Winnipeg Rail Park Project Moving Forward
Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor
Construction is slated to start this summer on the 665-acre CentrePort Canada Rail Park in the capital region of Winnipeg, Manitoba.
The Manitoba (Canada) government and CentrePoint Canada Inc. on March 25 reported their selection of Focus Equities Inc. as the developer of a Winnipeg rail park, to be served by BNSF, Canadian Pacific (CP) and CN.
The move follows a 2018 Request for Proposal to attract a private developer.
Construction is slated to start this summer on the 665-acre CentrePort Canada Rail Park, which is part of CentrePort Canada, a 20,000-acre inland port in the Rural Municipality of Rosser, within the capital region of Winnipeg, Manitoba. The rail park will offer access to road and rail as well as Winnipeg’s James Armstrong Richardson International Airport, which handles more than 4,200 cargo flights per year. Estimated capital expenditures at the facility could exceed C$3.0 billion (US$2.4 billion), according to CentrePort Canada.
Possible tenants include logistics companies that handle the packaging and movement of goods, food supply chain suppliers, heavy raw material processors, bus and machinery manufacturers, and mining and mining-related companies.
“As we emerge from this pandemic, our government is focused on working with our economic development partners, industry and trade to unlock Manitoba’s true economic potential,” Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson said. “Expected to create more than 4,800 direct and indirect jobs and have a significant impact on the province’s GDP, the rail park project will help us bolster our economy and attract new businesses, now and well into the future.”
“All inland ports have rail at the heart of their developments and the CentrePort Canada Rail Park is the linchpin in realizing the vision for a true tri-modal inland port—and North America’s largest—right here in Manitoba,” CentrePort Canada Inc. President and CEO Diane Gray said. “As an integrated rail corridor connecting Canada through the U.S. to Mexico comes to fruition [Canadian Pacific Kansas City, the proposed CP-Kansas City Southern merger now under review by the Surface Transportation Board in the U.S.], significant opportunities exist for CentrePort to continue to grow and offer solutions to companies that manage part of their supply chain by rail. We are excited to work with Ken Mariash and the team at [Canada-based] Focus Equities Inc. as they use their wealth of expertise in industrial real estate development to bring this project to life.”
“With global supply-chain issues affecting the industry, there has never been greater demand in North America for a centralized logistics and shipping location for rail, truck and air than now,” said Ken Mariash. “We are already in negotiations with global brands who are interested in choosing our rail park land for their transportation infrastructure needs. Focus Equities is honored to be awarded the CentrePort Canada Rail Park project and thanks the province of Manitoba and CentrePort Canada Inc.”
