Rail hearings are July 7 in Presque Isle

By Kathy McCarty  
Staff Writer
    PRESQUE ISLE — Local, state and federal officials, as well as business leaders, shippers and rail personnel  will be in attendance on Wednesday, July 7, for a meeting at the Presque Isle District Court to discuss the future of rail service between Madawaska and Millinocket.
    “A deal has not been reached between the railroad (Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway) and the state, so the Surface Transportation Board will hold a hearing July 7 in Presque Isle,” said Denis Berube, director of planning and transportation services, Northern Maine Development Commission.
     The meeting will be held at the court house at 27 Riverside Drive, beginning at 9 a.m., with various representatives offering testimony, including government officials and business leaders. Interested persons will be allowed to comment on MMA’s application to abandon 233 miles of line in Aroostook and Penobscot counties.
    Those scheduled to speak include: Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins; Congressman Michael Michaud; David Cole, commissioner of the Maine Department of Transportation or a designee; Rep. Michael Willette, District 5; MMA’s President and CEO Robert C. Grindrod, as well as MMA officials Linda Morgan and James Howard; Brian Sass or designee, Twin Rivers Company LLC; Arkon Horne or designee, Fraser Timber Limited; Stephen Schley, Portage Wood Products; Robert Penette, vice president, Irving Woodlands LLC; Alan Weber, vice president for logistics and supply chain, Huber Engineered Woods, LLC; Travis Turner, manager of Houlton facility, Louisiana-Pacific Corporation; Virginia Joles, president, LEADers Encouraging Aroostook Develpment; Walter Elish, Aroostook Partnership for Progress; Larry Clark, Presque Isle Industrial Council; Theresa Fowler, executive director, Presque Isle Area Chamber of Commerce; Jon McLaughlin, executive director, Southern Aroostook Development Corporation; Rodney Leach, manager of supply chain and facilities management, Maine Public Service Company; Denis Berube, NMDC; Steve Dobson, The Aroostook Hospitality Inn; John McNulty, Seven Islands Land Company; a representative for Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen; and Eric S. Strohmeyer.
    Voters approved a bond package in June that included $7 million to help save the tracks. Despite voter support, the Maine DOT has yet to reach an agreement with track owner MMA for purchase of the tracks, which include spurs to Caribou, Easton, Houlton, Limestone, Presque Isle and Ashland. If successful, the state plans to buy the tracks, then lease then to a rail operator to keep northern Maine’s freight moving and ensuring employment for approximately 1,722 people — jobs that could be lost if the rail lines were abandoned.
    The session is open to the public.
    “If you have even the smallest amount of interest in this issue, try to make time to attend. And if you know someone who’d be interested in attending, pass this information along,” said Berube. “The level of public participation in these things counts for a lot.”
    Space will be limited, so Berube recommends showing up early.
    “I don’t know how many people the room will hold, so if you plan on going to listen in, I’d suggest getting there early,” said Berube.