Builder addresses Campbell residents' Cargill concerns

0 Comments | La Crosse Tribune, Feb 10, 2005 | by Magney, Reid

F.J. Robers Co. Inc. is moving ahead with plans for a Cargill grain elevator at the south end of French Island.

Some island residents have expressed concerns about the $2 million facility, slated to open this fall, but the company is trying to educate the public about its plans.

John Noyes, president of Robers, said Wednesday he estimates the elevator will generate a net increase of 7,000 trucks a year.

About 12,000 grain trucks will visit the elevator, but Noyes said other business is decreasing. Some grain trucks also will leave carrying other commodities, eliminating the need for other trips, he said.

Over a 220-day grain hauling season, the 7,000 trucks work out to an average of 30 per day, Noyes said.

Cargill is relocating to French Island because its riverfront elevator in La Crosse will be demolished to make way for the new Logistics Health Inc. office building.

Robers is building the new elevator for Cargill at its industrial site on the Black River. Some residents have questioned having another industrial use in addition to Xcel Energy's French Island generating station, a company that shreds old railroad ties to be burned by Xcel, and a large shipbuilding plant owned by SkipperLiner.

Melissa Schultz, a former town of Campbell supervisor who has concerns about the Cargill elevator, said Noyes helped calm some of those fears when he spoke for about an hour at a town board meeting Tuesday night.

"I appreciate his coming to the meeting and being upfront" about the grain elevator plans, Schultz said.

Residents said they fear potential conflicts between grain trucks and school buses on Bainbridge Street, along with potential dust and vermin from a grain elevator.

Noyes said grain trucks won't come to the island from December through March months when slippery weather could make it more difficult for trucks to stop quickly.

Robers now stores some materials like salt and coal outdoors, but Noyes said he'd like to see the business move away from outdoor storage to indoor storage of products like grain.

Noyes said the elevator will pay an additional $50,000 in property taxes a year.

The elevator needs a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources permit for the barge-loading facility, Noyes said.

The elevator will mean a net increase of 50 barge trips a year up the Black River, he said.

If DNR issues permits without delays, Noyes said he hopes the new elevator could be open by Oct. 1.

Noyes encouraged any resident with questions about the grain elevator to call him.