. Starling Wylie Intermodal Terminal.
“With access to over 500 acres, Logistics Park Ohio is poised to provide value-added services for shippers, offering opportunities to reduce transportation costs and augment distribution footprints by moving goods from train to truck to a warehouse all at one location,” said Chad Meyer, NorthPoint Development’s president and founding partner.
