Kankakee Times

Rep. Lindsay Parkhurst (R-Kankakee) continued her efforts to block the Great Lakes Basin railway by filing House Resolution 437 recently, according to a press release.

The resolution, currently with the House Rules Committee, would officially register the House’s opposition to the plan. It has garnered six co-sponsors, according to the Illinois General Assembly. 

The resolution opposes the project on the grounds that the 260-mile rail line would cut through private property in Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin and stands to cost Grundy and Kankakee counties an estimated $70 to $90 million in lost agricultural revenue each year, according to the press release.

Rep. Lindsay Parkhurst (R-Kankakee)

Eminent domain, which allows private property to be taken for public use, should not apply to this project, according to the resolution, as the eventual railway would be privately owned.  The resolution also opposes the measure based on its potential economic harm to the Kankakee River and the wildlife supported by the river’s habitats.

The Great Lakes Basin Transportation Inc. application for the project is with the Federal Surface Transportation Board (STB). If the House approves the legislation, it will be sent to the STB to officially register the state’s opposition.