by John Isley, Guest Contributor
Boonville meeting outlines the possibilities for area economies and tourism
The Tug Hill Commission and Northern Oneida County Council of Governments met with representatives of the Adirondack Railroad Preservation Society (ARPS) on Tuesday, November 20 to discuss the future of the railroad.
The meeting was held at the Boonville Municipal Building and was prompted by the recently announced plan by Iowa Pacific Holdings, LLC to start Pullman Car rail service from New York City to Lake Placid via the Adirondack Railway—a plan that Bill Branson of the Adirondack Railway Society has called “a game changer” for the region. Sixty people were in attendance.
Kate Fish of the Adirondack North Country Association (ANCA) opened the meeting with a slide presentation of the current train promotions and the economic impact that the new “Pullman agreement” could provide. Fish stated a “brew train” sponsored by Saranac, an artist palette train associated with the state-of-the-art “View” art center in Old Forge, a Maple Express sponsoring the maple industry, dinner trains to Forestport’s Buffalo Head Restaurant and a 100 percent increase in the bike and paddling ridership are some of the current ways that the Railway is impacting the local economy.
Branson reported that some 14,000 passengers are booked for this year’s Polar Express trains, and that 1.2 million passengers have been transported on the 70 miles of operating tract. John K Bartow, Executive Director of the NYS Tug Hill Commission said that negotiations with the Iowa train company started in June and have moved into the partnership phase.
The first “Adirondack style sleeper car” has rolled off the assembly line.
Utica city councilmen James Zecca and Frank Vescera were also present and said they will be holding their own informational meeting in Utica to unite public, private sector businesses, government officials and interested parties into a group effort to bring out of state tourists to Utica, the Mohawk Valley and the North Country.
Opposition groups to the rail line were also present who stated their wish to remove the tracks from Lake Placid to Old Forge and salvage the rails in order to develop a hiking, biking and snowmobile trail.
Bartow and Branson said that the groups were in negotiations with the Department of Environmental Conservation to develop a map of alternate trails near the line and that all parties need to brings their ideas to the table.
The meeting got heated when one resident was opposed to “spending another dime” of taxpayer monies for “this boondoggle.”
Most in attendance appeared supportive, believing this new partnership in rail service to be the beginning of greater economic growth for the area.
Another planning meeting will be hosted by the Tug Hill Commission on Wednesday, December 5 at 5 p.m. at the Boonville Municipal Building.
