Red Rock Road and Pig's Eye Regional Park
Agenda and Presentation | May 14, 2019
December 4, 2018 Update:
A meeting with stakeholders was held to further discuss the problem. Canadian Pacific was not able to attend. There is another meeting scheduled for early January. Staff and committee members will share more information after wee know more.
October 24, 2018 Update:
On October 24, a meeting was held to discuss the issue further. The group included representatives from the St. Paul Port Authority, Canadian Pacific Railroad (CP), the Mayor's office, the police department, Council member Jane Prince's office, EMT's, a few residents, and many of the businesses from along Red Rock Road.
CP stated that through the end of 2018, they would break up the usual 105 car train to smaller increments of 25 for delivery. This will leave the road unblocked, but will also take twice as long, and require the addition of another worker. Deliveries will primarily happen between 10:00 p.m. and 3:00 a.m. It was stated, however, that a long-term solution needs to be created. In 2019, CP will need to "pass the increased hours and staffing costs along to their customers." One of the companies that heavily relies on the railroad, Gavilon, stated that these costs could be catastrophic for their business - and that there needs to be more of a sense of urgency about this issue. A couple workers from other businesses proposed adding a railroad "switcher" to the area. This person would be able to more easily separate the cars. They stated that there used to be more switchers, but that the positions seem to have been eliminated.
SECO staff submitted a letter to Councilmebmer Prince in September. Our stance is that we believe further assessment needs to be completed before we can agree to park land being used for an additional railway line. There are impacts on Pig's Eye Regional Park, the Great River Master Plan, and the ecosystem of the area that need to be taken in to consideration.
The meeting ended with the Port Authority planning a meeting in December to hash out a long-term plan. This will include an engineering and cost analysis.
August 6, 2018 Update:
On August 6 the Land Use Committee held it's monthly meeting at which the Port Authority presented a plan to make the railroad's Red Rock Terminal safer for employees in the businesses there and loading/unloading more efficient and economical for the trains.
We found out that many of the folks in the community wanted to learn more about this plan, particularly in how it will impact Pig's Eye Regional Park in the short term and in the long term. So we will be having a community meeting on Tuesday, August 21 from 6:00 - 8:00 pm at Battle Creek Rec Center to share information with the community as well as adding a feedback form here to gather information about how people feel and what they think.
A meeting with stakeholders was held to further discuss the problem. Canadian Pacific was not able to attend. There is another meeting scheduled for early January. Staff and committee members will share more information after wee know more.
October 24, 2018 Update:
On October 24, a meeting was held to discuss the issue further. The group included representatives from the St. Paul Port Authority, Canadian Pacific Railroad (CP), the Mayor's office, the police department, Council member Jane Prince's office, EMT's, a few residents, and many of the businesses from along Red Rock Road.
CP stated that through the end of 2018, they would break up the usual 105 car train to smaller increments of 25 for delivery. This will leave the road unblocked, but will also take twice as long, and require the addition of another worker. Deliveries will primarily happen between 10:00 p.m. and 3:00 a.m. It was stated, however, that a long-term solution needs to be created. In 2019, CP will need to "pass the increased hours and staffing costs along to their customers." One of the companies that heavily relies on the railroad, Gavilon, stated that these costs could be catastrophic for their business - and that there needs to be more of a sense of urgency about this issue. A couple workers from other businesses proposed adding a railroad "switcher" to the area. This person would be able to more easily separate the cars. They stated that there used to be more switchers, but that the positions seem to have been eliminated.
SECO staff submitted a letter to Councilmebmer Prince in September. Our stance is that we believe further assessment needs to be completed before we can agree to park land being used for an additional railway line. There are impacts on Pig's Eye Regional Park, the Great River Master Plan, and the ecosystem of the area that need to be taken in to consideration.
The meeting ended with the Port Authority planning a meeting in December to hash out a long-term plan. This will include an engineering and cost analysis.
August 6, 2018 Update:
On August 6 the Land Use Committee held it's monthly meeting at which the Port Authority presented a plan to make the railroad's Red Rock Terminal safer for employees in the businesses there and loading/unloading more efficient and economical for the trains.
We found out that many of the folks in the community wanted to learn more about this plan, particularly in how it will impact Pig's Eye Regional Park in the short term and in the long term. So we will be having a community meeting on Tuesday, August 21 from 6:00 - 8:00 pm at Battle Creek Rec Center to share information with the community as well as adding a feedback form here to gather information about how people feel and what they think.
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