“SNCR has no objection to proceeding with the pending abandonment on a voluntary basis,” says the Oct. 18 filing by the state Attorney General’s office, on behalf of the state Department of Environmental Conservation. Iowa Pacific General Counsel David Michaud co-signed the letter.
The state has also filed a request to issue a certificate of interim trail use for the northern portion. The Oct. 18 letter says that SNCR is amenable to negotiating an agreement on trail use.
The track runs north from North Creek to Tahawus, where an abandoned titanium mine contains tailings that may be able to be sold. There have been negotiations to sell the tracks, or have them be part of an operating agreement that would include passenger service from Saratoga Springs to North Creek. So far the negotiations have not been successful.
