08-13-2011, 07:28 PM
I agree with you Charlie. Apparently, it was the opinion of more than one of the group's "higher ups" that the trains should have a used look. However, recent attempts to actually paint of fix anything always get stalled. There is CONSTANTLY new reasons that the group is not allowed to fix or restore anything, and anytime any large amount of work is getting done, Police are sent to chase them off. They've been getting ready to paint the locomotives into the Roebling Steel colors.
The day I was there, I left right before the police "condemned" the trains as being unsafe, but this was not done by the books and turned out to be unfounded (they're just rusty, not decrepit).
After that got sorted out, they tried to work on the stuff again, and were chased off AGAIN, now the mayor was making claims that this was "abandoned property", because the trains couldn't be moved in 30 days. As it turns out, that is also fishy, because soon they try to sell these trains at an auction, which is illegal since they don't actually own the trains and the township apparently really didn't have the rights to sell the trains.
The latest thing is now the trains are supposed to be "impounded", but this is using car and truck laws, and apparently its involving some legal wiggling and no one is quite sure the law will let them do that either. Besides, its not like these trains can just be picked up on a truck and shipped off. I'm sure they're going to sit there MUCH longer.
And lets not forget how this all got started. The township was physically there the day that 45 tonner was put on the ground. They told the trust to move it over and they moved it to where the township said to put it. The township made the mistake of leaving about a foot and a half of that thing over the side of Wawa's easement. The land deal to swap with the county wasn't even in jeopardy, at least not until the mayor of this town called the county seat about it.
It seems the ONLY reason that land swap might be in trouble is because the county does not want to be bothered with local politics, it has nothing to do with that extra locomotive being there. Indeed, it was the mayor who decided to over rule the township council's agreement to let them put that 45 ton switcher there after the fact.
Its just a tad agitating (not really at you, but using your words), that people say its an eye sore. The trains are rough, but that WHOLE area was loaded with debris from the past 100 years or so of the railroad having been there, and they've removed much of the junk and cleaned up a lot of the old buildings that would other wise be collapsing on themselves. On top of building the Section house back up, they rebuilt an old shed that belonged there, and an old telegraph house. They've cut up and scrapped endless amounts of old conduits and pipes to no where and junk that was in the ground.
Overall, the site is in MUCH better shape than it was before these guys came in.
I'll agree that some of the stuff that particular members try to save is worthless (like a piece of an old diesel headlight, that can go! same with a bunch of other rusty track bits that they'll never use and only need a couple to satisfy any "exhibit", not buckets worth), but a lot gets done all the time, until recently anyway.
Its easy to pick sides with these issues. I know the Historic trust has its faults, and as much as the trust demonizes the mayor, I'm sure he is not so much pure evil as he is just looking after his own agenda (such as revitalizing the "downtown" area of the town) and is pissed about some of the more personal battles going on between some of the members. I don't have an unrealistic polarized vision of good and evil in this situation, but you have to admit this is getting just a tad outrageous.
Still, its not like residents are loosing their minds over this "eye sore". More people have turned out in support of keeping the trains than not, and even the town council passed a resolution to keep them. If i wasn't afraid the police would arrest me, I'd probably just find some guys willing to help me paint the damn things and get this issue over with. I've done it before with that CNJ caboose, i can do it again. I'm dead serious to, i've got brushes and masking tape. all I need is to match the paint and see what i can get done.
The day I was there, I left right before the police "condemned" the trains as being unsafe, but this was not done by the books and turned out to be unfounded (they're just rusty, not decrepit).
After that got sorted out, they tried to work on the stuff again, and were chased off AGAIN, now the mayor was making claims that this was "abandoned property", because the trains couldn't be moved in 30 days. As it turns out, that is also fishy, because soon they try to sell these trains at an auction, which is illegal since they don't actually own the trains and the township apparently really didn't have the rights to sell the trains.
The latest thing is now the trains are supposed to be "impounded", but this is using car and truck laws, and apparently its involving some legal wiggling and no one is quite sure the law will let them do that either. Besides, its not like these trains can just be picked up on a truck and shipped off. I'm sure they're going to sit there MUCH longer.
And lets not forget how this all got started. The township was physically there the day that 45 tonner was put on the ground. They told the trust to move it over and they moved it to where the township said to put it. The township made the mistake of leaving about a foot and a half of that thing over the side of Wawa's easement. The land deal to swap with the county wasn't even in jeopardy, at least not until the mayor of this town called the county seat about it.
It seems the ONLY reason that land swap might be in trouble is because the county does not want to be bothered with local politics, it has nothing to do with that extra locomotive being there. Indeed, it was the mayor who decided to over rule the township council's agreement to let them put that 45 ton switcher there after the fact.
Its just a tad agitating (not really at you, but using your words), that people say its an eye sore. The trains are rough, but that WHOLE area was loaded with debris from the past 100 years or so of the railroad having been there, and they've removed much of the junk and cleaned up a lot of the old buildings that would other wise be collapsing on themselves. On top of building the Section house back up, they rebuilt an old shed that belonged there, and an old telegraph house. They've cut up and scrapped endless amounts of old conduits and pipes to no where and junk that was in the ground.
Overall, the site is in MUCH better shape than it was before these guys came in.
I'll agree that some of the stuff that particular members try to save is worthless (like a piece of an old diesel headlight, that can go! same with a bunch of other rusty track bits that they'll never use and only need a couple to satisfy any "exhibit", not buckets worth), but a lot gets done all the time, until recently anyway.
Its easy to pick sides with these issues. I know the Historic trust has its faults, and as much as the trust demonizes the mayor, I'm sure he is not so much pure evil as he is just looking after his own agenda (such as revitalizing the "downtown" area of the town) and is pissed about some of the more personal battles going on between some of the members. I don't have an unrealistic polarized vision of good and evil in this situation, but you have to admit this is getting just a tad outrageous.
Still, its not like residents are loosing their minds over this "eye sore". More people have turned out in support of keeping the trains than not, and even the town council passed a resolution to keep them. If i wasn't afraid the police would arrest me, I'd probably just find some guys willing to help me paint the damn things and get this issue over with. I've done it before with that CNJ caboose, i can do it again. I'm dead serious to, i've got brushes and masking tape. all I need is to match the paint and see what i can get done.
Modeling New Jersey Under the Wire 1978-1979.
![[Image: logosmall.png]](http://i543.photobucket.com/albums/gg445/CAB_IV/Model%20Trains%202013/logosmall.png)