Proposed 'inland port' would ruin downtown Terrace, business owners say

Plans for a freight transfer facility in downtown Terrace, B.C., are raising concerns about the project's impact on neighbouring businesses and homes.

Local construction company Progressive Ventures plans to establish an "inland port" on 44 acres of land formerly occupied by a sawmill, which would help ease growing freight traffic in Prince Rupert around 140 kilometres west.

The proposed inland facility would handle transfers between rail and truck, and store and unload cargo heading to and from the port. 

In July, Terrace city council passed the first and second readings of the official community plan and zoning bylaw amendments allowing the site to be rezoned from light industrial to heavy industrial, a necessary step for the facility's construction. 

Council will decide whether to give the $12-million project the green light in a special meeting scheduled for Dec. 18, during which the official community plan and zoning amendments will be put to a vote. 

Charles Claus says he's one of several business owners who believe the noise, light pollution and exhaust fumes from the inland port and its traffic will ruin downtown Terrace. The new facility plans to operate Monday to Saturday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., but this could change depending on Canadian National Railway transportation schedules.

Claus, who with his wife has been running a successful bakery in the city for a decade, also worries the transportation of incendiary materials poses a great danger.

"It's across the street from our ambulance station, across the street from a brand new hotel and other existing hotels," said Claus. "It's a location that puts key infrastructure potentially at risk if there ever [is] an explosion."

Terrace Mayor Carol Leclerc says there is a huge demand from the city's manufacturing and supplies businesses for such a loading facility, and it will bring a lot of job opportunities. 

"Downtown has many vacant commercial and retail spaces [and] has many struggling businesses," Leclerc said. "What downtown really needs to become a vibrant space is support [from a transfer facility]."

The city says noise created by the facility won't be significant, and it will require Progressive Ventures to adopt a plan to reduce the impact of light pollution on surrounding properties.

"We do have plans to mitigate those [noise and light pollution] issues, and we're happy to work with people to mitigate them as appropriate," said Hatha Callis of Progressive Ventures.

The company says should the project move forward, it anticipates the facility will become operational in summer 2022.

Prince Rupert processed more than a million containers in 2018, compared to nearly 3.4 million in Vancouver and 9.5 million in Los Angeles, according to the latest statistics of the American Association of Port Authorities.

Tap the link below to listen to Charles Claus' interview on Daybreak North:

Tap the link below to listen to Hatha Callis' interview on Daybreak North:

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