THE company planning to establish a rail terminal at Wodonga’s Logic hub can make a fresh start in seeking public funding from the Labor Party.

Labor promised $4 million for the rail terminal almost a decade ago but, when the project didn’t happen, the money was diverted to the recently completed $12 million Logic truck stop.

Blanalko, the property arm of SCT Logists, lobbied the Coalition government right up to last weekend’s election.

Former deputy premier Peter Ryan was the also the former regional development minister.

The new Labor minister in charge of regional development is Ballarat MP Jaala Pulford.

An undisclosed offer made by Blanalko Pty Ltd, which included a nine-year repayment period, was tabled at a special meeting of Wodonga Council yesterday.

Construction of a rail terminal is contingent on government funding and, if it goes ahead, Albury-Wodonga will be serviced by two rail terminals within 30 kilometres of each other.

Colin Rees, who opened his hub at Ettamogah in 2009, said his company had a regional focus and SCT Logistics was an interstate freight operator.

“There might be complementary bits and there might be negative bits,” he said.

“We won’t know that for a while.

“It’s been a big challenge because we started from ground zero and we are still on that journey.”

He asked why Wodonga Council was still in the business of property development.

“It is a classic case of what happens when you go down this path,” he said of the council’s well- documented $30 million debt.

“Property development is specialised. Very good developers have slipped off the edge.”