Port Mac Rail Open House Wednesday

Did you know that 12 miles of new trail access will be created by the Port MacKenzie Rail project; or that three of the six segments are more than 80 percent complete; and that a new bridge was built over the Little Susitna River? Find out more about the 32-mile rail extension to Port MacKenzie on March 19 at an open house.

Meet project managers for the Matanuska-Susitna Borough and the Alaska Railroad, and project contractors. Here’s who’s working on the project: Bristol Construction (Segments 1 & 4), Quality Asphalt Paving (Segment 3) and Granite Construction (Segment 6). Nearly 200 jobs were on the project last season.

The Matanuska-Susitna Borough has acquired $141 million of the project’s funding through State legislative grants, another $30 million was approved by Alaska voters in a statewide general obligation bond for transportation projects. The total project budget is estimated at $272.5 million. The Borough seeks another $101.5 million to complete the project. 2017 is the expected completion year.

The project has a webpage at http://www.portmacrail.com/

Port MacKenzie has a webpage at http://www.matsugov.us/port

The Mat-Su Borough and the Alaska Railroad jointly manage the project.

With the longest rail car loop in Alaska, the extension offers highly-efficient offloading of bulk resources onto the world’s largest ships. Port MacKenzie has a deep draft dock with 60 feet at low tide.

Increased rail freight activity and development along the new line, would benefit the residents of the Mat-Su Borough and the Interior through increased employment and opportunity.

Learn more at the Open House this Wednesday, March 19, at Houston Middle School, from 6 pm to 8 pm, 12801 W. Hawk Lane.