Coal storage

[Wayne Laepple]

In today's mail, I received the 2012 fund raiser appeal letter. My check will go in Monday's mail. Steve's letter was an excellent compilation of accomplishments since last fall and details the plans for the upcoming year. I'm pleased to see line items for the restroom and parking lot, not to mention the Whitefield section house. I am intrigued by mention of a new coal storage area, and I am interested in what the proposal is for this project. I agree that the current coal storage area is an eyesore and look forward to a new and improved facility. Can someone in the know describe the plan?

[James Patten]

Below is the map from the Sheepscot Site plan, recently updated by Frank Knight with the actual location of the restrooms.

The location for the coal storage will be somewhere above the letter "H".  It will be a concrete structure, eventually with a roof of some sort over it.  The exact location isn't yet known - we need to have our contractor do some grading to lower the grade next to the current spur - which then will get shoved into the lower area so that where it is now can be graded down.

The exact size and location for "J", the car shed, isn't yet known either.  We've been given a decent amount of money to start it, so Phase 1 is a basic structure that puts a roof over the cars.  So don't worry too much about coal delivery trucks not fitting between the roundhouse and car shed.

We also don't know where the Whitefield Section House goes either!

[Wayne Laepple]

Thanks, James.

[Mike Fox]

The best possible location for the coal storage would be between the I and the run through track. Next chance I get, I would like to figure this out, elevation wise. We can't cut the hump down too far, but 6 inches in the right location may help.

[Jason M Lamontagne]

Hello,

Rick and I are planning a surveying day within the next few weeks to determine elevation changes required in the entire area, for the car barn, coal storage, roundhouse, turntable, and drainage in the area.  This surveying is required prior to grading in October.  Grading is required prior to receiving the next load of coal-- which is needed now.  We plan on dumping the next load of coal out back, near but not on the final coal storage location- as a head start toward cleaning up the front of our property.  The current coal storage arrangement seems to be the source of the mess up front.  If we dump the new load of coal there now, we're looking at prolonging the up front mess by 2 to 4 years.  Our plan at the moment is to grade out back this fall for the coal storage facility (along with grading for everything else), let it settle over the winter and spring, do the concrete work next summer and then transload the coal, possibly borrowing Fred's tractor

The restroom construction and the grading to happen in October, finishing the parking lot along with that mentioned above, is the beginning of a major transformation at the RR with regard to public interface.

see ya
Jason

[Bill Reidy]

Looking at the updated site map posted above (thanks James and Frank), I was wondering -- are there any provisions for a ramp track for the transfer of cars to and from trailers?  For example:  the milk car that was transferred to trailer for the trip down to Wiscasset in the spring.

[Stewart "Start" Rhine]

Bill,

There has been discussion of having another siding that runs along the west side of the car storage building.  The track would go past the end of the structure and over towards the parking lot.  This would allow transfer of cars, etc. where the truck and trailer could get lined up with the end of track.  

As to coal storage, Jason noted it will be up along the spur behind the roundhouse.  The permanent coal dock would be west of the track.  This allows the coal truck to back in from the parking lot and unload right into the pocket without crossing any tracks.  The plan shows that no structures go east of the spur (as it feeds towards the roundhouse).  The existing natural area of trees between the lower yard and spur will stay.

Stewart

[Paul Horky]

Could the coal storage shed be made to look like the shed at Albinon?