Rail Construction Underway at Camp Howze Industrial Rail Park

By GvilleTX Newsroom

Construction has started on the rail link for Camp Howze Industrial Rail Park, the BNSF-served site in Gainesville, with a June 18, 2026 groundbreaking set to mark the beginning of that work, according to a report from the city manager posted to the City of Gainesville's online archive. The property covers 480 acres along the BNSF main line and carries BNSF Certified Site status, according to the Gainesville Economic Development Corporation and a site sheet from the railroad.

The Gainesville Economic Development Corporation lists Camp Howze as one of its featured developments, describing a 480-acre property that runs along the BNSF mainline. The corporation's materials say the site is planned for an intermodal facility with 55 spots for loading and unloading railcars.

The railroad's documentation backs the rail-served designation. A site sheet published by BNSF identifies Camp Howze Rail Park in Gainesville as a BNSF Certified Site, listing 126 certified acres with direct access to BNSF track.

The rail park has been on the public record for several years. The Gainesville City Council approved an agreement between the economic development corporation and Strategic Rail Industrial for what was then called Gateway Industrial Park on July 6, 2021, according to the corporation. That agreement included a planned rail switch tying the development into the BNSF main line, an early step toward the direct rail service the certified site now advertises.

The city manager's report links the June groundbreaking to the construction phase, signaling the rail work has moved past planning. The economic development corporation's listing and BNSF's documentation describe what the finished facility is meant to hold, from the 55 railcar positions to the acreage cleared for rail-served users, but the records reviewed for this report do not set a completion date for the rail work or say when the intermodal facility would begin handling traffic.

The records reviewed also did not include a construction cost, a named tenant, or a local incentive action tied to the groundbreaking. Where this report cites a fact about the project, it draws on the City of Gainesville's archive, the Gainesville Economic Development Corporation's featured-development listing, and BNSF's certified-site sheet.