Upon the release of the strategic plan, the Great Recession hit the american landscape with the local region loosing >15,000 manufacturing jobs. In 2007, the City of Fountain identified the potential for the creation of an Industrial Rail Park within its Strategic Plan for business development and Job creation. In 2023, the City of Colorado Springs and Colorado Springs Utility approved the rail trackage agreement in support of the P3 Industrial Rail Park in Fountain. Under the auspice of the 2018 Memorandum of Understanding, the collective P3 entities formed an Oversight Committee to provide administrative guidance and governance. The Oversight Committee of the P3, has approved the pursuance of the following initiatives for 2020-2021. The foundational premise of the project is to extend an existing CSU dual service rail spur (UP and BNSF) that will provide a catalyst for commercial development and job creation under a public-private partnership (P3) and strengthen the military resiliency of Fort Carson whereas availing a secondary rail service access on behalf of rapid deployment capabilities.
The Dual-Service Class I Southern Colorado Rail Park will be located along the front range on over 3,000 acres of rural land situated between the Colorado Springs Nixon Power Plant (CSU) and Fort Carson Military Reservation.
