There is a possibility Austin will have to confront the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad issue soon, following in the footsteps of both Owatonna and Rochester.

Thursday, February 08, 2001

There is a possibility Austin will have to confront the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad issue soon, following in the footsteps of both Owatonna and Rochester.

The DM&E, which has rail lines running east and west, has made plans to expand its line from the Powder River Basin in Wyoming to Winona, a project with an estimated cost of $1.4 million. The purpose of the expansion is to transport more coal to eastern markets.

The project may affect I&M Rail Link, which runs north and south through Austin, as Roger Plath, an Owatonna citizen opposed to the expansion, explained during the Monday meeting of the Austin City Council.

Austin will become part of the big picture if transport on the DM&E line increases. If that happens, more trains could be diverted down the I&M from Owatonna to Austin and on to Chicago. Though the condition of the I&M tracks in Austin are poor enough that coal trains would not be supported in spots and the number of trains will depend upon market demands, Plath advised the council to become informed about the issue.

To that end, he left several articles regarding the issue and paper work produced by his anti-coal train group with the council.

In September, the National Surface Transportation Board issued a draft environmental impact study on the proposed DM&E project.

The purpose of the study is to inform the public of the impact to the environment as well as to give the decision-making body – the NSTB board members – a period to hear the response of the public to the proposal. Plath recommended the council express any concerns they may have about the rail project soon, because of a March deadline before the issuance of the final study.

Previously, the prospect of a DM&E connecting loop in Owatonna has created extensive debate in that city, Plath said. Rochester officials as well are "totally against" the DM&E coming through their town.

In fact, in his state of the city address, the Rochester Mayor Chuck Canfield said the best option for Rochester is if the DM&E does not upgrade the existing tracks through the middle of Rochester. The city of Rochester has dedicated a great deal of time and money to keeping DM&E’s upgrading plans outside of the city limits.

After Plath stated that several politicians disapprove of the project, including U.S. Sens. Mark Dayton and Paul Wellstone, City Councilman Dick Lang said: "Austin is a progressive and an environmental town."

Citing Austin’s rich railroad history, Lang went on to say the council "should look at more positive" descriptions of the impact of the DM&E upgrade. After the meeting, City Administrator Pat McGarvey agreed that the importance of railroads in the building of Austin cannot be overlooked.

Roy Srp of DM&E, a 30-year veteran of railroads, was present at the meeting as well. He informed the council that if the DM&E had not chosen to lay new track along the existing route, no one would have been informed of the project.

"Kevin Schieffer, president of the (DM&E) railroad, wants to meet with you," Srp added. McGarvey stated the sooner Schieffer comes to Austin the better.

The council put the issue into the matters at hand of the airport, trains and railroad committee’s 4:30 p.m. meeting today. The committee will meet in the basement conference room in the municipal building.

After the meeting, Councilwoman Mickey Jorgenson said we "have to worry about the future." She added much homework must be done on the subject in the coming days.

The complexity of the issue weighed on new airport, trains and railroad committee Chairman Wayne Goodnature: "I’m not even remotely close to understanding the various aspects of this subject."

He said he would like to see more information on the subject, so the council and the community will be "completely informed what is the impact, if any."