Stephanie Pax, manager for project areas at the Utah Inland Port Authority, told the Brigham City Council on Oct. 2 that the Golden Spike project area — created Aug. 21, 2023 — has begun producing results for Box Elder County jurisdictions.

Pax said the authority triggered its first parcel to accommodate a Lakeshore Learning facility that held a ribbon cutting in June and that more than 400 workers were already onsite when the facility opened. She also said Nucor Steel is negotiating agreements to bring a tower-and-structures facility to the area, and that the company’s announced investment is about $200 million with 163 jobs tied to the project.

The Golden Spike project area covers multiple jurisdictions in Box Elder County, Pax said: Garland, Tremonton, unincorporated county land near the Procter & Gamble site, Brigham City and a district proposed for Willard City. She said Willard plans to add about 178 acres south of the Port of Entry, between the rail line and Interstate 15, that a local developer is preparing for industrial use.

Pax also described logistics partnerships the authority is pursuing. She noted Union Pacific’s announced merger with Norfolk Southern is pending Surface Transportation Board approval and said coast-to-coast service could make Utah freight locations more attractive. She added that BNSF recently announced an intermodal hub in Salt Lake City, which may increase rail options and competition in the state.

On environmental mitigation, Pax said the authority will dedicate 3% of the project-area differential toward wetland preservation and described work now under way to identify how those funds will be used. She said the authority is actively marketing the project area nationally and internationally and has more than 20 active company recruitment projects that could target Box Elder County.

Council members asked questions about rail use for small businesses and the impacts of expanded rail options; one council member recounted a business example of significant per-pallet savings from routing freight by rail. Pax encouraged Brigham City to help local firms explore rail options and said the authority is also looking at airport-adjacent development in the area.

The council did not take a formal vote on the presentation. Pax left time for council questions and closed the delegation after the council thanked her for the update.