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05/23/2013 6:40:46 pm I want to point something essential out here that I think is being missed by a lot of people - particularly with the vitriol of the comments here.
This is something that your neighbors care deeply about. And they may see it differently from you. They're good people. They're working really hard to make something good happen for our community.
Maybe you disagree and maybe you want to go a different... 05/23/2013 6:38:02 pm I hate snowmobiles (and yes, I have ridden them and had lots of fun on them. I could take heroin too...) but there is simply no doubt that there would be more use as a bike trail/snowmobile trail. I'm a proponent of railroad use but the railroads in the ADKs just don't seem to make sense economically, environmentally...you name the adjective, at least not at this time. But I wouldn't want to eliminate... 05/23/2013 6:30:31 pm No Larry. I see tax dollars as the basis of civilization.
And if you want to find people who look at tax dollars as an unending source of funding, look at private enterprise and its corporate subsidies. 05/23/2013 6:28:21 pm I'm beginning to understand the underlying philosophy of many contributors. They see tax dollars as an unending source of funding for hobbies, pet projects, crazy schemes, nice-to-have programs and all sorts of things that can't stand on their own economically or are operated without reference to accepted financial controls. Railroads to nowhere, military vehicles for local policing, converted... 05/23/2013 6:25:00 pm So, it's been almost 50 years! Make up your mind (s) already! 05/23/2013 6:23:24 pm Walker that was the states plan from 1996 we are just asking them to follow their plan, that the rail removal will be used to convert it to a trail. We already have enquiries about sponsoring the trail. Where some can't grasp the huge impact others are already looking at the huge opportunity. As they put it this will be a nationally recognized trail and they want to be a part of it.
You seem to not mind the... 05/23/2013 6:17:45 pm "It certainly should not be considered an “investment.” It has been an indulgence of train hobbyists of negligible economic benefit to the region."
Ask DOT if they think they've been indulging in a train hobby for the last twenty years. Regardless of how you want to paint it, the rails constitute infrastructure with serious potential utility above and beyond the ASR. No one knows what we'll... 05/23/2013 6:12:33 pm Substantial state spending for rail service along this corridor, over many years, has not been productive. It certainly should not be considered an “investment.” It has been an indulgence of train hobbyists of negligible economic benefit to the region. No additional state funds should be devoted to rail use of this corridor until the state has considered a very credible alternative use, and they have reviewed the... 05/23/2013 6:09:47 pm "Walker, we care not because of the scrap value."
Well then stop saying that the rail/trail will cost nothing. It only costs nothing if you start out with a tidy little six million dollar nest egg. 05/23/2013 6:07:06 pm "Without investing another cent, removing the rail would create the better snow trail. Snowmobile clubs are ready willing and able to do much of the year round trail maintenance as well. We would rake, mow and light grade our 40 miles as necessary."
And when beaver dams flood sections of the trail, and culverts wash out? You forget that the ASR and DOT have been taking care of the right of way for the... 05/23/2013 6:04:02 pm "The very worst outcome, if the trail is a total bust, is that we have a trail that few people use and costs us nothing."
Oh, I see. It's going to maintain itself? How nice!
And what about the lost income from the Adirondack Scenic RR? That's not a cost? 05/23/2013 6:02:12 pm Look, the truth of the matter is that <i>no one</i> knows how big a draw the rail-trail would be in this rail corridor. Things that work just fine in other areas don't always work out so well here without subsidies. Take movie theaters for example. How the rail trail would do here is strictly hypothetical.
So while we're thinking hypothetically, consider the potential draw of the Scenic... 05/23/2013 5:43:22 pm To be sure, the bicycle aspect of the trail is speculative, however, other areas with similar situations have found the business and life style changes to be tremendously favorable. What is not speculative is the increase in business from having this trail for snowmobiling. Every business in the area; Long Lake, Lake Clear, Cranberry Lake, Childwold, Tupper Jct., Stillwater, Beaver River, #4 and others will all tell... 05/23/2013 5:40:12 pm "But it is only after the rails are gone that we will discover whether the projected use of the corridor by bikers, hikers and snowmobilers will be as high as ARTA claims it will be, and if they turn out to be wrong, Oh well, oops, sorry about that!"
The very worst outcome, if the trail is a total bust, is that we have a trail that few people use and costs us nothing. Unlike what we have now, which is a... 05/23/2013 5:36:08 pm Walker, we care not because of the scrap value. But because of the waste of spending anymore tax dollars to save a railroad that takes in 60% of their revenue not even on this line. We care because they are using the side by side trail idea to distract the public from the truth. Distracting people is one of their fortes they say we lie about their fiscal position, but we use their tax returns to determine their... 05/23/2013 5:32:12 pm Hope, a "make or break" issue? I have little doubt that Saranac Lake will survive whether it is with an expanded rail project or a bike trail. You really think without this bike trail that will be it for Tupper Lake? Saying this is make-or-break seems a little extreme. This bike trail if it happens will not "make" any of these towns. It might help but framing it as make-or-break is somewhat... 05/23/2013 5:27:29 pm Ah, yes, build it or towns will die! Bring on the wild-eyed claims! 05/23/2013 4:45:01 pm Mervel, the people who live, work and play, along this corridor, believe that this is a "make or break" issue for the economic survival of their communities no matter which side they are on. Pretty important stuff to us. 05/23/2013 4:43:05 pm Brian writes: "Weighing against their position is the fact that this experiment has been underway for a couple of decades and has produced few tangible results.
There is a debate over just how many tourists are drawn to the area by the excursion train which now operates between Lake Placid and Saranac Lake, but it’s certainly not a cornerstone attraction."
There are certainly tangible results on the... 05/23/2013 4:18:30 pm Why do we need closure? If it is viable the supporters of rail will secure funding and get the thing running, if it is not viable it will stay as we have now.
I prefer the rail lines be used for trails, but I am not obsessed with this topic, frankly it just seems like we have much much more important issues to face.
This seems like it should go in the rooftop highway discussion board somewhere. |
