After an eight-month hiatus, plans to pave the way for increased development in Dallas County’s key southern inland port got a jump-start today when county commissioners voted to rejoin the regional effort.

The difference this time is a scaled down development plan being coordinated by the North Central Texas Council of Governments that focuses on bringing infrastructure improvements to the trade corridor.

A majority of commissioners had voted to pull out of the planning process in October, having viewed the earlier master plan version as too heavy-handed and burdensome to development.

The cities of Wilmer, Hutchins and Lancaster, which had already enacted their own development plans for the port, didn’t want a larger authority to have control over what they saw as their purview: zoning, building codes and land use regulations.

And port developers were concerned that an additional bureaucracy would change the rules in the middle of the game and thus scare off prospective tenants. They also felt they were not included in the decision-making process.

With today’s vote, the inland port master plan process is back on track — to bring water, sewer, drainage and road improvements that everyone involved recognizes as key to the all-important port’s future.

“This is the biggest economic generator that Dallas County has ever seen,” Commissioner Maurine Dickey said. “It’s too important not to go forward.”

The vote was unanimous in favor of joining the planning effort.

Richard Allen, the port’s largest developer who controls over 6,000 acres, called the new version a “workable solution.” His company, The Allen Group, still has some concerns but Allen said he feels this time that those concerns will be addressed during an inclusive process.

Mike Eastland, executive director of the council of governments, told commissioners on Tuesday that the new master plan will focus on transportation, water, sewer and drainage improvements.

The idea, he said, is to incorporate existing city plans into a cohesive and coordinated plan for development. Conflicting zoning across the inland port area could limit development, he said.

The plan also will not determine how the cities and county will finance such improvements, Eastland said.

An advisory committee will be formed to include local government leaders, developers and landowners, he said. And town hall meetings will be scheduled to get feedback on everything that’s being proposed, he added.

“We want public input throughout this project,” Eastland said.

Eastland already met with the southern cities on June 16 and the reaction was positive, Wilmer Mayor Jeff Steele told county commissioners.

A consultant will be hired by the council of governments to make recommendations, but the cities will have the ultimate say, Eastland said.

The study will be limited to about 7,500 acres of the inland port generally located along the Interstate 45 corridor south of Interstate 20, where most of the development is occurring.

The entire inland port area contains 234,000 acres and extends south to the Ellis County line and west of Interstate 35.

Allen told commissioners he would prefer the planning process to include the entire port area. But Eastland said it was too large an area to study.

With a rail facility and access to major highways, the inland port functions much like a seaport, moving train and truck cargo across the country. It represents the greatest opportunity for development remaining in Dallas County.

Commissioner John Wiley Price, in whose district the port is located, said the commissioners' intent was never about anything other than bringing needed infrastructure to the area.