Catskill Mountain Railroad (CMRR) Discussion - 2013

[DogBert]

It seems like every day the daily freeman runs pro- trail letters. There is something very shady about that. It's definitely time to explore other news outlets.

Offhand I didn't see any contributions to Heins campaign war chest that screamed trail groups - though they have gotten better about hiding such info behind proxies. Maybe he only gets the sack of money if he wins.

How much is the row property in Kingston worth? Selling that off would surely bring in a lot of money.

Money is driving this. I encourage all to look into this as well. Who funded other trails in the area? Were larger national organizations involved?

We all want Cmrr to win. If we all root around a little we will find answers. All you need is the Internet and a desire to expose these frauds for who they are.

[ccutler]

I think your "official response" is weak. It is written from your own perspective, and reactive.

I think you need a powerful title, like: MAYOR SEEKS TO DESTROY YOUR HERITAGE TO PLEASE SPECIAL INTERESTS

In the letter you should first make your case [rather than giving a timeline or a reaction to accusations]:

1. county got rail line for free
2. county WANTED to save the rail line
3. largely volunteer-driven, no expense to county
4. great community builder
5. great plans for future
6. WELCOME a trail alongside the rail line
then...
7. lies perpetrated by Hein, itemized in a chart
8. harassment
9. demand for an audit of their campaign contributions and identity of donors demanding that rail line be needlessly ripped up.

Summary paragraph: No reason to tear up your heritage to build a trail, when you are willing to permit the trail and keep the rail line at the same time.

Such a reply should be PRINTED and HANDED OUT THROUGHOUT KINGSTON. Then it could be given to the press. They will only be interested in your reply when there is commotion among the populace to report.

Good luck guys. I know the cards are stacked against you but you need to discredit this guy in the eyes of the voters before the next election, or its over. The government owns the rail line, and your only hope is to get this guy out.

[Otto Vondrak]

Here is one side of a flyer the railroad has been quietly passing out on the trains... It's about to get wider distribution...

KingstonMayerShayneGallo.jpg

Why did Shayne Gallo order his city employees to commit a felony crime?
(915.31 KiB) Downloaded 870 times

[Otto Vondrak]

ReleaseFEMAFundsNow.jpg

Where's the money Ulster County applied for to fix the railroad?
(699.64 KiB) Downloaded 870 times

Here's the other side... Did Ulster County fraudulently apply for FEMA funds? Have they spent it on something else and not reported it? I mean, that would be interesting...

[thebigham]

Great work!

THANKS

[scoostraw]

Has anyone ever looked into getting the U&D placed on the National Registry of Historic Places?

[Otto Vondrak]

Has anyone ever looked into getting the U&D placed on the National Registry of Historic Places?

The owner (the county) would have to sign off on the application (going through same process now for a landmark up here), so that doesn't seem likely.

-otto-

[scoostraw]

The owner (the county) would have to sign off on the application (going through same process now for a landmark up here), so that doesn't seem likely.

-otto-

I have a vague recollection of instances where landmark status was used to prevent owners from razing buildings. But I am not familiar with the statute, nor do I have any real knowledge in this area.

Good job on the fliers BTW Otto.

[DogBert]

Love the flyer.

Also I'd 'secretly' record any meeting with these Ulster county boobs. Recordings of blackmail hold up pretty well in court. (though I've read upstate has some pretty backwards local courts with not very bright judges, so it might have to be escalated in higher appeals of some sort.. I'm no lawyer - I just know that when someone was being an asshole to me and I recorded it and later stated I'd release the recording, they suddenly became less hostile).

[DogBert]

Another thought - ya'all keep track of how many people have rode the trains? Can correlate with 'tourism', and If there's been an increase over time, even better.

[tree68]

This will cost a few cents, but maybe someone will donate what they need...

Get/make some stickers. "I rode the train today." Hand them out on the trains. Ask the passengers to wear them while they shop in town after the ride.

You'd be amazed how supportive businesses can become when they find out where their business is coming from.

[airman00]

This will cost a few cents, but maybe someone will donate what they need...

Get/make some stickers. "I rode the train today." Hand them out on the trains. Ask the passengers to wear them while they shop in town after the ride.

You'd be amazed how supportive businesses can become when they find out where their business is coming from.

Kids LOVE stickers! That is a great idea.

[jaystreetcrr]

Some big money funded the "study" showing how awesome the trail would be, apparently a guy who's moved into the area and is trying to build a power base for a run at political office. There's also the scrap value of the rails, which Hein used to balance this year's budget.
I think it's about power as much as money. Politicians love to have control over land, institutions, etc. and nothing galls them more than a group of volunteers getting something done without them granting approval, disbursing funds and getting their picture taken at the ribbon cutting. Of course, if ol' Jim Bob from his Thursday night poker game gets a nice fat construction contract....
Still, at the end of the day it all has to go through the Surface Transportation Board and I haven't seen anything filed. The process seems very complex and may be out of their league but other groups have done it before and the Rails to Trails website gives detailed instructions on how to proceed. So keep up the public relations fight, keep rebuilding track but the STB is where these crooks will have to come out in the daylight.

[scoostraw]

So keep up the public relations fight, keep rebuilding track but the STB is where these crooks will have to come out in the daylight.

Here is a brief overview:

http://www.stb.dot.gov/stb/public/resou ... rails.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[RussNelson]

Generally ive noticed that trails are not the most favorite thing of the neighbors, with the potential for crime, easy get away, vandalism to their properties, etc. Of course, all this can happen with the railroad being there, but then its trespassing (not that it matters in Kingston apparently) but when its a public trail/ROW, things seem to get worse.

Let's stick to making true arguments and let the other guys get caught in their lies. Yes, the fear is about the things you list, but the reality is that when the brush is cut back and people start using the trail, the sight lines go up and there are more people watching, so less opportunity for crime. I'm sure that the CMRR has the same effect. More trains == less misuse of the railbed.