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 Post subject: L&A 503
PostPosted: Wed Apr 11, 2018 10:47 am 

Joined: Thu Feb 27, 2014 10:08 am
Posts: 705
Mr. Sobczynski posted a 503 update video on his FB page.

https://www.facebook.com/That-Steam-Guy-319972281379363/

The page is public so you do not have to be on FaceBook to view. He was in Port Arthur yesterday. He did not wait for the City Council to put out an RFP but rather went down there and submitted his proposal to everyone likely to be involved in the decision-making process. His supporter on the Council, Councilmember Lewis, will read the proposal at the next Council meeting. No work has been done on relocating 503 for the abatement of the underlying ballast and soil.


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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Wed Apr 11, 2018 2:11 pm 

Joined: Thu Feb 27, 2014 10:08 am
Posts: 705
Mr. Sobczynski has created a public Facebook page dedicated to his efforts on behalf of L&A 503.

https://www.facebook.com/KCS-503-596234397379036/

Rick, please consider unlocking the thread you started and merging these two posts into it for continuity and ease of reference. Thank you.


Last edited by Scranton Yard on Thu Apr 12, 2018 10:24 am, edited 1 time in total.

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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 9:56 am 

Joined: Wed Feb 16, 2005 11:17 pm
Posts: 321
Location: Houston, TX
Does anyone who watched this care to paraphrase his presentation?


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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 10:05 am 

Joined: Thu Feb 27, 2014 10:08 am
Posts: 705
Mr. Sobczynski's most recent media coverage on KFDM, the local CBS affiliate:

http://kfdm.com/news/local/preservationists-raises-67k-in-effort-to-acquire-historic-train


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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 11:16 am 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 5:19 pm
Posts: 2557
Location: Sackets Harbor, NY
I listened to his whole pitch and here's my takeaway.

1. He has submitted an unsolicited proposal to the Mayor/City Mgr. with copies to all members of the City Council.

2. There has been additional visible deterioration to the engine since his initial involvement the beginning of March.

3. There is no sign of any work yet being done to move the engine from its current location.

4. He did not use any of his 4 minute long video to speak to any specifics as to what is in the proposal he has submitted, despite repeated requests for supporters to submit emails supporting it.

I will suggest to Jason that he revise his video presentation and at least give a short summary of what's in the proposal he has submitted that he wants support for.

Ross Rowland


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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 11:59 am 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 12:15 am
Posts: 585
From everything Jason has said, it sounds like the plan has not changed. Other than telling Port Arthur that it would all be done at no cost to the city, here is the stated plan from the Go Fund Me page:https://www.gofundme.com/help-save-the-la-503-friends-of
------

1) purchase the locomotive from the contractor hired to perform the demolition and fund the move of the locomotive out of Port Arthur.

2) place the locomotive under the care of a non-profit organization dedicated exclusively to its ongoing rehabilitation.

3) finalize arrangements for the use of a restoration facility and restore the locomotive operation via funding provided through donations and from The Royal Palm Railway Experience which is operated by the Orlando and Northwestern Railroad in Florida.

4) move the locomotive to Florida for long-term operation with the Orlando and Northwestern Railway. This is a campaign to save a locomotive that does have a future! These funds will accomplish the purchase from the scrapper and the initial move from the park to the Texas State Railroad.

I, Jason Sobczynski, will handle the disbursement of the funds raised to the owner of the locomotive for the purchase of the artifact, to the trucking company for the transportation of the artifact to the Texas state Railroad, and to the crane companies which will be utilized to load and unload the locomotive and tender. Following the creation of the trust which will care for this locomotive, ownership of the locomotive will be transferred to the trust for $1.
--------

I am sure he has added the how it will be done and time table to complete the project, for what is said above in the proposal. Oh and the purchase price would be going to the city instead of the contractor...

Rich C.

P.S. So basically PA gets money to offset the cost of remediation instead of having to find money to build a new panel track, move the locomotive and stabilize the locomotive, while still being at a liability risk if anyone gets hurt after climbing over the display fence.


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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 12:17 pm 

Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 1:37 pm
Posts: 2213
Yeah, but the 'stated plan' has to be changed, and changed radically, if Jason and the City people are not going to just be talking past each other.

The only way the locomotive is leaving Port Arthur at this point is if Jason can convince the folks to let it go. Beard alone has not only stated categorically this will not happen, he has essentially savaged Jason as an outsider trying to steal away "their" locomotive. To date I have seen nothing addressing either this perception or what is being done to counteract it.

I continue to think that the City people think they're going to 'get their cake and eat it too' now that they "know" there is $60K-plus of money on the table for something they were about to scrap as lagniappe. That none of the GoFundMe money is available if the locomotive stays does not seem to have registered clearly, from any of the voices trying to tell their stories to local media or public opinion.


I 'second' the informal motion to get Jason to re-record the specific plan he has at this point in time to work with the City to preserve 503. If that can include getting the engine moved for restoration at some point, even to a protected location close to Port Arthur -- so much the better; that might justify keeping some of the GoFundMe receipts against that eventuality. But I don't see that being politically possible, or even particularly advisable to promote, at this point in time.

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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 4:43 pm 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 12:15 am
Posts: 585
2 things to keep in mind;
1. Beard is a former Councilman, not current, the only power he has standing on a soap box and flapping his lips.
2. Of the $60K+ raised, $35K (IIRC) was purchase price and the remaining ~30K was transportation to Rusk & initial stabilization. Also per GFM money must be used for stated purpose or refunded, it can not be redirected, so unless she moved to Rusk, Beard's group will have to approach the railroading community themselves to ask for donations. I doubt many of the people that donated money to the GFM would send any money to let her rot in place.

I wish both groups the best of luck, but I fear for 503's future if she stays in PA. Though it would be interesting to get an update from Beard's 503 Fund to see how much they have raised.


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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 5:46 pm 

Joined: Sun Jan 30, 2005 2:27 am
Posts: 569
Location: Winters, TX
I'd really like to know what Mr. Beard brings to the table in the way of resources, experience and just a general game plan. Who will do the work? What restoration skills do they have? What is the ultimate goal? His Facebook page seems to be more of a railfanning Port Arthur in the good ol' days rather than any attempt to "Save The 503."

Whatever happens, I hope it happens soon. It was rather shocking to see the cab floor hanging down and other rusted out portions in Jason's update video.


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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Fri Apr 13, 2018 9:16 am 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 1:51 pm
Posts: 11482
Location: Somewhere east of Prescott, AZ along the old Santa Fe "Prescott & Eastern"
co614 wrote:
In this latest chapter Jason is asking for folks to write emails supporting the unsolicited proposal he just submitted without saying a word of what's in his document. I have written him urging him to revise the video pitch and include a brief summary of his proposal.


I should go buy a lottery ticket, or something. I fully agree with Mr. Bombastic the 614th. We need to know exactly what we're supposed to be supporting, other than a bloke with a smudged cherubic face.


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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Fri Apr 13, 2018 10:08 am 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 5:19 pm
Posts: 2557
Location: Sackets Harbor, NY
Please buy 2 tickets and I'll send you a check for both of them and we can split the winnings.

Thanks, Ross Rowland a.k.a. Mr. Bombastic the 614th.


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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Fri Apr 13, 2018 10:15 am 

Joined: Wed Feb 24, 2010 8:21 pm
Posts: 534
Location: Danbury, CT
crij wrote:
2 things to keep in mind;
1. Beard is a former Councilman, not current, the only power he has standing on a soap box and flapping his lips.



He has more power than you give him credit. He is a taxpaying citizen with the desire (regardless of motivation) to speak up. That alone, carries more power than some strangers from out of town.

Jason is a stranger from out of town. The area is known for its hospitality, but people tend to get defensive when a stranger shows up uninvited, starts poking around in the yard, and stirs up trouble. Everyone here on RyPN knows better than that, but it is apparent that a few of the fine folks in Port Arthur don’t.

Mr. Beard is one of many who are tired of watching their city decline, decay, and die. I understand. I was born in Port Arthur and grew up in the area. My parents always said that there were very few reasons to go down into “Old Port Arthur” and I certainly didn’t belong there after dark. I left the area after joining the military some twenty years ago and aside from visiting family, I have no desire to return.

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RMNE/NAUG


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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Fri Apr 13, 2018 4:26 pm 

Joined: Wed Feb 16, 2005 11:17 pm
Posts: 321
Location: Houston, TX
I have been somewhat involved in this thing from the beginning, if you will note the date line on my first posts here.

If I owned a locomotive, and anyone came to me with a proposal, here is what I would want to know and I would want it all documented, start to finish.

So, here are my questions.

1. Who are you and what is your background?

2. Where have you worked, and what have you done?

3. Who are your references, and I mean at the places that you have worked, not just your buddies down the street.

4. Where are you going to work on it?

5. Besides you, who will be your restoration crew, and who are they and what are their
references and accomplishments?

6. What is your budget for the restoration?

7. Do you have the money NOW, and truthfully, do you have more than twice as much money available to you NOW, than you budget for the job?

8. When you are done and the locomotive is operable, where are you going to operate it?

9. I want it to still be mine when you get done, so what do I get out of it while you operate it, when do I get it back and in what specific condition do I get it back?

10. Where is the $ BOND that I expect you to put up if the locomotive is NOT returned to me in the specified condition and the end of the lease term?

If you can answer those questions, then we can talk. If you can't, just go away and don't bother me.


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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Sat Apr 14, 2018 5:24 pm 

Joined: Sun May 15, 2005 2:22 pm
Posts: 1543
elueck wrote:
I have been somewhat involved in this thing from the beginning, if you will note the date line on my first posts here.

If I owned a locomotive, and anyone came to me with a proposal, here is what I would want to know and I would want it all documented, start to finish.

So, here are my questions.

1. Who are you and what is your background?

2. Where have you worked, and what have you done?

3. Who are your references, and I mean at the places that you have worked, not just your buddies down the street.

4. Where are you going to work on it?

5. Besides you, who will be your restoration crew, and who are they and what are their
references and accomplishments?

6. What is your budget for the restoration?

7. Do you have the money NOW, and truthfully, do you have more than twice as much money available to you NOW, than you budget for the job?

8. When you are done and the locomotive is operable, where are you going to operate it?

9. I want it to still be mine when you get done, so what do I get out of it while you operate it, when do I get it back and in what specific condition do I get it back?

10. Where is the $ BOND that I expect you to put up if the locomotive is NOT returned to me in the specified condition and the end of the lease term?

If you can answer those questions, then we can talk. If you can't, just go away and don't bother me.


Those are good questions for a restorer submitting a proposal to restore to operation. And Jason would probably give favorable answers to all those questions. But the problem I see is that the City of Port Arthur is not looking for anything beyond just a cosmetic restoration. So they are not interested in a proposal to restore to operation regardless of how well qualified it is. What is needed is a proposal to fully restore to operation without the sense that 503 is being unjustly taken from Port Arthur. That is the challenge.


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 Post subject: Re: L&A 503
PostPosted: Sat Apr 14, 2018 7:31 pm 

Joined: Sat Oct 17, 2015 5:55 pm
Posts: 2279
Ron Travis wrote:

Those are good questions for a restorer submitting a proposal to restore to operation. And Jason would probably give favorable answers to all those questions. But the problem I see is that the City of Port Arthur is not looking for anything beyond just a cosmetic restoration. So they are not interested in a proposal to restore to operation regardless of how well qualified it is. What is needed is a proposal to fully restore to operation without the sense that 503 is being unjustly taken from Port Arthur. That is the challenge.


Exactly right. I know leasing but not owning a locomotive would make someone about to put over $100k (probably a lot more) into it nervous, but perhaps a $1 a year lease for 25 years might do the job.


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