“Project Pipe” to move forward while drawing-in companies

If you build it, they will come – or so the Pocatello Development Authority is hoping after discussions surrounding building-up infrastructure out by the Pocatello Regional Airport took place on Wednesday afternoon.

That bleak stretch of land out by the airport is just one of the region’s tax districts, which is in need of some serious upgrades.

But this fall, Pocatello has seen some great news when it comes to economic development, and this is no different.

PDA chairman and city council member Michael Orr said the airport meets the infrastructure for growth, we just have to meet those needs in order to provide companies the tools to move in.

“We need to do something at the airport, where we made upgrades to the terminal, it’s now time to make the other outlying areas of the airport look good as well,” Orr said.

Orr said one company is already looking to move in, which PDA is calling “Project Pipe.”

The city’s Planning and Zoning department head Lon Crowell said there were once 12 companies who were interested in moving into that area, but out of those, only one company is still interested.

He said that was an estimated total of 2,300 jobs that could have been created and an extra $1.5 billion in revenue money the city could have raked-in.

Orr said one of those companies was UPS, but since the area lacked the proper infrastructure, UPS relocated to Salt Lake City.

The PDA was developed with the sole purpose to help build-up the city and its surrounding region in order to bring more economic development into the local communities.

Board members include everyone from Mayor Brian Blad, Citizens Community Bank’s Ryan Ward, and even Mystique Theater owner Larry Fisher, among others.

The board has decided the necessary measures to make the airport district more attractive to companies is to put in: a new sewer lift station, a new sewer line, new public and private rail switches, new rail lines, a new transmission line, and to make upgrades to the existing roads and rail lines.

Orr said right now transporting good via trucking is between three and five times more expensive than transporting by rail. So, having an upgraded rail system will be beneficial.

“Those infrastructures and being able to move goods and ship them in and out is important. Hopefully they will come. It’s kind of a ‘field of dreams,'” Orr added.

The projected cost of the project comes in at around $9 million, but this one prospective company alone will surpass that number in dollars it will inject back into the local economy.

Both D.L. Evans and Citizens Community banks are vying for the loan.

They will each present a proposal with their figures to the board next week where the board will then decide further proceedings.

Board members are eager to move forward in a timely manner since Orr said the prospective company is looking to start construction by December 2015.