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CAT Tracks for July 9, 2010
QUINN SIGNS CAIRO PORT DISTRICT BILL |
Wishin' and hopin'...
There HAVE been some positive signs of late - new businesses opening, old businesses re-opening, new construction, partial removal of the massive downtown eyesore...
Maybe it's finally time for me to put aside my doubts and organize the Cairo Optimist Club!
Unfortunately the Ghosts of Cairo Past keep rattling my slumber...
Speaking of Fort Defiance...
I absolutely loved the Mayor's explanation of why the area was closed to visitors...that "the river was going to come back up."
Well, hell...
I can't wait until the next round of science textbooks are purchased in Cairo School District Number One. I mean, Texas made the news by trying to exclude Thomas Jefferson from their history books. I expect comparable headlines about Cairo...gonna get rid of that Sir Isaac Newton fella. You remember him...the dude that sat under the apple tree, got conked on the head, and "invented" gravity...that law that says "what goes up, must come down."
Leave it to Cairo's Mayor to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt the theory/law of anti-gravity...that "what goes down (e.g. the Ohio/Mississippi Rivers), must come up!"
WOW!
Anyway...
...the Mighty Quinn has spoken! There shalt be a Cairo Port District...
However...
A word to the wise.
You better enjoy it while you can!
As soon as the city puts the flood gates back in, you better have a Plan B for access and use. Now that we have the "Cairo Anti-Gravity Ordinance", those gates will remain forever in place!
I'd suggest a swinging door or a swinging gate of some kind, but that would probably involve a key...
Footnote:
I didn't watch the news coverage.
Did Mr. Mayor attend "the signing"? The article doesn't mention him...
I mean...Mr. Mayor boycotted Team Illinois' attempted entry to the Toll House Museum because he felt that he had been slighted.
Didn't know if The Mighty Quinn had cleared his Cairo appearance with the Mayor's office or not. What with looking for Toll House keys,driving by new businesses, and personally guarding the gates to the Confluence of America...Mr. Mayor is a busy man. You don't just drop in unannounced!
From the KFVS TV Channel 12 Website...
Gov. Quinn signs bill creating Alexander-Cairo port district
By Julia Bruck
CAIRO, IL (KFVS) - The Heartland received another economic boost. Thursday afternoon Governor Pat Quinn signed a bill that will create the Alexander-Cairo Port District.
Quinn says this law and the port district will help attract the businesses and jobs to southern Illinois.
"We gotta make sure that we have the facilities near the rivers that allow business to really operate in a positive way, that's what port districts are all about," Quinn said.
The port district is expected to benefit both Cairo and the surrounding counties.
The idea of a port district in the Cairo area has been around for years. But with governor's approval of this legislation, the idea is now a huge step closer to becoming a reality.
Rail, road and two of the country's major rivers all meet in Cairo. For years these resources have been underutilized. But Donna Raynalds, with the Southern Most Illinois Delta Empowerment Zone, says that should change with a new port district.
"Our ultimate goal is to establish an intermodal facility so that we can take advantage of the river, the rail and the highway infrastructure," Raynalds said.
American Commercial Lines set up its tow boat works in Cairo back in the early 1970s.
Vice President and General Manager Bill Foster says recently the company reorganized and moved some of management to Cairo. He says when it comes to river shipping this is the place to do business.
"It's the central hub where the Ohio River and the Mississippi River meets," Foster said. "It's where lower river boats come up and they get broken up and sent up in smaller tow (boats)."
But Foster's company is not the only business set to benefit from new a port district.
Shelia Brown opened Fish and More some six weeks ago. Brown says since opening, she's had a steady stream of customers. But once a new intermodal facility is built, and employees fill it, she hopes they'll take a lunch or dinner breaks at her stand.
"I think that would be a great idea, considering we don't have a lot of businesses here and it would be a great opportunity for us," Brown said.
Raynalds says development of a port district could take up to 10 years. But she hopes that's not the case in Cairo. The next step is to create a port district board. Those appointments are expected in 60 days.
The port district is eligible for state and federal dollars. It also will help with area development by giving tax breaks to businesses.
